Human activities on the deep seafloor in the North East Atlantic: an assessment of spatial extent
Background: Environmental impacts of human activities on the deep seafloor are of increasing concern. While activities within waters shallower than 200 m have been the focus of previous assessments of anthropogenic impacts, no study has quantified the extent of individual activities or determined th...
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ftciteseerx:oai:CiteSeerX.psu:10.1.1.350.6575 2023-05-15T17:34:47+02:00 Human activities on the deep seafloor in the North East Atlantic: an assessment of spatial extent Angela R. Benn Philip P. Weaver David S. M. Billet Sybille Van Den Hove Andrew P. Murdock Gemma B. Doneghan Tim Le Bas The Pennsylvania State University CiteSeerX Archives 2010 application/zip http://citeseerx.ist.psu.edu/viewdoc/summary?doi=10.1.1.350.6575 en eng http://citeseerx.ist.psu.edu/viewdoc/summary?doi=10.1.1.350.6575 Metadata may be used without restrictions as long as the oai identifier remains attached to it. ftp://ftp.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pub/pmc/85/fe/PLoS_One_2010_Sep_13_5(9)_e12730.tar.gz text 2010 ftciteseerx 2016-01-08T00:20:12Z Background: Environmental impacts of human activities on the deep seafloor are of increasing concern. While activities within waters shallower than 200 m have been the focus of previous assessments of anthropogenic impacts, no study has quantified the extent of individual activities or determined the relative severity of each type of impact in the deep sea. Methodology: The OSPAR maritime area of the North East Atlantic was chosen for the study because it is considered to be one of the most heavily impacted by human activities. In addition, it was assumed data would be accessible and comprehensive. Using the available data we map and estimate the spatial extent of five major human activities in the North East Atlantic that impact the deep seafloor: submarine communication cables, marine scientific research, oil and gas industry, bottom trawling and the historical dumping of radioactive waste, munitions and chemical weapons. It was not possible to map military activities. The extent of each activity has been quantified for a single year, 2005. Principal Findings: Human activities on the deep seafloor of the OSPAR area of the North Atlantic are significant but their footprints vary. Some activities have an immediate impact after which seafloor communities could re-establish, while others can continue to make an impact for many years and the impact could extend far beyond the physical disturbance. The spatial extent of waste disposal, telecommunication cables, the hydrocarbon industry and marine research activities is relatively small. The extent of bottom trawling is very significant and, even on the lowest possible estimates, is an order of Text North Atlantic North East Atlantic Unknown |
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Background: Environmental impacts of human activities on the deep seafloor are of increasing concern. While activities within waters shallower than 200 m have been the focus of previous assessments of anthropogenic impacts, no study has quantified the extent of individual activities or determined the relative severity of each type of impact in the deep sea. Methodology: The OSPAR maritime area of the North East Atlantic was chosen for the study because it is considered to be one of the most heavily impacted by human activities. In addition, it was assumed data would be accessible and comprehensive. Using the available data we map and estimate the spatial extent of five major human activities in the North East Atlantic that impact the deep seafloor: submarine communication cables, marine scientific research, oil and gas industry, bottom trawling and the historical dumping of radioactive waste, munitions and chemical weapons. It was not possible to map military activities. The extent of each activity has been quantified for a single year, 2005. Principal Findings: Human activities on the deep seafloor of the OSPAR area of the North Atlantic are significant but their footprints vary. Some activities have an immediate impact after which seafloor communities could re-establish, while others can continue to make an impact for many years and the impact could extend far beyond the physical disturbance. The spatial extent of waste disposal, telecommunication cables, the hydrocarbon industry and marine research activities is relatively small. The extent of bottom trawling is very significant and, even on the lowest possible estimates, is an order of |
author2 |
The Pennsylvania State University CiteSeerX Archives |
format |
Text |
author |
Angela R. Benn Philip P. Weaver David S. M. Billet Sybille Van Den Hove Andrew P. Murdock Gemma B. Doneghan Tim Le Bas |
spellingShingle |
Angela R. Benn Philip P. Weaver David S. M. Billet Sybille Van Den Hove Andrew P. Murdock Gemma B. Doneghan Tim Le Bas Human activities on the deep seafloor in the North East Atlantic: an assessment of spatial extent |
author_facet |
Angela R. Benn Philip P. Weaver David S. M. Billet Sybille Van Den Hove Andrew P. Murdock Gemma B. Doneghan Tim Le Bas |
author_sort |
Angela R. Benn |
title |
Human activities on the deep seafloor in the North East Atlantic: an assessment of spatial extent |
title_short |
Human activities on the deep seafloor in the North East Atlantic: an assessment of spatial extent |
title_full |
Human activities on the deep seafloor in the North East Atlantic: an assessment of spatial extent |
title_fullStr |
Human activities on the deep seafloor in the North East Atlantic: an assessment of spatial extent |
title_full_unstemmed |
Human activities on the deep seafloor in the North East Atlantic: an assessment of spatial extent |
title_sort |
human activities on the deep seafloor in the north east atlantic: an assessment of spatial extent |
publishDate |
2010 |
url |
http://citeseerx.ist.psu.edu/viewdoc/summary?doi=10.1.1.350.6575 |
genre |
North Atlantic North East Atlantic |
genre_facet |
North Atlantic North East Atlantic |
op_source |
ftp://ftp.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pub/pmc/85/fe/PLoS_One_2010_Sep_13_5(9)_e12730.tar.gz |
op_relation |
http://citeseerx.ist.psu.edu/viewdoc/summary?doi=10.1.1.350.6575 |
op_rights |
Metadata may be used without restrictions as long as the oai identifier remains attached to it. |
_version_ |
1766133717714075648 |