The purpose of Phase 3, and indeed the ongoing aim of the INSITE Programme, is to provide stakeholders with the independent scientific evidence-base needed to better understand the influence of marine artificial structures (MAS) on the North Sea ecosystem.
INSITE Phase 3 has secured £2.025 million from 9 sponsors to run for three years from September 2024 to September 2027. The programme includes a major collaboration with the Natural Environment Research Council (NERC) on the Value of Marine Artificial Structures (ValMAS) project, which brings an additional £5 million in funding, alongside INSITE commissioned projects specifically designed to address identified research priorities.
Phase 3 targets critical gaps in decommissioning evidence, contaminants and breakdown materials from pipelines, while advancing understanding of the ecological and social value of marine artificial structures. This phase aims to build strong stakeholder relationships through effective engagement, working to bring the policy-science interface, identified in Phase 2, closer together and facilitate collaboration between industry and scientific research teams.
The project will tackle the complex challenge of understanding public and stakeholder attitudes concerning the decommissioning of oil and gas platforms, offshore wind farms, their associated infrastructure, and the management of shipwrecks in the North Sea. The vision is to deliver comprehensive, transparent and impactful research that provides an evidence-based and stakeholder-informed foundation for policy development and marine governance.
The project focuses on both the breakdown and dispersal of physical particles from rigid pipelines and the mobilisation and environmental fate of contaminants found within the pipeline scale.
Led by PML’s Professor Nicola Beaumont, the Value of Marine Artificial Structures (ValMAS) project aims to support a just, nature-positive, and economically efficient transition to low-carbon offshore infrastructure. This ambitious four-year programme will generate vital new evidence on how MAS impact the ocean environment, economy, and society.
INSITE disseminates findings through diverse channels including major conferences such as the Marine Alliance of Science and Technology Annual Science Meeting and International Council for Exploration of the Seas Annual Science Meeting, as well as the INSITE-managed annual Structures In the Marine Environment conference, and other INSITE policy briefs, webinars and website updates.
INSITE provides more targeted stakeholder briefings, engaging with UK government bodies including Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs, Scottish Government, Joint Nature Conservation Committee, Natural England, NatureScot, Marine Management Organisation, OPRED, Department for Energy Security and Net Zero, North Sea Transition Authority, The Crown Estate and Crown Estate Scotland, alongside OSPAR and industry groups, such as Offshore Energies UK and International Association of Oil and Gas Producers.
If you would like a briefing on any INSITE research please contact us here.
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