Expansion of human uses of the marine environment has caused an intensification of resulting pressures, leading to negative effects on marine life. Spatial assessments of impact risk combine the overlap of an activities pressure with a given ecosystem component to assess the spatial extent of possible risk. Pressure-specific dispersal properties are underdeveloped in many cumulative impact assessment methodologies, and arbitrary models of pressure decay with distance from the source is applied. Underdeveloped methods for pressure dispersal modelling leads to a misrepresentation of impact risk in a given ecosystem and can further misinform policy. This study develops pressure-specific methods, using continuous underwater noise in the Dutch Wadden Sea as a case study, within the Spatial Cumulative Assessment of Impact Risk for Management (SCAIRM) framework. Propagation of underwater noise from vessel traffic was mapped and incorporated into SCAIRM with respect to receptor-specific thresholds of hearing damage. The overall change in impact risk was low, however, this study highlights the importance of including accurate and biologically specific information to relay the best possible information to management.
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