1.16. Major Accidents and Disasters

  1. The major accidents and disasters Array EIA chapter considers the potential for the Array to cause, and the vulnerability of the Array to, major accidents and/or disasters. A major accident is defined as an event that threatens immediate or delayed serious environmental effects to human health, welfare and/or the environment and requires the use of resources beyond those that of the client or its appointed representatives (i.e. contractors) to manage. A disaster is a man-made/external hazard (such as an act of terrorism) or a natural hazard (such as an earthquake) with the potential to cause an event or situation that meets the definition of a major accident. A major accident may be caused by a disaster.
  2. The baseline presented for major accidents and disasters is based on a summary of the information collected through a detailed desktop review of existing studies and datasets for the marine mammals, commercial fisheries, shipping and navigation, aviation,military and communications, infrastructure and other users, and climatic effects Array EIA chapters.
  3. The major accidents and disasters assessment of effects has followed the methodology that directs the assessment to focus on the likelihood but potentially high consequence events such as major spill, explosion, fire etc. (IEMA, 2020).
  4. The following potential impacts were assessed:
  • collision and allision (to and from vessels and aircraft);
  • unexploded ordnance (unplanned detonation);
  • pollution of the marine environment from vessels;
  • fire at wind turbines/OSPs; and
  • snagging (to and from fishing vessels).
  1. The assessment of effects established that for all risks identified, designed in measures would be sufficient to suitably manage the risk.
  2. There is a requirement to tow floating substructures during the construction phase and potentially during the operation and maintenance phase for major component replacement purposes. In terms of the cumulative effects of towing substructure, it is predicted that standard mitigation will be in place across all other offshore wind farms within the vicinity of the Array.
  3. As there are no LSE1 relating to major accidents and disasters after consideration of the designed in measures, no assessment of inter-related or transboundary effects has been undertaken.