The first INSITE Call for Proposals led to a Phase 1 research programme consisting of nine projects that concluded in 2017. In 2018, Phase 2 of INSITE was developed in partnership with NERC. NERC launched its INSITE Call for Proposals in 2019 and in April 2020 awarded around £5Million in grants to seven projects addressing the three Challenges in the NERC Announcement of Opportunity.
An estimated 30,000 km2 of the marine environment worldwide is host to man-made infrastructure and recent studies have shown that in addition to structural changes at these sites the abundance and diversity of sea-life is also modified.
With an extensive body of research already completed across North Sea sites, the programme of science led by INSITE, is continues to inform this relatively new area of interest.
The first Call for Proposals funded by industry, led to a Phase 1 research programme consisting of nine projects that concluded in 2017. In 2018, Phase 2 of INSITE was developed in partnership with NERC (Natural Environment Research Council). NERC launched its INSITE call for Proposals in 2019 and in April 2020 awarded around £5Million in grants to seven projects.
In November 2020 INSITE established a new PhD Scholarships Programme. Led by the Programme Advisory Group (PAG) the Call for Proposals invited universities and research institutions to propose PhD’s which increase the understanding of the ecosystems on and around man-made structures in the North Sea.
Changes in the ecosystem which occur due to the placement of man-made structures in the marine environment or as a consequence of their removal
Comparisons between the ecosystem structure and function on native and nonnative hard substrate
Variability in ecosystem structure and function on man-made structures against varying temporal scales
Anthropogenic structures are deployed in marine environments to support industrial activities such as energy production. Sessile marine organisms rapidly colonise these offshore structures, which in turn attract mobile invertebrates, fish and top predators.
Principal Investigator: Dr Thomas Wilding
Organisation: Scottish Association for Marine Science
The North Sea is one of the most industrialised marine environments on the planet, with thousands of man-made structures (MMS) including oil and gas platforms, pipelines, subsea cable routes, and marine renewable energy installations. Much of the infrastructure relating to the oil and gas industry has been in place for decades and is coming to the end of its economic life. In contrast, the marine renewable energy industry is expanding with many windfarms planned for construction in the near future.
Principal Investigator: Dr Debbie Russell
