Short Science Summary: Changes in Benthic and Pelagic Habitats

Marine Habitat

Potential Environmental Effects on Habitats from Marine Renewable Energy: Changes in Benthic and Pelagic Habitats

Most marine renewable energy (MRE) devices must be attached to the seafloor in some way, either by gravity foundations, pilings, or anchors, and many will also have transmission cables on the seabed, and mooring lines, as well as the devices themselves in the water column. Physical changes in benthic and pelagic habitats have the potential to alter where species live and how common they are at a site, and they may lead to habitat loss, provide opportunities for non-native species to become established, alter ecological patterns, modify ecosystem functions and the services the ecosystem provides, and affect the behavior of many marine organisms.

This Short Science Summary was developed based on the OES-Environmental 2020 State of the Science Report: Environmental Effects of Marine Renewable Energy Development Around the World, specifically Chapter 6: Changes in Benthic and Pelagic Habitats Caused by Marine Renewable Energy Devices.

The table below contains the literature relevant to this summary document and will continue to be updated as new literature is added to Tethys.

Title Author Date Content Type Technology Stressor Receptor
Seabed Scour Considerations for Marine Renewable Energy Facilities Stevens, R., Smith, K., Soosainathan, L., Fischer, J., Mekkawy, M., Rahim, A., O'Connell, D. Conference Paper Marine Energy Habitat Change Physical Environment
A Snapshot of Risk for Environmental Effects of Marine Renewable Energy Development Copping, A., Kramer, S. Conference Paper Marine Energy Changes in Flow, Collision, EMF, Entanglement, Habitat Change, Noise
Environmental aspects of designing multi-purpose offshore platforms in the scope of the FP7 TROPOS Project Lu, S., Yu, J., Golmen, L., Wesnigk, J., Papandroulakis, N., Anastasiadis, P., Delory, E., Quevedo, E., Hernández, J., Llinás, O. Conference Paper Marine Energy, Wind Energy, Fixed Offshore Wind Habitat Change Human Dimensions
Feasibility of Ocean Thermal Energy Conversion (OTEC) Development for U.S. Islands Copping, A., Farr, H. Conference Paper Marine Energy, OTEC Chemicals, Displacement, Entanglement, Habitat Change Fish, Marine Mammals, Human Dimensions
Investigating displacement of marine animals as a potential effect of marine renewable energy development Hemery, L., Garavelli, L., Copping, A., Farr, H., Jones, K. Conference Paper Marine Energy Displacement, Habitat Change, Noise Fish, Marine Mammals
Assessing the effect of onshore and offshore Wave Energy Converters on seafloor integrity combining image-based and acoustic methods Muxika, I., Vinagre, P., Le Bouhris, E., Villarín, E., Tanguy, F., Niclot, C., Bald, J. Conference Paper Marine Energy, Wave Habitat Change
Assessment of ocean energy systems as a source of energy for a proposed aquaculture ecosystem in Guam Peralta, F. Conference Paper Marine Energy, OTEC, Wave Changes in Flow, Chemicals, Habitat Change Fish, Invertebrates, Marine Mammals, Human Dimensions, Marine Spatial Planning, Social & Economic Data
Physical and Biological Modeling of a 100 Megawatt Ocean Thermal Energy Conversion Discharge Plume Rocheleau, G., Grandelli, P. Conference Paper Marine Energy, OTEC Habitat Change Ecosystem Processes, Physical Environment
Mooring System Considerations for Renewable Energy Standards Cribbs, A., Kärrsten, G., Shelton, J., Nicoll, R., Stewart, W. Conference Paper Marine Energy, Wind Energy, Fixed Offshore Wind Habitat Change
Effects from wave power generators on the distribution of two sea pen species on the Swedish west coast Bender, A., Sundberg, J. Conference Paper Marine Energy, Wave Habitat Change Invertebrates
