Marine Energy

The generation of renewable energy from tides, waves, currents, salinity, and temperature gradients in the oceans, seas, and rivers.

Marine renewable energy (MRE), also known as ocean energy or marine and hydrokinetic energy (MHK), refers to the various ways to generate electricity from the world’s oceans, seas, and rivers. Movement of water occurs naturally in these bodies of water in the form of waves, tides, and currents. Although many are in early stages of research and development, there is a wide variety of MRE technologies capable of generating electricity from the movement of water, as well as from differences in water temperature and salinity.

The relevant technologies can be classified into the following categories:

The environmental concerns associated with MRE technologies vary substantially based on the technology type, device design, and location. The primary environmental concerns typically encompass animal collisions with dynamic devices, impacts from underwater noise, and concerns about changes to the physical environment.

Please note: Tethys classifies offshore wind energy separately from MRE.

Photo: Simec Atlantis

Marine and Wind Energy Environmental Documents

Tethys is a knowledge hub that contains documents on the environmental effects of wind and marine energy. The table below contains all of the documents in the Tethys Knowledge Base associated with Marine Energy.

Total: 3511

Searches title and abstract.
Title Author Date Content Type Technology Stressor Receptor
Effects and management implications of emerging marine renewable energy technologies Copping, A., Wood, D., Rumes, B. Journal Article Marine Energy, OTEC, Salinity Gradient Chemicals, EMF, Entanglement, Habitat Change, Noise Bats, Birds, Fish, Marine Mammals
Environmental impacts and emissions reduction potential of floating wind and marine energy in future energy scenarios of Great Britain Struthers, I. Thesis Marine Energy, Tidal, Wind Energy, Floating Offshore Wind Human Dimensions
Habitat Change Evidence Base OES-Environmental Summary Marine Energy Habitat Change
Electromagnetic Fields Evidence Base OES-Environmental Summary Marine Energy EMF
Displacement Evidence Base OES-Environmental Summary Marine Energy Displacement
Changes in Oceanographic Systems Evidence Base OES-Environmental Summary Marine Energy, Tidal, Wave Changes in Flow
Entanglement Evidence Base OES-Environmental Summary Marine Energy, Wind Energy, Floating Offshore Wind Entanglement
Underwater Noise Evidence Base OES-Environmental Summary Marine Energy Noise
Collision Risk Evidence Base OES-Environmental Summary Marine Energy, Ocean Current, Riverine, Tidal Collision
Stressor-Specific Guidance Document: Changes in Habitat OES-Environmental Report Marine Energy Habitat Change
Stressor-Specific Guidance Document: Electromagnetic Fields OES-Environmental Report Marine Energy EMF
Stressor-Specific Guidance Document: Entanglement OES-Environmental Report Marine Energy Entanglement
Stressor-Specific Guidance Document: Oceanographic Systems OES-Environmental Report Marine Energy Changes in Flow
Marine Renewable Energy: An Introduction to Environmental Effects OES-Environmental Summary Marine Energy, Tidal, Wave Changes in Flow, Collision, Displacement, EMF, Entanglement, Habitat Change, Noise Birds, Ecosystem Processes, Fish, Invertebrates, Marine Mammals, Physical Environment, Human Dimensions
Stressor-Specific Guidance Document: Underwater Noise OES-Environmental Report Marine Energy Noise
Stressor-Specific Guidance Document: Collision Risk OES-Environmental Report Marine Energy Collision
How do tides affect underwater acoustic propagation? A collaborative approach to improve internal wave modeling at basin to global scales Schönau, M., Hiron, L., Ragland, J. Journal Article Marine Energy, Tidal Noise
Potential environmental impacts of marine renewable energy due to the release of microplastic particles from synthetic mooring cables Paredes, G., Vianello, A. Journal Article Marine Energy, Wind Energy, Floating Offshore Wind Chemicals Physical Environment, Water Quality
Towards more accurate sound field verification using directional acoustic filtering Barosin, E. , Raghukumar, K. Journal Article Marine Energy, Tidal Noise
Enhancing marine wildlife observations: the application of tethered balloon systems and advanced imaging sensors for sustainable marine energy development Amerson, A., Dexheimer, D. Journal Article Marine Energy, Wind Energy, Fixed Offshore Wind, Floating Offshore Wind Birds, Marine Mammals, Cetaceans
