Webinar Series | Data for Decision-Making: Offshore Wind Energy Areas and Geoscience Survey Results

Inside the Geoscience Guiding Offshore Wind Development 

As offshore wind development continues to progress in Atlantic Canada, access to reliable, high-quality marine data and interpretations play an important role in supporting informed decision-making. This webinar series brings together experts from the Geological Survey of Canada to share insights into the marine geoscience data being used to understand seabed conditions to reduce uncertainty in early project planning. 

Across three sessions, speakers will explore how seabed geology, sediment characteristics, geohazards, sediment mobility, and bedrock are assessed in the priority offshore wind energy areas. Each webinar will spotlight one area – Middle Bank, French Bank, or Sydney Bight – with a short regional overview in every session to connect site-specific findings to the broader Atlantic Canadian offshore wind landscape. 

Participants will gain insight into: 

• What marine geoscience data exists today and how it is collected 

• How desktop studies and field campaigns inform early-stage site screening 

• Key seabed conditions and constraints relevant to offshore wind infrastructure 

• How new data releases and ongoing surveys can be accessed and used 

This series is designed for developers, regulators, consultants, researchers, Indigenous and coastal community representatives, and others seeking a clearer understanding of how marine geoscience supports offshore wind planning in Canada. 

In advance of the workshops, participants are encouraged to review a brief overview of the geoscience data collection and analysis that has informed offshore wind energy assessments in Atlantic Canada, available here.

Each 1.5-hour webinar features expert presentations along with dedicated time for questions and discussion. 

Registration is per day. If you wish to attend all three webinars, separate registration is required for each. Please see the links below to register.

Meet the Speakers 

Middle Bank: Pierre-Arnaud Desiage, Research Scientist, Geological Survey of Canada, Natural Resources Canada 

Pierre-Arnaud Desiage is a Research Scientist specializing in sedimentology and sedimentary processes with the Atlantic Division of the Geological Survey of Canada (GSC). He is the lead scientist for the sedimentology and marine core processing laboratories at GSC-Atlantic and is actively involved in the development and valorization of the GSC legacy marine samples collection. Within the GSC Marine Renewables program, he leads geohazards activity and has served as chief scientist on two oceanographic campaigns. His research focuses on modern and past sediment transport processes on the Scotian Shelf and in the eastern Canadian Arctic, using physical, mineralogical, and geochemical sediment properties, as well as seismic stratigraphy techniques. 

French Bank: Dr. Calvin Campbell, Research Scientist, Geological Survey of Canada, Natural Resources Canada 

Calvin is a Research Scientist with the Geological Survey of Canada where he has worked on marine geoscience projects offshore eastern Canada and the Arctic for over 25 years. During that time, his research has focused on seabed mapping, stratigraphic analysis, and geological hazard assessment. Besides providing fundamental understanding of marine geological processes, his research has been used to develop new resource exploration models, advise on environmental assessments, and support marine infrastructure decisions. He is currently leading a research activity on the shallow stratigraphy offshore Atlantic Canada to provide new insights about foundation conditions as they relate to offshore wind infrastructure. 

Sydney Bight: Lynn Dafoe, Research Scientist, Geological Survey of Canada, Natural Resources Canada 

Lynn Dafoe is a Research Scientist with the Geological Survey of Canada (GSC) as part of Natural Resources Canada. Her work focuses on onshore and offshore sedimentary basin analysis supporting the energy and minerals industries. Currently, she is leading the bedrock component of the GSC’s Marine Renewables Program which aims to develop a regional understanding of the nature and distribution of bedrock occurrences at the seabed and subcropping below Quaternary cover to support future offshore wind development. Lynn’s expertise is in the fields of sedimentology, ichnology and stratigraphy, utilizing detailed study of core and outcrop, wells, and basin-wide seismic reflection data. Her career with the GSC has included studies of several offshore basins/regions, including western Newfoundland, Orphan Basin, offshore Labrador, western Davis Strait, western Baffin Bay, and the Scotian Basin.