New research highlights lessons from past marine energy transitions for coastal communities

New research from TRANSECTS, the Heriot-Watt-led programme examining how marine energy transitions affect coastal communities over time, warns that current governance arrangements may leave coastal communities bearing the cost of the clean energy transition, with limited long-term benefits.

The UK Research and Innovation-funded TRANSitions in Energy for Coastal Communities Over Time and Space (TRANSECTS) project examines successive waves of marine industry development, from 18th century whaling and fisheries, to offshore oil and gas and the rapid expansion of renewable energy, and how each has left lasting social and economic imprints on coastal areas.

TRANSECTS researchers at the University of Aberdeen's Just Transition Lab have published a report that draws on more than 200 years of change across three coastal sites: Orkney, North-east Scotland and the Humber Estuary.

The research suggests that today's shift to offshore renewables must guard against echoing long-standing patterns of economic instability, limited local control and uneven distribution of wealth.

Based on an analysis of 181 historical and contemporary records spanning the 1800s to the present day, the report finds that marine energy transitions are not isolated events, but cumulative processes. Decisions made decades, or even centuries ago, continue to shape how communities experience change today.

Across all three case studies, the report identifies persistent challenges for coastal communities, including:

• Limited local influence, driven by centralised and reactive governance structures

• Boom-and-bust economic cycles that leave communities vulnerable once industries decline

• Unequal distribution of benefits, with jobs, profits and investment often flowing elsewhere while local areas absorb environmental and social impacts

The research also highlights the deep connection between coastal communities and the sea, and how previous transitions have often been viewed locally as unfair when they disrupt long-standing industries, cultural identity and ways of life.

Dr Karen Alexander from the School of Energy, Geoscience, Infrastructure and Society at Heriot-Watt University and principal investigator of TRANSECTS, said: "Given current debates regarding energy sovereignty, this report reveals that the decisions we make around marine energy can have complex implications and create long-lasting legacies for communities.

"This report shows that we must adapt our governance processes if we are to support the creation of resilient coastal communities in the transition towards marine renewable energies, a key component of our future energy mix."

Dr Amy McCarron, Research Fellow at the University of Aberdeen, added: "Marine energy transitions are not new for coastal communities - they have been happening for centuries. What our research shows is that many of the same challenges continue to reappear, particularly around who benefits, who bears the costs, and whose voices are heard in decision-making.

"What our research shows is that many of the same challenges continue to reappear, particularly around who benefits, who bears the costs, and whose voices are heard in decision-making."

However, it also identifies clear opportunities to deliver a fairer transition. These include:

• Adopting more place-based and forward-looking planning approaches

• Improving coordination between national and local decision-making

• Creating clearer, more consistent pathways for community benefit

Sustained investment in local capacity, skills and participation is also highlighted as critical to ensuring communities can actively shape their own futures.

Dr Daria Shapovalova, Just Transition Lab at the University of Aberdeen, said: "Understanding how past transitions have unfolded is essential if we are to deliver fairer outcomes in the future.

“Coastal communities have repeatedly adapted to major economic and environmental change, but too often without the tools or influence needed to shape those transitions."

TRANSECTS is an interdisciplinary programme led by Heriot-Watt University that combines natural capital, social and cultural research to better understand marine energy transitions across time and place.

Bringing together researchers from across multiple disciplines and institutions, the project is exploring how coastal communities experience and respond to change, helping inform future energy policy and planning.

The findings from this report will contribute to ongoing policy discussions around offshore energy development, community benefit and the UK's pathway to net zero.

Researchers involved in the project continue to work with policymakers, industry and communities to support a more inclusive, planned and fair transition for coastal regions across the UK.

The report, “Just Transition and Coastal Communities: Case studies of Orkney, North East Scotland and the Humber Estuary,” is available online.