PhD position: “Primary production around offshore wind farms”

The Department of Estuarine and Delta Systems research of the Royal Netherlands Institute for Sea Research (NIOZ) is looking for an enthusiastic PhD candidate to study primary production around offshore wind farms (position for 4 years). 

THE INSTITUTE

NIOZ is the national oceanographic institute of the Netherlands. Its principal mission is to perform academically excellent, multidisciplinary, fundamental and frontier-applied marine research and education addressing important scientific and societal questions pertaining to the functioning of oceans, seas and deltas. NIOZ advances fundamental understanding of marine systems, the way they change, the role they play in climate and biodiversity, and how they may provide sustainable solutions to society in the future. NIOZ serves as national marine research facilitator for the scientific community in the Netherlands. In addition to its research and education, NIOZ supports marine-policy development within the national and international context.

THE DEPARTMENT

The department of Estuarine and Delta Systems (EDS) of NIOZ is based in Yerseke. We study how the interplay between biota, hydrodynamics, sediment dynamics and biochemistry shapes the estuarine, deltaic and coastal environments within the context of natural and human-induced environmental changes. Our department has a multidisciplinary approach that combines state-of-the-art biophysical, biochemical, ecological and physiological measurements and experiments with remote sensing and numerical modelling to create in-depth understanding of the processes that control estuarine and delta systems. One important focus for the department is how our research can create value for society.

THE PROJECT

NO-REGRETS (North Sea Renewable Energy: Gaining the Required Ecological Knowledge for the Transition) is a six-year (2025-2031) project funded by the Dutch Research Council (NWO-NWA ORC)  and examines the ecological and economic trade-offs of upscaling Offshore Wind Farms (OWFs) in the context of climate change and the ongoing food and nature transitions in the North Sea. The project has an interdisciplinary consortium of world-class expertise from eight Dutch Universities, five Research Institutes and relevant societal stakeholders that play a major role in research and management of the North Sea. The six-year program (2025-2031) advances knowledge on potential impacts of OWFs on ocean currents, suspended sediments, microscopic plankton, various life stages of fishes, seabed composition, seafloor organisms, marine mammals, and sea birds. Economic analyses explore changes in the value of marine fisheries and other ocean assets. Co-developed with stakeholders, NO-REGRETS will create tools allowing policymakers, industries and other stakeholders to gauge and optimise the ecological and bioeconomic consequences of North Sea OWF expansion.

THE RESEARCH POSITION

This PhD project focuses on the role of Offshore Wind farms on phytoplankton and primary production. Phytoplankton is the main primary producer in the North Sea and forms the base of the marine food chain. The candidate will determine phytoplankton and primary production dynamics in the North Sea, using time-series of satellite data. The satellite data will be complemented by in situ measurements of phytoplankton and primary production, water quality, light conditions, suspended sediments and other environmental conditions in a series of joint shipborne campaigns (2 weeks each) within and around Offshore Wind Farms and in the wider North Sea. An algorithm will be constructed to estimate primary production from the remote sensing images, constrained by in situ measurements, and will be applied to map the dynamics of water quality and (hotspots) of primary production. This will allow assessing the role of Offshore Wind Farms and their characteristics on primary production, under varying environmental conditions (tides, waves, stratification, water depth, light climate, sediments). The results will also help improve model projections and inform studies on the marine food web (e.g., in close collaboration with colleagues studying zooplankton dynamics). The candidate will communicate the findings in (project) meetings, scientific articles and in a PhD thesis.

THE CANDIDATE

We are looking for an enthusiastic candidate with:

• an MSc degree in remote sensing, marine ecology, oceanography, earth science or similar

• affinity with (satellite) remote sensing and programming

• affinity with shipborne campaigns

• an open, communicative and collaborative attitude

• good English oral and writing skills

The selected candidate will be based at NIOZ in Yerseke, in cooperation with University of Twente, Faculty of Geo-Information Science and Earth Observation (ITC), and with other institutes within the project.

We are a transparent institute with a healthy working climate and an inclusive culture, where people from diverse backgrounds and gender bring their talents and further develop these talents. We aim for inclusive decision-making processes and expect our leadership to show visible commitment, awareness of bias, and cultural intelligence.

CONDITIONS

• Employment of this full-time position at Royal NIOZ is by NWO-I, for a total duration of 4 years. You start with an appointment for the duration of 1 year and, after a positive evaluation in the 9th month (Go-No go), you will be extended to the full period of 4 years.

• Salary compliant with scales for PhD candidate (OIOs) CAO-WVOI (Collective Labour Agreement for Dutch Research Institutes).

• An appointment at NIOZ as a PhD candidate means working and learning simultaneously conform the NIOZ PhD policy.

• 338 annualized holiday hours for a full-time 40-hour work week.

• Pension scheme via ABP, 8% holiday allowance and a year-end bonus of 8.33%.

• 2nd class public transportation travel is reimbursed 100%.

• Employment benefits plan to exchange a portion of your salary for days off or vice versa, or can be used to purchase a bicycle with tax benefits.

• We offer relocation expenses for employees coming from abroad and support with finding accommodation. Yerseke is located on commuting distance from major cities such as Antwerpen, Breda, Bergen op Zoom and Middelburg.

MORE INFORMATION

For additional information about this vacancy, please contact Prof. dr. Daphne van der Wal. For additional information about the procedure, please send an e-mail to working@nioz.nl

This vacancy is open until and including 12 September 2025. Interviews will be held in September at NIOZ Yerseke or online. We aim for this project to start in November 2025.