OCS Study BOEM 2017-079

BOEM Offshore Wind Energy Facilities Emission Estimating Tool User’s Guide

U.S. Department of the Interior Bureau of Ocean Energy Management Office of Renewable Energy Programs www.boem.gov

OCS Study BOEM 2017-079

BOEM Offshore Wind Energy Facilities Emission Estimating Tool User’s Guide

Prepared by

Eastern Research Group, Inc. 1600 Perimeter Park Drive, Suite 200 Morrisville, NC 27560

Published by

U.S. Department of the Interior Bureau of Ocean Energy Management Office of Renewable Energy Programs August 1, 2017

DISCLAIMER Study concept, oversight, and funding were provided by the US Department of the Interior, Bureau of Ocean Energy Management, Office of Renewable Energy Programs, Washington, DC, under Contract Number M16PC00011. This report has been technically reviewed by BOEM and it has been approved for publication. The views and conclusions contained in this document are those of the authors and should not be interpreted as representing the opinions or policies of the US Government, nor does mention of trade names or commercial products constitute endorsement or recommendation for use.

REPORT AVAILABILITY To download a PDF file of this Broad Agency Announcement report, go to the U.S. Department of the Interior, Bureau of Ocean Energy Management, Environmental Studies Program Information System website and search on OCS Study BOEM 2017-079. This report can be viewed at select Federal Depository Libraries. It can also be obtained from the National Technical Information Service; the contact information is below.

US Department of Commerce National Technical Information Service 5301 Shawnee Rd. Springfield, Virginia 22312 Phone: (703) 605-6000, 1 (800) 553-6847 Fax: (703) 605-6900 Website: http://www.ntis.gov/

CITATION

Chang, R., B. Do, and R. Billings. 2017. User’s Guide for the Offshore Wind Energy Facilities Emission

Estimating Tool. US Department of the Interior, Bureau of Ocean Energy Management, Sterling, VA. OCS Study BOEM 2017-079. 35 pp.

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CONTENTS Page

CONTENTS ..................................................................................................................................... i

LIST OF FIGURES ........................................................................................................................ ii

1. INTRODUCTION/BACKGROUND ................................................................................. 1

2. INSTALLATION ............................................................................................................... 2

3. PROJECTS (BIG PICTURE) ............................................................................................. 4

4. STARTING A NEW PROJECT ......................................................................................... 6

4.1 Project Information ................................................................................................. 6 4.1.1 Project Details ............................................................................................. 6 4.1.2 Company Details ......................................................................................... 8 4.1.3 Contact Details .......................................................................................... 11

4.2 Offshore Source Activity Data.............................................................................. 13 4.3 Avoided Emissions Data ....................................................................................... 20

5. STARTING FROM A PREVIOUS PROJECT ................................................................ 21

6. CALCULATING EMISSIONS INVENTORY ................................................................ 21

7. VIEWING AND EXPORTING DATA............................................................................ 23

7.1 Export File ............................................................................................................ 24 7.1.1 Total Emissions Tab ................................................................................. 25 7.1.2 Emissions Output Tab ............................................................................... 26 7.1.3 Inputs Tab ................................................................................................. 26 7.1.4 Vessel Statistics Tab ................................................................................. 27 7.1.5 Emissions Factors tab ............................................................................... 27

8. DATABASE MAINTENANCE ....................................................................................... 29

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LIST OF FIGURES Figure 1. Prompt on Wind Tool’s initial screen to "Enable Content" ............................................ 3

Figure 2. Wind Tool main screen ................................................................................................... 5

Figure 3. Project details entry screen .............................................................................................. 7

Figure 4. Data selection window .................................................................................................... 7

Figure 5. Port selection menus ........................................................................................................ 8

Figure 6. Add port screen................................................................................................................ 8

Figure 7. Company details entry screen .......................................................................................... 9

Figure 8. Previous company selection menu ................................................................................ 10

Figure 9. Example completed company details form ................................................................... 10

