This note presents the Benthic Ecology and Fish and Shellfish Ecology definitions of sensitivity and magnitude which East Anglia Offshore Wind (EAOW) THREE and FOUR propose to use for their Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA). EAOW wish to agree these definitions with the Marine Management Organisation (MMO) Natural England and Cefas as part of the Evidence plan process. The sensitivity definitions for the two topics are slightly different and therefore both are presented below. A theoretical example of how these would be used within the ES is the presented.
5.
Also included within the note is an example of the text we would wish to use to wrap up all the cumulative impacts to benthic ecology as part of the EIA.
Sensitivity and Magnitude 6.
The sensitivity definitions for both Benthic Ecology and Fish and Shellfish are presented in Table 1 and Table 2 below
Table 1. Benthic ecology definitions of the different sensitivity levels for receptors: Sensitivity
Definition High Medium Low Negligible
Individual receptor (species or habitat) has very limited or no capacity to accommodate, adapt or recover from the anticipated impact.
Individual receptor (species or habitat) has limited capacity to accommodate, adapt or recover from the anticipated impact.
Individual receptor (species or habitat) has some tolerance to accommodate, adapt or recover from the anticipated impact.
Individual receptor (species or habitat) is generally tolerant to and can accommodate or recover from the anticipated impact.
7.
In addition, for some assessments the ‘value’ of a receptor may also be an element to add to the assessment where relevant – for instance if a receptor is a designated feature (i.e. ecological, geological or historic) or has an economic value.
8.
It should be noted that high value and high sensitivity are not necessarily linked within a particular impact. A receptor could be of high value (e.g. a European (Annex 1) designated habitat) but have a low or negligible physical/ecological sensitivity to an effect – it is important not to inflate impact significance simply because a feature is ‘valued’. The narrative behind the assessment is important here; the value can be
Preliminary Environmental Information May 2014
East Anglia THREE Offshore Windfarm
Appendix. 10.1 Benthic Ecology Evidence Plan Page 29
