Tag: noise pollution

Marine mammals, such as whales and dolphins, are impacted by underwater noise. The Vancouver Fraser Port Authority is taking the lead in promoting quieter ships – with an innovative incentive program, Rachel Carmichael, DNV GL, explains.

The European Commission announced that EU member states approved the Commission's proposal to invest €22.1 million in seven actions that will help develop sustainable and efficient transport and energy infrastructure.

As ship-owners must ensure their vessels meet strict noise regulations, Tokai University initiated two projects intended to help engineers reduce and control noise on board during operation.

J. (Rob) Witte, DGMR advised how to reduce ‘’Noise in Ports’’ during the 2016 GREEN4SEA Conference & Awards. He explained that moored seagoing vessels produce sound that can be perceived as annoying by residents living near harbours. The number of complaints in the Rotterdam Port Area is on average 250/year on this subject

When an endangered orca is in hot pursuit of an endangered salmon, sending out clicks and listening for their echoes in the murky ocean near Seattle, does the noise from the nearby shipping lane interfere with them catching dinner? To find out, scientists measured underwater noise as ships passed their study site 3,000 times. This unprecedented characterization of ship noise will aid in the understanding of the potential effects on marine life, and help with possible mitigation strategies.

 Port Metro Vancouver, with support from the University of Victoria’s Ocean Networks Canada and JASCO Applied Sciences, has deployed a hydrophone listening station that will monitor underwater vessel noise in the Strait of Georgia. Underwater noise has been identified as a key threat to at-risk whales.The hydrophone listening station deployment and monitoring activities are part of the Enhancing Cetacean Habitat and Observation (ECHO) Program. The program aims to better understand and manage the impact of shipping activities on at-risk whales throughout the southern coast of British Columbia.“Port Metro Vancouver is mandated by the Canada Marine Act to accommodate Canada’s growing trade demands in a way that is sustainable,” said Duncan Wilson, Vice President of Corporate Social Responsibility at Port Metro Vancouver.“We are working together with scientists, shipping industries, conservation and environmental groups, First Nations individuals and government agencies to take proactive action to improve conditions for whales.”The newly-deployed listening station is located under water in the inbound shipping lane of the Strait of Georgia, and will be monitoring and reporting on ambient noise levels, marine mammal detections, and passing vessel noise. Working in collaboration with the Pacific Pilotage Authority and the British Columbia Coast Pilots, the intention is to maneuver as ...

 ABP Marine Environmental Research (ABPmer) prepared a report on behalf of the UK Marine Management Organisation on underwater noise in the South marine plan areas. Quantification of underwater noise is a current and evolving topic in marine environmental science that is relevant to marine plan policy development. It is recognised that there is currently insufficient data to support a quantitative assessment of underwater noise levels and its impact on the natural environment at marine plan or national scale. This research and development work represents an initial step in addressing the recognised gap in availability of consistent plan scale indicative map(s) of anthropogenic underwater noise distribution and levels to support marine planning.A data and literature review of academic journals, government, non-government organisations and industry reports identified a wide range of marine noise sources. It found vessel traffic, fishinthis can be presented as g, and dredging to be the principle anthropogenic continuous noise sources relevant to the South plan areas.Indicative maps can inform sustainable development through improved awareness and consideration of continuous underwater noise in impact assessments, especially in relation to protected and commercially valuable species.This work resulted in the development of a reusable GIS tool that enables quantitative modelling of underwater noise ...

 As governments and industries expand their use of high-decibel seismic surveys to explore the ocean bottom for resources, experts from eight universities and environmental organizations are calling for new global standards and mitigation strategies. Their goal is to minimize the amount of sound the surveys produce and reduce risks the surveys and other underwater human noise pollution poses to vulnerable marine life.Firms and agencies conducting the surveys would benefit from these new measures, the experts assert, because instead of having to navigate an assortment of rules that vary by nation or region, they would have a uniform set of standards to follow."In recent years, we've seen an increase in the use of seismic surveys for oil and gas exploration and research, and for establishing national resource claims on ever-larger geographic scales. Surveys are now occurring in, or proposed for, many previously unexploited regions including parts of the Arctic Ocean and off the U.S. Atlantic coast," said Douglas P. Nowacek, an expert on marine ecology and bioacoustics at Duke University."The time has come for industries, governments, scientists and environmental organizations to work together to set practical guidelines to minimize the risks," he said.Nowacek and his colleagues published their recommendations in a peer-reviewed ...