What is the value of innovative offshore renewable energy deployment to the UK economy? [2025 Update] Noble, D., Grattan, K., Jeffrey, H. Report Marine Energy, Tidal, Wave, Wind Energy, Floating Offshore Wind Human Dimensions, Social & Economic Data
Tidal Stream Energy Project: Collision Risk Data and Evidence Summary Phillips, E., Wren, S., King, G. Report Marine Energy, Tidal Avoidance, Collision, EMF, Entanglement, Habitat Change, Noise Birds, Seabirds, Fish, Demersal Fish, Pelagic Fish, Invertebrates, Marine Mammals, Cetaceans, Pinnipeds, Physical Environment, Sediment Transport, Human Dimensions, Legal & Policy
Sustainability Assessment of an Oscillating Water Column During the Design, Installation, Operation, and Disassembly Phases Gallego-Ramírez, C., López-Mosquera, J., Chica, E. Journal Article Marine Energy, Wave Attraction, Avoidance, Changes in Flow, Chemicals, Collision, Displacement, EMF, Entanglement, Habitat Change, Noise, Vessel Strike Birds, Ecosystem Processes, Fish, Invertebrates, Marine Mammals, Cetaceans, Pinnipeds, Physical Environment, Sediment Transport, Water Quality, Human Dimensions, Environmental Impact Assessment, Fisheries, Navigation, Recreation & Tourism, Social & Economic Data, Visual Impacts
IEA-OES Annual Report: An Overview of Ocean Energy Activities in 2024 Ocean Energy Systems (OES) Report Marine Energy, OTEC, Tidal, Wave Human Dimensions
Collaboratively Advancing our Understanding of Electromagnetic Fields – what do you need to know? Hutchison, Z., Gill, A. Workshop Article Marine Energy, Wind Energy EMF Fish, Invertebrates
Wave energy technology development in Ireland: Employing the triple helix model of innovation for pragmatic policy interventions Barry, C., Ringwood, J. Journal Article Marine Energy, Wave Human Dimensions, Legal & Policy, Stakeholder Engagement
The evolution of equity in offshore renewable energy: A systematic literature review Tighsazzadeh, M., Doyon, A., Hirsch, S. Journal Article Marine Energy, Wind Energy Human Dimensions, Stakeholder Engagement
Marine Renewable Energy Resources in Peru: A Sustainable Blue Energy for Explore and Develop Cacciuttolo, C., Pérez, G., Falcón, M. Journal Article Marine Energy, Ocean Current, Tidal, Wave Human Dimensions, Marine Spatial Planning
13 - Marine energy Copping, A., Yang, Z. Journal Article Marine Energy Human Dimensions
Outlook on the development of eco-friendly offshore renewable energy technologies Sun, P., Jiang, Z., Chen, Y. Journal Article Marine Energy, Tidal, Wave, Wind Energy, Fixed Offshore Wind, Floating Offshore Wind Changes in Flow, Collision, EMF, Entanglement, Habitat Change, Noise Birds, Seabirds, Fish, Invertebrates, Marine Mammals, Human Dimensions, Legal & Policy, Marine Spatial Planning
Guidance for Monitoring and Reporting of Underwater Noise Chumbinho, R. Report Marine Energy, Wind Energy Noise Ecosystem Processes, Marine Mammals
Bayesian networks for assessing the sustainability of the marine renewable energy sector in the blue economy of Spanish ports Vaca-Cabrero, J., González-Cancelas, N., Camaro-Orive, A. Journal Article Marine Energy Human Dimensions, Marine Spatial Planning
A Policy Scan of Cumulative Effects Assessment in Support of Renewable Clean Growth Projects in Canada Tedeschi, A., Stoot, L., Rytwinski, T. Journal Article Marine Energy, Wind Energy Human Dimensions, Legal & Policy
Expanding Social Impact Assessment Methodologies Within SDGs: A Case Study on Novel Wind and Tidal Turbine Blades Development Peraki, L., Kontouli, N., Gkika, A. Journal Article Marine Energy, Tidal, Wind Energy, Fixed Offshore Wind, Floating Offshore Wind Human Dimensions, Social & Economic Data
Autonomous sensor suite for evaluating fish-turbine interactions and environmental impacts in marine renewable energy and hydropower Salalila, A., Lu, J., Martinez, J. Journal Article Marine Energy, Tidal Changes in Flow, Collision Fish
SafeWave Deliverable 3.2 Sound Propagation Modelling Gambin, J.A.G., Topon, K.A.S., Felis, I. Report Marine Energy, Wave Noise
The Blue Economy in Los Angeles County Charting a Course Forward Durante, G., Dunsker, M., Sedgewick, S. Report Marine Energy, Wind Energy Human Dimensions, Social & Economic Data
UK Ocean Energy Review 2024 Grattan, K., Noble, D., Jeffrey, H. Report Marine Energy, Tidal, Wave Human Dimensions, Legal & Policy, Social & Economic Data
SIDS Lighthouses Initiative: Progress and way forward Dhabi, A. Report Marine Energy Human Dimensions, Stakeholder Engagement
Evaluation of the Hydrodynamic Impacts of Tidal Turbine Arrays in Jiaozhou Bay Zhang, C., Yang, X., Jiang, Y. Journal Article Marine Energy, Tidal Changes in Flow Physical Environment, Sediment Transport
Displaying 81 - 120 of 3511 results