Figure 10. Contact details entry screen ......................................................................................... 11

Figure 11. Selection of previously-stored contact information .................................................... 12

Figure 12. Example of completed new contact detail form .......................................................... 12

Figure 13. Project info summary screen tab in main window ...................................................... 13

Figure 14. Inputs tab ..................................................................................................................... 14

Figure 15. Preconstruction entry tab ............................................................................................. 15

Figure 16. Preconstruction entry screen with example data ......................................................... 16

Figure 17. Construction data entry tab .......................................................................................... 16

Figure 18. Operation data entry tab .............................................................................................. 17

Figure 19. Decommissioning entry tab ......................................................................................... 17

Figure 20. Helicopter entry tab ..................................................................................................... 18

Figure 21. Helicopter entry tab with example data ....................................................................... 18

Figure 22. Substation data entry tab ............................................................................................. 19

Figure 23. Substation data entry with example data ..................................................................... 19

Figure 24. Avoided emissions input screen .................................................................................. 20

Figure 25. Example populated emissions avoided screen ............................................................ 20

Figure 26. Previous project selection screen................................................................................. 21

Figure 27. Entry summary review screen ..................................................................................... 22

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Figure 28. Preview and export tab ................................................................................................ 23

Figure 29. Emission summary screen with example data ............................................................. 24

Figure 30. Pop-up window to notify project data has been exported ........................................... 24

Figure 31. Total emissions tab from an exported file ................................................................... 25

Figure 32. Emissions output tab from the exported file ................................................................ 26

Figure 33. Input tab from the exported file ................................................................................... 27

Figure 34. Vessel statistics tab from the exported file .................................................................. 27

Figure 35. Emissions factor tab from the exported file ................................................................ 28

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1. INTRODUCTION/BACKGROUND

The Bureau of Ocean Energy Management (BOEM) reviews Construction Operation Plans (COP) and prepares numerous Environmental Assessments as part of its National Environmental Policy Act (NEPA) responsibilities for proposed site characterization/geologic and geophysical activities and lease sales. To follow the White House Council on Environmental Quality regulations, BOEM developed an efficient, consistent approach to estimate emissions associated with proposed actions. For offshore wind energy facilities, this approach could by extension include the potential beneficial impacts on climate change, comprising quantification of indirect impacts and reduction in emissions due to the displacement of grid-based, fossil fuel-generated electricity.

BOEM developed the Offshore Wind Energy Facilities Emission Estimating Tool (Wind Tool) for BOEM’s NEPA document authors (and possibly project applicants) to easily quantify emissions associated with proposed actions, and assess the associated benefits of offshore wind energy facilities.

This User’s Guide is intended to provide detailed information on the functionality of the Wind Tool.

Instructions are provided for installing and using the Wind Tool. The guide describes what data are required, how to enter data, and how to obtain various forms of output. The chapters in this guide are organized in as follows:

Installation Starting a New Project Starting from a Previous Project Calculating Emissions Exporting Data

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2. INSTALLATION The Offshore Wind Energy Facilities Emission Estimating Tool (Wind Tool) requires

personal computer (PC) equipped with the Microsoft® Windows® 7, 8, or 10 operating systems with Microsoft Office Access®. The user should possess a modest familiarity with the Windows® operating environment and should understand a few of its common features, such as point-and-click, file management, menu-driven selection, and text boxes.

The Wind Tool is an Access-based file that can be downloaded as a compressed (zipped) file from (<website>). The compressed file includes the User’s Guide, import templates, and the Wind Tool (WindEnergyTool_v1.0.accdb).

To install the Wind Tool, follow the step below:

1. Download the compressed file to your PC. 2. Save the compressed file to the installation folder of your choice (e.g., C:\WindTool) 3. Navigate to the saved compressed file and unzip

It is necessary to keep the directory structure intact, as moving folder and files will

affect the ability of the tool to export data and open a copy of this document. Users may want to create a desktop shortcut to the Wind Tool for easier access.

