Perceptions of fishers and developers on the co-location of offshore wind farms and decapod fisheries in the UK

The predicted expansion of the global offshore wind sector is likely to increase conflicts as users of the coastal zone compete for space, and the displacement of fisheries is of particular concern. It is therefore important to explore opportunities that could support the co-existence of offshore wind farms (OWFs) and fishing activity. In addition to ecological evidence on the effects of OWFs on commercially exploited species, the co-location issue requires understanding of the perceptions of fishers and OWF developers on key constraints and opportunities. Interviews were carried out in 2013 with 67 fishers in South Wales and Eastern England and with 11 developers from major energy companies, to discover experiences and opinions on the co-location of OWFs with crab and lobster fisheries. Developers expressed broad support for co-location, perceiving potential benefits to their relationship with fishers and their wider reputation. Fishers had more mixed opinions, with geographical variation, and exhibited a range of risk perception. The lack of reported experience of potting within OWFs was not related to stock concerns but to uncertainty around safety, gear retrieval, insurance and liability. Clear protocols and communication to address these issues are essential if co-location is to be feasible. Scale may also limit the potential benefits to fishers, especially in that large offshore OWFs are likely to be inaccessible to much of the inshore fleet. There remains the potential to enhance the artificial reef effects of OWFs by deploying additional material between the turbines, but options to finance such schemes, and how investment by OWF developers could be offset against compensation paid to displaced fishers, require further investigation

Developing conceptual models that link multiple ecosystem services to ecological research to aid management and policy, the UK marine example

Our understanding of ecological processes that lead to ecosystem services is still evolving but ecological research aims to understand the linkages between the ecosystem and services. These linkages can affect trade-offs between different ecosystem services. Understanding these linkages, by considering multiple ecosystem services simultaneously supports management of the environment and sustainable use of resources. The UK marine environment is relatively data rich, yet the links between ecosystem and several ecosystem services and linkages between services are poorly described. A workshop with 35 marine scientists was used to create a conceptual model that links ecosystem components and key processes to four services they provide and to highlight trade-offs between them. The model was subsequently further developed to include pressures and mitigating management measures. The models are discussed in terms of their application to marine data to facilitate evidence-based marine management and their usefulness to communicate management measures with managers and stakeholders

Recreational use of offshore wind farms: Experiences and opinions of sea anglers in the UK

The expansion of offshore wind farms (OWFs) is likely to increase conflict with other marine users as different sectors compete for space. There may also be positive interactions, as the artificial reef effects from energy infrastructure have the potential to sustain and enhance fishing opportunities. Recreational sea angling is an important sector within the UK but the experiences and opinions of UK sea anglers with respect to OWFs have not been documented. To address this, an online survey was undertaken with recreational anglers around the UK (n=199). Respondents represented a range of socio-demographic and angling characteristics, although male, more frequent and older fishers as well as club members were over-represented compared to a 2012 national survey. One quarter of the respondents had fished around the perimeter of or within an OWF, most on multiple occasions, and 73% of those who had not expressed a willingness to do so in future. Anglers reported both positive and negative effects on catch success when fishing near or within OWFs compared to their experiences of the same site prior to OWF development. Outcomes for individual species were also mixed. Anglers recognised the potential artificial reef effects of OWFs and their role as a “safe haven”, particularly due to the exclusion of commercial fishers. Negative perceptions included restricted access, harm to marine wildlife, and visual impact. There is little evidence that OWFs will have a significant economic impact on recreational fishing, as most anglers are unlikely to change their behaviour in response to future developments