Three-Frequency Colour Sidescan Sonar System for Monitoring the Seabed at Marine Renewable Energy Installations Tamsett, D., McIlvenny, J., Baxter, J., Gois, P., Williamson, B. Conference Paper Marine Energy, Tidal Habitat Change Ecosystem Processes, Physical Environment, Human Dimensions
Assessment and Control of OTEC Physical Environmental Impacts Ditmars, J. Conference Paper Marine Energy, OTEC Habitat Change Physical Environment
Multi-platform studies of the MeyGen tidal energy site – using UAVs to measure animal distributions and hydrodynamic features Williamson, B., Fraser, S., McIlvenny, J., Couto, A., Chapman, J., Wade, H., Martin, J., Wilson, J., Evans, T., Hunter, D., Fenn, S., Culloch, R., Tait, A., Chimienti, M., Edwards, E., Williamson, L., Davies, I., Scott, B. Conference Paper Marine Energy, Tidal Changes in Flow, Habitat Change
Mapping of Benthic Habitats at Marine Renewable Energy Sites Using Multibeam Echosounder and Sediment Profile Imaging Technologies Revelas, E., Sackmann, B., Maher, N., Jones, C. Conference Paper Marine Energy, Wind Energy, Fixed Offshore Wind Habitat Change Ecosystem Processes, Physical Environment
Annex IV - Investigating Environmental Effects of Wave and Tidal Devices Through International Cooperation Copping, A., Hanna, L., Battey, H., Brown-Saracino, J. Conference Paper Marine Energy, Tidal, Wave Changes in Flow, Habitat Change, Noise
Towards Holistic Characterization of the Near Seabed for Renewable Energy Installations in Shallow Marine Environments Clementi, M., Boiero, D., Leone, C., Masnaghetti, L. Conference Paper Marine Energy, Wind Energy Changes in Flow, Habitat Change Physical Environment, Sediment Transport
Moving from scientific research to consenting guidance for MRE environmental risk Copping, A., Rose, D., Freeman, M. Conference Paper Marine Energy, Tidal, Wave Changes in Flow, EMF, Habitat Change, Noise Human Dimensions, Environmental Impact Assessment, Legal & Policy, Social & Economic Data, Stakeholder Engagement
Effects of Wave Energy Generators on Nephrops norvegicus Bender, A., Sunberg, J. Conference Paper Marine Energy, Wave Habitat Change Invertebrates
Retiring environmental risks of marine renewable energy devices: the “habitat change” case Hemery, L., Rose, D., Freeman, M., Copping, A. Conference Paper Marine Energy Habitat Change Human Dimensions, Environmental Impact Assessment, Stakeholder Engagement
Development of Invertebrate Assemblages and Fish on Offshore Wave Power Langhamer, O., Wilhelmsson, D., Engström, J. Conference Paper Marine Energy, Wave Habitat Change Fish, Invertebrates
A Methodology to Assess Displacement Effects on Key Wildlife Species Arising from Marine Energy Conversion Systems using Onshore Observation Data Long, C., Scott-Hayward, L., Norris, J. Conference Paper Marine Energy Displacement, Habitat Change
Wave power devices as artificial reefs Langhamer, O., Wilhelmsson, D. Conference Paper Marine Energy, Wave Habitat Change Fish, Invertebrates
Mobile Autonomous Platforms for Passive-Acoustic Monitoring of High-frequency Klinck, H., Fregosi, S., Matsumoto, H., Turpin, A., Mellinger, D., Erofeev, A., Barth, J., Shearman, R., Jafarmardar, K., Stelzer, R. Conference Paper Marine Energy, Tidal, Wind Energy, Fixed Offshore Wind, Floating Offshore Wind Avoidance, Habitat Change Marine Mammals, Cetaceans
Biodiversity Characterisation of Fouling Communities and Their Hydrodynamic Consequences on Marine Renewable Energy Infrastructure in the UK Want, A., Harris, R., Porter, J. Conference Paper Marine Energy, Wind Energy, Fixed Offshore Wind Habitat Change