The first time you open the Wind Tool, you will have to click the “Enable Content” button that appears at the top of the Access window (Figure 1). This will ensure all code is executed properly.

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Figure 1. Prompt on Wind Tool’s initial screen to "Enable Content"

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3. PROJECTS (BIG PICTURE) The Wind Tool walks users through the processes of entering the required input data needed

to calculate the emissions from each phase of an offshore wind energy installation, from preconstruction through decommissioning. Combined with the information on the regional mix of energy sources for the location and calculated avoided emissions, the user can calculate the net emissions resulting from the project (i.e., the difference between the emissions that occur from the planning, installation, and maintenance of offshore equipment and the emissions avoided at conventional power generating units as a result of the offshore wind energy facility.

The basic outline for data entry and calculations is as follows:

1. Enter project information, which includes project metadata such as company and contact information.

2. Enter equipment information, which includes offshore vessels, helicopters, and substation activity data.

3. Enter anticipated wind power electricity generating information for avoided emission calculations.

4. Review entered data and calculate emissions.

5. Review emission estimates and export report.

Opening the software, automatically opens the main screen which has seven buttons (Figure 2). By clicking the buttons, users can:

• Open User’s Guide: opens a copy of this document.

• Begin New Project: opens the data entry screen to start a new project (see Section 4 for details).

• Open Existing Project: opens an existing project (see Section 5 for details).

• Clear All Data: clears all project data from the Wind Tool.

• Delete an Existing Project: allows the user to delete a single project from the software (See Section 8 for details).

• Maintenance: restricted module for BOEM use only.

• Exit Tool: clear any unsaved work and close the Wind Tool.

Because all project information is stored locally in the database, the Wind Tool allows users to stop at any point and reopen projects for additional edits.

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At any time, users can click on the “Open User’s Guide” button in the upper left-hand corner to open a pdf of the user’s guide or click on the “Save and Exit Tool” button in the upper right-hand corner to save and exit the Wind Tool.

Figure 2. Wind Tool main screen

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4. STARTING A NEW PROJECT The following section outlines the process to estimate the net emission from a wind energy

project, starting from scratch.

4.1 PROJECT INFORMATION The first step is to click the “Start New Project” button on the Wind Tool main screen

(Figure 2). This will open the Project Entry screen, which compiles various metadata for the project. The requested data is split between three tabs: Project Details, Company Details, and Contact Details.

4.1.1 Project Details The purpose of the Project Details tab (Figure 3) is to gather identifying and descriptive data

about the project. Users can progress through the fields using the tabs or clicking in the individual entry cells.

Moving to a date field will cause a date picker, or calendar, to appear to facilitate date selection (Figure 4). Once a date is selected the calendar will disappear.

Selecting the closest state for the port which project support vessels will use, automatically filters the list of ports to facilitate selection (Figure 5). If the port that will service the project is not listed, users can click the “Add Port” button to open a pop up window to add ports (Figure 6). Distances between the port and installation are based on the centroid of the installation. The project latitude and longitude should be the coordinates of the centroid of the project.

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Figure 3. Project details entry screen

Figure 4. Data selection window

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Figure 5. Port selection menus

Figure 6. Add port screen

4.1.2 Company Details The second tab in the project screen (Figures 7 through 9) stores previously-entered company

information to simplify the data entry process. Users can also add new company information to

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the software. When entering a new company, ensure the “New Company” box is checked to retain the information (Figure 9).

Figure 7. Company details entry screen

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Figure 8. Previous company selection menu

Figure 9. Example completed company details form

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4.1.3 Contact Details The third tab in the project screen (Figures 10 - 12) stores previously-entered contact

information to simplify the data entry process. Users can also choose to enter new contact information. For new contacts, ensure the “New Contact” box is checked (Figure 12). When all data is entered, users can click the “Save and Go to Facility Inputs” button to go to the Wind Tool screen and enter facility activity data.

