About Task 59
Generating electricity from wind offers numerous environmental benefits, and wind energy development continues around the world to meet renewable energy policy targets. However, concerns persist about the potential impacts to wildlife from land-based and offshore wind energy, which creates challenges for deployment. Given the global nature of wind energy and the fact that many habitats, ecosystem processes, and species cross jurisdictional boundaries, an international collaboration is necessary to advance science-based solutions for wind energy siting, construction, operations, and decommissioning.
In October 2024, the International Energy Agency Wind Technology Collaboration Programme (IEA Wind TCP) initiated Task 59, known as WREN—Wind Energy-Environmental Research & Engagement Network. Task 59 will advance the work conducted by the previous environmental Task (Task 34, 2012–2024) by serving as the lead international forum supporting the deployment of wind energy technology around the globe through a better understanding of environmental issues, efficient monitoring systems, and effective mitigation strategies, including avoidance, minimization, and compensation.
WREN leverages global perspectives and research related to interactions between wind turbines and the environment, impact assessment programs, and impact reduction strategies that coincide with a lower levelized cost of wind energy and reduced barriers to deployment. These goals align with IEA Wind’s mission of environmental awareness and with the IEA Wind TCP 2025–2029 strategic objectives, specifically in its efforts to:
- Support sociological and environmental research to inform sustainable deployment of wind energy
- Foster collaborative research and the exchange of best practices and data
- Increase environmental awareness by providing research analysis, information, and data on technology development.
Task 59 Roadmap
Through 2028, WREN will continue outreach and engagement activities, including:
- Annual enhancements to Tethys functionality and continual updates and additions of new research papers and other media as they become available
- Collaboration with other IEA Wind Tasks to advance the environmental co-design of wind energy
- Dissemination of the state of the science and best practices through research briefs, webinars, expert forums, technical reports, and publications
- Fostering of broader international collaboration with non-IEA Wind member nations, particularly in Latin America, Asia, and Africa.
In addition to these annual activities, WREN will also focus on the following:
Evaluate the success and value of WREN and determine whether to propose a 4-year extension to IEA Wind.
Develop recommendations for cross-cutting research with other IEA Wind Tasks.
Increase accessibility to WREN products by hosting webinars in multiple languages and translating English documents to other languages.
Publish strategies to address the environmental co-design grand challenges (derived from Grand Challenges Revisited: Wind Energy Research Needs for a Global Energy Transition).
Please download our 4-year proposal accepted by IEA Wind in May 2024.
Frequently Asked Questions
Get answers to our most commonly asked questions about IEA Wind TCP Task 59
Where can I find information on recent WREN publications?
Visit the WREN webpage on Tethys.
Do I need to pay for WREN publications?
No, all documents and webinars are free and publicly available. Visit the WREN webpage on Tethys.
Can a non-member participate in WREN meetings?
Yes, a non-member can attend WREN meetings, but only as observers.
Do WREN members pay a fee to participate?
There are no membership fees to participate in WREN.
How do I become a member of IEA Wind?
To view requirements for membership, please visit the IEA Wind membership website.
Participation
Task 59 Participants
Current Task 59 participants are Norway, Switzerland, and the United States.
Who Can Participate in Task 59?
To participate in Task 59, your country must be a member of the IEA Wind Implementing Agreement.
Once your country is a member of the IEA Wind TCP, an organization within your country may become a participant in Task 59 and agree to the terms of the Task proposal.
Operating Agent
Please contact the Operating Agent below with any questions
Questions?
Tel: +1 720-309-9256
NREL
National Renewable Energy Laboratory
Golden, Colorado
United States
Monday to Friday
9 am – 17 pm Mountain Standard Time
cris.hein@nrel.gov