Ecology of a North Sea pockmark with an active methane seep

ABSTRACT: At a large North Sea pockmark, with active methane seeps, surface sediments were found to have higher insoluble sulphide concentrations than sedlments from the surrounding area. The fauna of the pockmark was characterized by 2 species which have not pi-evlously been reported from the Fladen Ground in the northern North Sea. These species were a b~valve, Thyasira sarsi (which is known to contain endosymbiotic sulphur-oxidising bacteria) and a mouthless and gutless nematode, Astomonerna sp., which also contains endosymbiotic bacteria The nematode was the dominant meiofauna species in the pockmark sediments. Both macro-lnfauna and total nematodes were in low abundance in samples taken from the base of the pockmark. Sediment samples from the pockmark contained numerous otoliths, implying that substantial winnowing of the sediment had taken place. This was supported by studies on the sulphide concentrations in the sediment which showed multiple layering of the sediments on the sides of the pockmark, suggesting displacement. The carbon isotope compositions (6I3c) of the tissues of benthic animals from in and around the pockmark were generally in the range -16 to -2O%, indicating that little methane-derived carbon was contributing to their nutrition. T sarsi had the most 13c-depleted tissues, -31.4 to -35.1 L, confirming the nutritional dependence of this species on chemoautotrophic bacteria that utilize reduced sulphur

Linking Species Functional Traits to Specific Biogeochemical Processes under Trawling Pressure

The impact of otter trawling on the relationship between functional traits of benthic invertebrates and specific biogeochemical processes were investigated in the oligotrophic Cretan Sea. The fishery is managed through a seasonal closure during the summer. During two seasons (winter and summer) replicate samples were taken from the field from a commercial trawl ground and an adjacent control area. Environmental parameters related to sediment biogeochemistry were measured including particulate organic carbon, sedimentary organic carbon, bottom water and sedimentary chlorophyll a and phaeopigment concentrations as well as benthic oxygen consumption. A significant impact of trawling was recorded only for bottom water chlorophyll and sedimentary organic carbon. Furthermore, the links between species traits and specific ecosystem processes were affected by trawling, highlighting the importance of unique functional modalities on ecosystem functioning. The traits that mostly influenced benthic biogeochemistry in the control sites were related to bioturbation and burrowing activities. In contrast, in the trawled sites, the associated traits were related to more opportunistic lifestyles and deposit feeding species that do not act as bioturbators. Thus, under trawling disturbance, this shift can decouple the species-sediment relations and affect nutrient cycling.</jats:p

Applying the natural capital approach to decision making for the marine environment

The aspirations for natural capital and ecosystem service approaches to support environmental decision-making have not been fully realised in terms of their actual application in policy and management contexts. Application of the natural capital approach requires a range of methods, which as yet have not been fully tested in the context of decision making for the marine environment. It is unlikely that existing methodologies, which were developed for terrestrial systems and are based on land cover assessment approaches, will ever be feasible in the marine context at the national scale. Land cover approaches are also fundamentally insufficient for the marine environment because they do not take account of the water column, the significant interconnections between spatially disparate components, or the highly dynamic nature of the marine ecosystem, for example the high spatial mobility of many species. Data gaps have been a significant impediment to progress, so alternative methods that use proxies for quality information as well as the opportunities for remote sensing should be explored further. Greater effort to develop methodologies specifically for the marine environment is required, which should be interdisciplinary and cross-sectoral, coherent across policy areas, and applicable across a range of contexts

Energy-food nexus in the marine environment: A macroeconomic analysis on offshore wind energy and seafood production in Scotland

This is the author accepted manuscript. The final version is available from Elsevier via the DOI in this recordThe rapid development of offshore wind farms (OWFs) has stimulated debate about its overall socioeconomic impacts. Expanding the scale of OWFs increases the availability and affordability of electricity but could displace existing fishing activities and reduce food supply. To evaluate these impacts from a macroeconomic perspective, a computable general equilibrium (CGE) model is developed, using Scotland as a case study. A particular focus is placed on the disaggregated electricity and seafood sectors, their interconnectedness from an energy-food nexus perspective, and the distributional effects across household groups. This paper explores, from macroeconomic perspective, the trade-offs in the energy-food nexus between expanding OWFs and the seafood sectors, together with the impacts on food and energy security. The results suggest that, through economic linkages, increasing the number of OWFs would have a negative, but limited, effect on seafood production sectors. However, the falling cost of electricity from OWFs would have a positive impact on the economy overall and benefit lower income households, contributing to a reduction in fuel poverty. The model results raise the awareness of nexus linkages between OWFs and seafood production and are applicable to policies involving the development of other offshore renewables.University of Exete