Figure 10. Contact details entry screen

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Figure 11. Selection of previously-stored contact information

Figure 12. Example of completed new contact detail form

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Once on the Wind Tool screen, users will have the ability to review and edit all the project information entered. The Wind Tool window has a “Step 1: Project Info” tab (Figure 13), which contains a summary of the project information data entered and a button to return the project information screens to make changes to the information.

Figure 13. Project info summary screen tab in main window

4.2 OFFSHORE SOURCE ACTIVITY DATA After the project information has been entered, users should move onto the next step,

entering or editing activity data or inputs in the Wind Tool (Figure 14).

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Figure 14. Inputs tab

Users have the option to import their inputs from an Excel file or entering the data directly into the Wind Tool. To import data as an excel file, the users can populate the facility_input_template included in the template folder located in the software zip file. This template provides the input data structure associated with the software’s import function. The “Import” button on the input screen opens a window to browse to the file location, similar to opening a new file in any Windows program. Once the input file has been selected, the data is automatically incorporated into the software. Users can review the data imported into the tool by pressing the “Review Imported Equipment” button. This will open a new window with a datasheet view of the imported data.

To entering the data directly into the Wind Tool. Clicking the “Enter Offshore Inputs” button takes the user to the Data Entry Screen (Figures 15-22). The input tabs include the following: Preconstruction (Figures 15 and 16), Construction (Figure 17), Operation and Maintenance (Figure 18), Decommissioning (Figure 19), Helicopters (Figures 20 and 21), and Substations and Generators (Figures 22 and 23).

The screens to input data for preconstruction, construction, operation, and decommissioning are similar to one another. Users enter a record, and then at the bottom, by clicking the buttons, have the options to save, delete, or add another record. There are also left and right arrow buttons to allow users to scroll between records and make edits. Users have the option of selecting default vessel parameters or enter custom values at the bottom of the screen. Checking the use defaults box will automatically populate the lower portion of the form with the default values. Users can unclick the box and edit the parameters as it suits their project needs. Users can also

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review all the equipment entered in each tab by clicking the “Review Equipment Entered” button on the right side of the screen. Once users have finished with each tab they should click the “Accept Values and Go to Next” button (existing projects) or “Save and Go to Next” button (new projects). Figure 16 shows a populated record for the preconstruction phase.

The distance to port from facility should be calculated based on the centroid of the platform. This distance is used to calculate the emission associated with vessel transit to the platform. Onsite emissions (i.e., emissions generated while at the platform) are calculated based on hours of operation, which is derived from the number of days.

The helicopters tab is formatted differently than the preconstruction, construction, operation, and decommissioning tabs. There are four rows where the user may enter one of four helicopter types: single, twin light, twin medium, or twin heavy. Users are to enter helicopter use for the entire project period from preconstruction to decommissioning. Once users have finished entering the helicopter information, click the “Accept Values and Go to Next” button to proceed. Figure 21 shows an example of a populated helicopter tab.

After the helicopters tab is the substations and generators tab. The intent of this tab is to collect activity data for onsite substations and generators, including small diesel generators that provide backup power. The fields are prepopulated with default data that can be over written. Once users have finished entering the substation and generators information, click the “Save and Go to Main” button to finish up the inputs and proceed. Figure 23 shows an example of a completed substations and generators tab.

Figure 15. Preconstruction entry tab

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Figure 16. Preconstruction entry screen with example data

Figure 17. Construction data entry tab

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Figure 18. Operation data entry tab

Figure 19. Decommissioning entry tab

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Figure 20. Helicopter entry tab

Figure 21. Helicopter entry tab with example data

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Figure 22. Substation data entry tab

Figure 23. Substation data entry with example data

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4.3 AVOIDED EMISSIONS DATA After inputting the project activity data, users can enter the avoided emissions information. It

is important to note that the zip code for the grid connection is required, as the software uses the zip code to autofill the eGRID subregion. Figure 22 is a blank avoided emissions screen, and Figure 25 is a populated example.

