• • • •
Sprat; Sandeels;
Elasmobranchs; and Diadromous species;
Sole, plaice and cod 152. As shown by Figure 11.53- Figure 11.55, the spawning grounds defined for sole, plaice and cod are overlapped by the 168dB contour giving rise to some potential for juvenile and spawning sole, plaice and cod to be affected by piling noise during the construction phase.
153. These species are pelagic spawners and not dependent on spawning grounds with specific sea bed characteristics. As shown by Figures 11.54 and 11.55, cod and plaice spawning grounds occur across large areas of the North Sea, therefore the displacement of adults from relatively small areas of sea during the respective spawning seasons is not expected to affect the overall spawning success of these species. The magnitude of the effect is therefore considered to be low.
154.
In the case of sole, as shown by Figure 11.53, although their spawning grounds cover substantial areas of the Southern North Sea and the English Channel, they are not as extensive as cod and plaice. Whilst only a very small proportion of sole spawning grounds are encompassed by the 168dB contour, taking a precautionary approach a medium magnitude of effect has been assumed.
155. Sole, cod and plaice are not substrate specific spawners and have low spatial dependency in respect of spawning areas. Furthermore, as shown by Figure 11.53 to Figure 11.55 for each of these species there is minimal overlap of spawning areas by the 168dB contour, and as such at population levels, very low receptor-effect interactions are expected to occur. Consequently, low sensitivities have been assumed for sole, cod and plaice giving impacts of minor adverse significance for these species.
Whiting 156. Construction noise from East Anglia THREE may potentially impact on the spawning behaviour of the sub-population of whiting in the southern North Sea. The 168dB contour partially overlaps a spawning ground for whiting (Coull et al. 1998) (Figure 11.57). Given the spatial extent of the overlap and the availability of suitable spawning areas which are not impacted by noise, the magnitude of the effect is low. The absence of specific information on the behavioural responses of whiting to noise
Preliminary Environmental Information May 2014
East Anglia THREE Offshore Windfarm
Chapter 11 Fish and Shellfish Page 62
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