Figure 1 Deployment of Van Veen grab sampler during benthic environmental survey campaign, courtesy of Fugro.
Function
Benthic studies survey species that live on the sea bed and in sediment. The survey data and analysis is used to define areas of similar environmental conditions on the sea bed and to inform habitat and species impact studies.
What it costs*
About £1.2 million for a 1 GW wind farm.
Who supplies them
Suppliers include ABPmer, APEM, Fugro, Gardline, Natural Power (Fred. Olsen) and Ocean Ecology.
Key facts
Sampling sites are chosen so as to produce the most effective broad-scale categorisation of the overall region, as well as attempting to investigate smaller scale features such as reefs.
Specific attention is given to the presence of particular ecosystems, such as certain reef species, where their presence is of crucial significance to the EIA.
Methods include grab and sampling, epibenthic beam trawling and drop down video (DDV). Generally, surveys are designed to ground proof on geophysical data (bathymetry and sidescan), acquired for site characterisation of ground conditions, which has been interpreted to provide predictive habitat mapping.
What’s in it
- Species identification and counting
- Laboratory analyses
- Impact models and reports