"Stone Age Could Complicate N.Sea Wind Farm Plans"

"Energy firms taking part in a North Sea boom for offshore wind farms will have to watch out for remains of Stone Age villages submerged for thousands of years, an expert said on Tuesday.

A region dubbed "Doggerland" connected Britain to mainland Europe across what is now the southern North Sea until about 8,000 years ago, when seas rose after the last Ice Age.

It is now the site of a planned vast expansion of offshore wind power by 2020 to help combat climate change.

"We've begun to think about how we'd tackle any archaeological finds," Adrian Fox, supply chain manager of the Crown Estate which leases land off Britain, told Reuters during a conference in Oslo about offshore wind.

He said planners were trying to consider every challenge of offshore wind farming -- from upgrading port capacity to finding more specialized vessels to help install the turbines."

Alister Doyle reports for Reuters March 24, 2010.

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"Wind Turbines Pose Threat To Baltic Porpoise: Researcher" (AFP)