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Expected occurrence of wildlife in US Atlantic offshore wind areas

Journal Article · · Frontiers in Marine Science
 [1];  [1];  [1];  [2];  [1]
  1. Duke University, Durham, NC (United States)
  2. National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, Beaufort, NC (United States)
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Offshore wind energy has entered a pivotal phase of development for the U.S. Atlantic Outer Continental Shelf (OCS), a region that supports critical habitats, migratory corridors and flyways for many marine species. Assessing where and when marine wildlife occurs is a crucial first step in developing a risk assessment framework to evaluate potential risks and impacts of offshore wind development. In this study, we perform this initial assessment by evaluating the expected occurrence of marine mammal, seabird and sea turtle taxa in areas of interest to identify patterns and potential areas of concern. Specifically, this work depicts the expected monthly density of 84 marine species and taxa within each of the 29 active wind energy lease areas plus a 10 km buffer to account for nearby activity. We then compare these densities to subregional thresholds, evaluated as the 90th percentile of the subregion’s monthly density, to provide comparisons across the shelf region. This analysis synthesizes the most recent spatial distribution models of 31 marine mammal taxa (26 species and 5 guilds), 49 seabird species and 4 sea turtle species to provide a unified evaluation of the major marine wildlife in the region. Out of the 84 species and taxa analyzed, 56 exhibit levels of expected density in wind energy areas that exceed the corresponding 90th percentile subregional threshold at some point throughout the year. These results represent an initial assessment in the broader Occurrence, Exposure, Response, and Consequence (OERC) framework, originally developed by the U.S. Navy for marine species risk assessments. These results offer valuable guidance to marine spatial planners, management agencies and offshore wind developers on the expected locations and timing of interaction risk to wildlife species in or near wind energy areas across the region.
Research Organization:
Duke University, Durham, NC (United States)
Sponsoring Organization:
USDOE Office of Energy Efficiency and Renewable Energy (EERE), Renewable Power Office. Wind Energy Technologies Office
Grant/Contract Number:
EE0010287
OSTI ID:
2569688
Journal Information:
Frontiers in Marine Science, Journal Name: Frontiers in Marine Science Vol. 12; ISSN 2296-7745
Publisher:
Frontiers Research FoundationCopyright Statement
Country of Publication:
United States
Language:
English

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17 WIND ENERGY
54 ENVIRONMENTAL SCIENCES
U.S. Atlantic coast
marine mammals
offshore wind energy
risk assessment
sea turtles
seabirds
wildlife occurrence