Colonisation of fish and crabs of wave energy foundations and the effects of manufactured holes – A field experiment

Abstract

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Coastal and Offshore Wind Energy Generation: Is It Environmentally Benign?

“…Indirect evidence for the likely ecological effects can be obtained from available literature on artificial reefs and other underwater structures. This experimental evidence suggests that the aggregating effect is rapid, with noticeable effects occurring within a very short time from the erection of underwater structures [19,20] which suggests a redistribution of fish available in the area. However, the presence of such directed behaviours may indicate an overall beneficial effect for populations such as increased food availability, shelter, presence of mates or suitable spawning surface as conceptually proposed in the literature [84].…”

“…These experiments will require adding test structures or exclusion trials where the access of fish or other biological components to the structures is controlled [20,27,28]. Similarly the effects of noise or EM fields on fish behaviour will need better knowledge of the sensitivity of key fish species and responses to actual stimuli in the field.…”

“…Wind turbine field studies suggest a strong species-specific response with increased abundance over longer periods and changes of assemblage composition (fish and macrocrustaceans) [21,20]. However, there is the need for the study of long-term interactions between fish and offshore turbine structures.…”

“…The nature and complexity of man-made structures influence assemblages of benthic crustaceans more than fish [19,20]. Enhancement of the structures with features such as holes and artificial seagrass beds have been proposed to increase complexity and microhabitat choice, measures that are considered to increase the ecological value of artificial hard substrata and have positive effects on the complexity of the resulting fish assemblage [10,18].…”

Technological Approaches to Longline- and Cage-Based Aquaculture in Open Ocean Environments

“…Based on the analysis of the current development inside the continental shelf around the world Lacroix and Pioch (2011) plead innovative efforts to move towards eco-engineered structures such as artificial fishing reefs or the incorporation of secondary purposes within wind farms. The mutual benefits of wave energy converter foundations as artificial reefs were examined for a building site about 100 km north of Gothenburg at the Swedish coast (Langhamer and Wilhelmsson 2009). It was found that basically the amount of fish and crab on the ground of the foundations was considerably increase whereas the abundance of fish in the water column above was not substantially altered.…”