Our Ocean has enough energy to power our civilization. However, Ocean energy has been slow to be adopted due to technology costs, subsidization of fossil fuels, and a general lack of awareness of the ocean environment. For too long, the Ocean has been a dumping ground from which we extract what we can.

Marine renewable energy can transform this linear relationship into one which helps regenerate the ocean by displacing fossil fuel use, regenerating ocean processes that sequester carbon and rebuild biodiversity. This starts with recognizing the natural capital value of the ocean spaces and planning activities with regeneration in mind.

Objectives

• The session objective presented opportunities and constraints for the regenerative development of Ocean resources.
• The nascent rise of the hydrogen economy allows for new business models and supply chain types.
• The panel discussed the works being undertaken in TA6619 - Marine Aquaculture, Reefs, Renewable Energy, and Ecotourism for Ecosystem Services, notably the NIMP planning tool, and how this could be used to accelerate the adoption of marine renewable energy in ADB DMCs.