Figure 24. Avoided emissions input screen

Figure 25. Example populated emissions avoided screen

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5. STARTING FROM A PREVIOUS PROJECT If a previous project has been entered into the Wind Tool, users can easily access it by

clicking on the “Open Existing Project” button on the main menu, which then brings users to previous project selection screen (Figure 26).

Figure 26. Previous project selection screen

Users can select previous projects from the pulldown menu entitled “Select previous project

to edit.” Users can then edit any data they previously entered, including the activity inputs.

6. CALCULATING EMISSIONS INVENTORY Once users have entered or edited all the activity inputs, users can click the “Calculate

Emissions” Button to run the Wind Tool and calculate project emissions (Figure 27).

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Figure 27. Entry summary review screen

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7. VIEWING AND EXPORTING DATA After the Wind Tool has calculated the project’s total emissions, the user needs to manually

go to “Step 4: Preview and Export” tab (Figure 28). The user can view the output by clicking on the “Open Summary Table” button. An example of a summary view of estimated emissions is shown in Figure 29. The user can also export the output by clicking on the “Export Full Emissions Report” button, which will export the inventory to an Excel file with multiple tabs/worksheets. The user will receive a confirmation message (Figure 30) when the file is successfully exported.

Figure 28. Preview and export tab

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Figure 29. Emission summary screen with example data

Figure 30. Pop-up window to notify project data has been exported

7.1 EXPORT FILE The exported excel file consists of five tabs that contain various project details. The tabs

include:

• “Total_Emissions”: summary of emissions by phase

• “Emissions_Ouput”: summary of emissions by phase and source

• “Input”: the activity inputs for the offshore sources

• “Vessel_Stats”: statistic for the offshore sources used on the project

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• “Emission_Factors”: a list of the emission factors used in the calculations

These screen shots of the Excel tabs (Figures 30 to 33) are shown in more detail in the following sections.

7.1.1 Total Emissions Tab The Total Emissions tab features a small table at the top left with key project identifiers. The

first table shows Total Vessel Emissions, the next tables contain total emissions within 25 miles of the installation, and emissions beyond 25 miles of the installation and outside the state boundaries. The remaining table(s) are the total offshore emissions occurring within 25 miles of the state boundary, for each state with a reported port. The template accommodates five different states, with the state name dynamically added to the header by the software. An example is provided in Figure 31.

Figure 31. Total emissions tab from an exported file

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7.1.2 Emissions Output Tab The Emissions Output tab provides a summary of total project emission by phase for each

emissions source. The table on the left provides the emissions within 25 miles of shore, while the table on the right contains a summary of emission within 25 miles of the installation. An example is provided in Figure 32.

Figure 32. Emissions output tab from the exported file

7.1.3 Inputs Tab The Inputs tab (Figure 33) summarizes the input information used to calculate emissions in

the Wind Tool. Vessel information is presented in the table on the left, while helicopter inputs are presented in the table on the right.

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Figure 33. Input tab from the exported file

7.1.4 Vessel Statistics Tab The Vessel Statistics tab (Vessel_Stats) (Figure 34) summarizes the vessels included in the

project. Similar values are used as the defaults within the Wind Tool.

Figure 34. Vessel statistics tab from the exported file

7.1.5 Emissions Factors tab The Emission Factors tab (Figure 35) summarizes the emission factors used to calculate

emissions. Emission factors for all sources, including avoided emissions, are presented in the table on the left, while the greenhouse gas warming potentials used are presented in the table on the right.

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Figure 35. Emissions factor tab from the exported file

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8. DATABASE MAINTENANCE The “Database Maintenance” button and subsequent menus are for BOEM personnel only to

update the Wind Tool. Users will not have access to this area.

Users do have the ability to selected projects to delete from the database, via the “Delete an Existing Project” button on the main screen (Figure 2). This opens a screen similar to selecting an existing project to open. The equipment information for the selected project is deleted from the user’s copy of the Wind Tool.