Underwater Noise Effects on Marine Life Associated with Offshore Wind Farms

Pantropical Spotted Dolphin (Credit: NOAA/NMFS/PIFSC)

This Educational Research Brief summarizes the international and U.S. literature related to potential underwater sound impacts from offshore wind development on marine life, including marine mammals, sea turtles, fish, and invertebrates, with relevance to future development on the U.S. Atlantic and Pacific coasts. While the risks and effects from impact pile driving during wind farm construction are given special attention, additional types of noise from other phases of the wind farm life cycle (e.g., site surveys, operations, and decommissioning) are also considered.

Underwater Noise Effects on Marine Life Associated with Offshore Wind Farms

View a Spanish translation of all SEER Educational Research Briefs here.

The Brief was reviewed by external subject matter experts (Rebecca Faulkner, Centre for Environment, Fisheries and Aquaculture Science; Dr. James Miller, University of Rhode Island) and the SEER Science and Technical (S&T) Advisory Committee. These subject matter experts also participated in a panel discussion during the SEER Webinar on Underwater Noise and Entanglement Consideration for Offshore Wind Farms.

Title Author Date Content Type Technology Stressor Receptor
Atlantic Marine Assessment Program for Protected Species Northeast Fisheries Science Center Website Birds, Marine Mammals, Reptiles
Comparison of Environmental Effects from Different Offshore Wind Turbine Foundations (2021 Revision) Horwath, S., Hassrick, J., Grismala, R., Diller, E., Krebs, J., Manhard, R. Report Wind Energy, Fixed Offshore Wind, Floating Offshore Wind Changes in Flow, Habitat Change, Noise Birds, Fish, Invertebrates, Marine Mammals, Physical Environment, Sediment Transport, Water Quality, Reptiles
Installation of offshore wind turbines: A technical review Jiang, Z. Journal Article Wind Energy, Fixed Offshore Wind, Floating Offshore Wind
Ocean Noise and Soundscape Projects Northeast Fisheries Science Center Website Noise
Vineyard Wind 1 Final Environmental Impact Statement (FEIS) Bureau of Ocean Energy Management (BOEM) Report Wind Energy, Fixed Offshore Wind Collision, Displacement, EMF, Habitat Change, Noise Human Dimensions, Environmental Impact Assessment
Acoustic Impacts of Offshore Wind Energy on Fishery Resources: An Evolving Source and Varied Effects Across a Wind Farm’s Lifetime Mooney, T., Andersson, M., Stanley, J. Journal Article Wind Energy, Fixed Offshore Wind Noise Fish, Invertebrates, Human Dimensions, Fisheries
Biological Opinion for Vineyard Wind's Offshore Wind Energy Project National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS) Report Wind Energy, Fixed Offshore Wind Fish, Marine Mammals, Physical Environment, Reptiles
Underwater noise during percussive pile driving: Influencing factors on pile-driving noise and technical possibilities to comply with noise mitigation values Bellmann, M., May, A., Wendt, T., Gerlach, S., Remmers, P., Brinkmann, J. Report Wind Energy, Fixed Offshore Wind Noise
Vineyard Wind 1 Offshore Wind Energy Project: Supplement to the Draft Environmental Impact Statement Bureau of Ocean Energy Management (BOEM) Report Wind Energy, Fixed Offshore Wind Human Dimensions, Environmental Impact Assessment, Navigation
Underwater Noise Emission Due to Offshore Pile Installation: A Review Tsouvalas, A. Journal Article Wind Energy, Fixed Offshore Wind Noise
Information Guidelines for a Renewable Energy Construction and Operations Plan (COP) Bureau of Ocean Energy Management (BOEM) Guidance Marine Energy, Wind Energy Human Dimensions, Legal & Policy
Taking the Animals' Perspective Regarding Anthropogenic Underwater Sound Popper, A., Hawkins, A., Thomsen, F. Journal Article Marine Energy, Wind Energy Noise Fish, Invertebrates, Marine Mammals
Noise mitigation for the construction of increasingly large offshore wind turbines Koschinski, S., Lüdemann, K. Report Wind Energy, Fixed Offshore Wind Noise
Characterization of impact pile driving signals during installation of offshore wind turbine foundations Amaral, J., Miller, J., Potty, G., Vigness-Raposa, K., Frankel, A., Lin, Y., Newhall, A., Wilkes, D., Gavrilov, A. Journal Article Wind Energy, Fixed Offshore Wind Noise
Technologies for Ocean Acoustic Monitoring National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) Website
What is sound? Discovery of Sound in the Sea Website
The Effects of Ship Noise on Marine Mammals—A Review Erbe, C., Marley, S., Schoeman, R., Smith, J., Trigg, L., Embling, C. Journal Article Marine Mammals
Causes and consequences of intraspecific variation in animal responses to anthropogenic noise Harding, H., Gordon, T., Eastcott, E., Simpson, S., Radford, A. Journal Article Noise
A Framework for Studying the Effects of Offshore Wind Development on Marine Mammals and Turtles Kraus, S., Kenney, R., Thomas, L. Report Wind Energy, Fixed Offshore Wind Marine Mammals, Reptiles