VECTORS of change in the marine environment: Ecosystem and economic impacts and management implications

Human use of the European marine environment is increasing and diversifying. This is creating new mechanisms for human induced-changes in marine life which need to be understood and quantified as well as the impact of these changes on ecosystems, their structures (e.g. biodiversity) and functioning (e.g. productivity), and the social and economic consequences that arise. The current and emerging pressures are multiple and interacting, arising, for example, from transport, platforms for renewable and nonrenewable energy, exploitation of living and non-living resources, agricultural and industrial discharges, together with wider environmental changes (including climate change). Anticipating the future consequences of these pressures and vectors of change for marine life and of adaptation and mitigation measures (such as the introduction of new technologies and structures, new ballast water practices, ocean and offshore wind energy devices and new fishing strategies) is a prerequisite to the development and implementation of strategies, policies and regulations to manage the marine environment, such as the IMO Convention on ballast water management and the EU Maritime Policy and Marine Strategy Framework Directive

Strengthened multi-stakeholder linkages in valuation studies is critical for improved decision making outcomes for valuable mangroves – The Malaysian case study

Mangrove forests in Southeast Asia are continuously declining as a result of unsustainable practices, partly due to limited recognition of the value of mangrove services in land use decision making. Valuation practitioners have assumed that monetary valuation should inform local and national decision makers to ensure sustainable management of mangrove resources. For ecosystem service valuation to be of use to decision makers, best practices should be adhered to such as having straightforward policy questions and strong stakeholder engagement from the onset of valuation studies, suitable choice of valuation methodologies, and the ability to effectively demonstrate causal links between drivers of ecosystem health, change, and resource users. This study, focusing on the Malaysian case study, assessed the effectiveness and challenges of local ecosystem service valuation studies in informing mangrove management decisions against a set of global best practices. A systematic review approach was undertaken to identify relevant Malaysian mangrove ecosystem service valuation studies. Of 184 studies identified, only 17 provided monetary values for mangrove ecosystem services. These studies valued nine different mangrove ecosystem services, with the cultural ecosystem services of tourism being the most frequently valued. Most of the valuation studies were designed to raise awareness of the value of ecosystems (64.7%). Other intended uses included determining appropriate charging rates for mangrove uses (17.6%), comparing the costs and benefits of different environmental uses (11.8%), and providing a justification and support for certain decision making (5.9%). Overall, mangrove valuation studies in Malaysia were characterized by weak multi-stakeholder engagement, non-standardized valuation units across the whole country, limited dissemination of the valuation outcome, and cursory references to the potential use of mangrove ecosystem services. Most of the studies did not exert apparent influence on mangrove management. Future valuation studies in Malaysia and the Southeast Asian region should aim to build more robust engagement between valuation practitioners and key stakeholder groups, especially decision makers, at all stages of the study process and incorporate a clear dissemination strategy for sharing results

The role of interdisciplinary collaboration for stated preference methods to value marine environmental goods and ecosystem services

With the increasing use of environmental valuation methods in coastal, marine and deep-sea settings, there is a growing need for the collaboration of natural scientists and environmental economists. Stated preference valuation methods in particular need to be based on sound natural science information and translate such information to be used in social surveys. This paper uses three applications to make explicit the flow of information between different disciplines in the preparation and implementation of stated preference studies. One approach for facilitating this flow is to increase knowledge and understanding of natural scientists on these methods. To address this, this paper highlights key opportunities and pitfalls and demonstrates those in the context of three case studies. It therefore provides guidance on stated preference valuation for natural scientists rather than for economists