Wave and Tidal Range Energy Devices Offer Environmental Opportunities as Artificial Reefs Callaway, R., Bertelli, C., Lock, G., Carter, T., Friis-Madsen, E., Unsworth, R., Sorense, H., Neumann, F. Conference Paper Marine Energy, Tidal, Wave Attraction, Habitat Change Invertebrates
The emergence of a new marine renewable energy industry – what are the implications for fisheries? Bell, M., Side, J., Kerr, S., Johnson, K., Baston, S., Bullen, C. Conference Paper Marine Energy, Tidal, Wave Changes in Flow, Collision, EMF, Habitat Change, Noise Fish, Human Dimensions, Environmental Impact Assessment, Fisheries
Improving Understanding of Environmental Effects from Single MRE Devices to Arrays Hasselman, D., Hemery, L., Copping, A., Fulton, E., Fox, J., Gill, A., Polagye, B. Conference Paper Marine Energy, Tidal, Wave Changes in Flow, Collision, Displacement, EMF, Entanglement, Habitat Change, Noise
Marine Scotland Letter: EMEC Benthic Habitat Marine Scotland Guidance Marine Energy Habitat Change
Information to support Environmental Assessment of tidal lagoon developments in Wales Natural Resource Wales Guidance Marine Energy, Tidal Habitat Change Birds, Fish, Marine Mammals, Physical Environment
Marine Renewable Energy Development: Assessing the Benthic Footprint at Multiple Scales Miller, R., Hutchison, Z., Macleod, A., Burrows, M., Cook, E., Last, K., Wilson, B. Journal Article Marine Energy, Wind Energy, Fixed Offshore Wind Habitat Change Invertebrates
The location of offshore wave power devices structures epifaunal assemblages Langhamer, O. Journal Article Marine Energy, Wave Habitat Change Invertebrates
Investigating biophysical linkages at tidal energy candidate sites: a case study for combining environmental assessment and resource characterisation Scherelis, C., Penesis, I., Hemer, M., Cossu, R., Wright, J., Guihen, D. Journal Article Marine Energy, Tidal Attraction, Habitat Change Physical Environment, Fish, Human Dimensions, Environmental Impact Assessment
Fish in the littoral zone: ecology, threats and management Winfield, I. Journal Article Marine Energy Habitat Change Fish
Assessing the impact of introduced infrastructure at sea with cameras: A case study for spatial scale, time and statistical power Bicknell, A., Sheehan, E., Godley, B., Doherty, P., Witt, M. Journal Article Marine Energy, Wave Habitat Change Invertebrates
Site Selection of Combined Offshore Wind and Wave Energy Farms: A Systematic Review Hosseinzadeh, S., Etemad-Shahidi, A., Stewart, R. Journal Article Marine Energy, Wave, Wind Energy Habitat Change Human Dimensions, Social & Economic Data
Effects Of Wave Energy Converters On The Surrounding Soft-bottom Macrofauna (west Coast Of Sweden) Langhamer, O. Journal Article Marine Energy, Wave Habitat Change Invertebrates
The Effects of Landscape Modifications on the Long-Term Persistence of Animal Populations Nabe-Nielsen, J., Sibly, R., Forchhammer, M., Forbes, V., Topping, C. Journal Article Marine Energy, Wind Energy, Fixed Offshore Wind Habitat Change Ecosystem Processes
Ocean sprawl facilitates dispersal and connectivity of protected species Henry, L., Mayorga-Adame, C., Fox, A., Polton, J., Ferris, J., McLellan, F., McCabe, C., Kutti, T., Roberts, J. Journal Article Marine Energy, Wind Energy, Fixed Offshore Wind Habitat Change Invertebrates
Tidal stream use by black guillemots Cepphus grylle in relation to a marine renewable energy development Johnston, D., Furness, R., Robbins, A., Tyler, G., McIlvenny, J., Masden, E. Journal Article Marine Energy, Tidal Collision, Habitat Change Birds, Seabirds
Waterbodies thermal energy based systems interactions with marine environment — A review Bordbar, A., Georgoulas, K., Dai, Y., Michele, S., Roberts, F., Carter, N., Lee, Y. Journal Article Marine Energy, OTEC Changes in Flow, Chemicals, Habitat Change Human Dimensions
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