Underwater Acoustic Monitoring Data Analyses for the Block Island Wind Farm, Rhode Island HDR Report Wind Energy, Fixed Offshore Wind Noise Fish, Marine Mammals
An overview of fish bioacoustics and the impacts of anthropogenic sounds on fishes Popper, A., Hawkins, A. Journal Article Marine Energy, Wind Energy, Fixed Offshore Wind Noise Fish
Wildlife and Wind Farms - Conflicts and Solutions, Volume 3. Offshore: Potential Effects Perrow, M. Book Wind Energy, Fixed Offshore Wind, Floating Offshore Wind Bats, Birds, Fish, Invertebrates, Marine Mammals, Physical Environment
Appendix III-M Supplemental Information for the Assessment of Potential Impacts to Marine Mammals and Sea Turtles During Construction, Operation, and Decommissioning of the Vineyard Wind Project Pyć, C., Zeddies, D., Denes, S., Weirathmueller, M. Report Wind Energy, Land-Based Wind Noise Marine Mammals, Reptiles
Effects of Noise on Marine Mammals Erbe, C., Dunlop, R., Dolman, S. Book Chapter Wind Energy, Fixed Offshore Wind, Marine Energy Noise Marine Mammals
2018 Revision to: Technical Guidance for Assessing the Effects of Anthropogenic Sound on Marine Mammal Hearing (Version 2.0): Underwater Thresholds for Onset of Permanent and Temporary Threshold Shifts National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS) Guidance Noise Marine Mammals
Underwater sound from vessel traffic reduces the effective communication range in Atlantic cod and haddock Stanley, J., Van Parijs, S., Hatch, L. Journal Article Noise Fish
Bubble Curtains Attenuate Noise from Offshore Wind Farm Construction and Reduce Temporary Habitat Loss for Harbour Porpoises Dähne, M., Tougaard, J., Carstensen, J., Rose, A., Nabe-Nielsen, J. Journal Article Wind Energy, Fixed Offshore Wind Noise Marine Mammals
Developing an essential ocean variable for the acoustic environment Tyack, P. Journal Article Noise
Broad-Scale Acoustic Monitoring for Cetaceans and Underwater Noise in Relation to Offshore Wind Farm Construction in Scotland Brookes, K., Edwards, E., Merchant, N., Davies, I. Journal Article Wind Energy, Fixed Offshore Wind Noise Marine Mammals, Cetaceans
Measurements of hydro sound emissions during internal jet cutting during monopile decommissioning Hinzmann, N., Stein, P., Gattermann, J., Bachmann, J., Duff, G. Conference Paper Wind Energy, Fixed Offshore Wind Noise
Geophysical and Geotechnical Investigation Methodology Assessment for Siting Renewable Energy Facilities on the Atlantic OCS Fugro Marine GeoServices Inc. Report Wind Energy, Fixed Offshore Wind, Floating Offshore Wind
Avoidance of Wind Farms by Harbour Seals is Limited to Pile Driving Activities Russell, D., Hastie, G., Thompson, D., Janik, V., Hammond, P., Scott-Hayward, L., Matthiopoulos, J., Jones, E., McConnell, B. Journal Article Wind Energy, Fixed Offshore Wind Avoidance, Noise Marine Mammals, Pinnipeds
Hearing in the Juvenile Green Sea Turtle (Chelonia mydas): A Comparison of Underwater and Aerial Hearing Using Auditory Evoked Potentials Piniak, W., Mann, D., Harms, C., Jones, T., Eckert, S. Journal Article Noise Reptiles
Environmental impacts of offshore wind farms in the Belgian part of the North Sea: Environmental impact monitoring reloaded Degraer, S., Brabant, R., Rumes, B., Vigin, L. Report Wind Energy, Fixed Offshore Wind Attraction, Avoidance, Habitat Change, Noise Bats, Birds, Fish, Invertebrates, Marine Mammals, Physical Environment, Human Dimensions, Fisheries
An Interim Framework for Assessing the Population Consequences of Disturbance King, S., Schick, R., Donovan, C., Booth, C., Burgman, M., Thomas, L., Harwood, J. Journal Article Ecosystem Processes
Disturbance Effects on the Harbour Porpoise Population in the North Sea (DEPONS): Status report on model development van Beest, F., Nabe-Nielsen, J., Carstensen, J., Teilmann, J., Tougaard, J. Report Fixed Offshore Wind Noise Marine Mammals
Assessing Environmental Impacts of Offshore Wind Farms: Lessons Learned and Recommendations for the Future Bailey, H., Brookes, K., Thompson, P. Journal Article Wind Energy, Fixed Offshore Wind Noise, Displacement, Collision, Avoidance, Attraction Marine Mammals, Ecosystem Processes, Birds
200 kHz Commercial Sonar Systems Generate Lower Frequency Side Lobes Audible to Some Marine Mammals Deng, Z., Southall, B., Carlson, T., Xu, J., Martinez, J., Weiland, M., Ingraham, J. Journal Article Noise Marine Mammals, Cetaceans
Seismic Surveys Negatively Affect Humpback Whale Singing Activity off Northern Angola Cerchio, S., Strindberg, S., Collins, T., Bennett, C., Rosenbaum, H. Journal Article Noise Marine Mammals, Cetaceans
Quieting Technologies for Reducing Noise During Seismic Surveying and Pile Driving Workshop Report CSA Ocean Sciences Inc Report Marine Energy, Wind Energy, Fixed Offshore Wind Noise
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