Offshore wind turbine construction could be putting seals' hearing at risk

[OKIsItJustMe]

http://www.eurekalert.org/pub_releases/2015-05/w-owt051815.php

[font face=Serif]Public Release: 20-May-2015
[font size=5]Offshore wind turbine construction could be putting seals' hearing at risk[/font]
[font size=4]Wiley[/font]
[font size=3]

Noise from pile driving during offshore wind turbine construction could be damaging the hearing of harbour seals around the UK, according to ecologists who attached GPS data loggers to 24 harbor seals while offshore wind turbines were being installed in 2012. Data on the seals' locations and their diving behaviour was combined with information from the wind farm developers on when pile driving was taking place. Models revealed that half of the tagged seals were exposed to noise levels that exceeded hearing damage thresholds.

There are currently 1,184 offshore wind turbines around the coast of the UK. The next round of construction, which began in 2014, will see hundreds more turbines installed.

"These are some of the most powerful man-made sounds produced underwater, noise capable of travelling large distances underwater," said Dr. Gordon Hastie, lead author of the Journal of Applied Ecology study. "Like most marine mammals, harbour seals have very sensitive underwater hearing at a much broader range of frequencies than humans. They probably use underwater hearing during the mating season and to detect and avoid predators. They may also rely on their hearing for navigation and finding prey."

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[liberal N proud]

1. But oil wells are OK

[OKIsItJustMe]

2. I oppose off-shore drilling and support off-shore wind

However… this is a problem.

I suspect that if care is taken, it could be done with less of an impact upon the seals.
http://www.theguardian.com/environment/2014/jun/23/drifting-off-the-coast-of-portugal-the-frontrunner-in-the-global-race-for-floating-windfarms
http://web.mit.edu/windenergy/windweek/Presentations/P6%20-%20Sclavounos.pdf

[Judi Lynn]

3. I hope there will be enough decent humans around to look for answers to this destruction

of the lives of these wonderful sea critters. They are having a very hard time with the degradation of their only environment before this started happening. What a shrieking shame.

All effort should be made to find out how to get what is wanted without destroying every living thing in their road. Life's not supposed to work that way, and it shouldn't be made to work that way.

[The2ndWheel]

4. Finite planet

We can't have everything. If we want more, there has to be less for the rest of life on the planet.

[OKIsItJustMe]

5. Zero sum game?

I don’t think so.

Let us say that we would like less carbon dioxide in the atmosphere, for our own selfish needs. One way to accomplish that would be by making the world a better place for plant life. (Wait a moment! We both benefit!)

[The2ndWheel]

6. So are we giving anything up in that equation?

Or do we get to keep everything we like, and still everyone and everything wins? That seems tough to do. Great in theory, difficult in practice. What if you keep adding variables to the equation? Add polar bears, and elephants, and various sea life, etc. It gets to be a lengthy equation, and solving for x gets more difficult.

[OKIsItJustMe]

7. You have put forward that it is a Zero sum game

I have given you a counter example. We could do a better job of taking care of our forests. Are we giving up anything? Maybe. As much as we gain? Clearly not—otherwise we would not do it.

Still the trees, and wildlife would benefit!

Your zero sum game is disproven.