Aquatic Pollution from Light and Anthropogenic Noise: management of impacts on biodiversity (AquaPLAN)

Framework: Horizon Europe — Global Challenges and European Industrial Competitiveness
Programme: Food, Bioeconomy Natural Resources, Agriculture and Environment
Theme: Bio-Environment
Destination: Biodiversity and Ecosystem Services
Action type: Research and Innovation actions
Countries involved: Italy,Israel,United Kingdom,Norway,Spain,Ireland,Germany,Netherlands,Portugal,Australia
Call: Impact of light and noise pollution on biodiversity (HORIZON-CL6-2023-BIODIV-01, 2023)
Start date: 2024-01-01
End date: 2027-12-31
Duration (months): 48.0
Total project cost (EUR): 3207576.25
EU funding (EUR): 3207576.25
Participants: 16
Project status: SIGNED

Recent decades have seen dramatic increases in our understanding of Light and Noise Pollution (LNP) impacts on aquatic biodiversity. These impacts are globally widespread and occurring in all aquatic ecosystems from lakes and rivers to the seafloor. A variety of technologies and policy interventions are also now available to mitigate LNP impacts in aquatic ecosystems. Yet, numerous knowledge gaps exist that if addressed would substantially improve our understanding of the prevalence and impacts of LNP, and our ability to manage them. There remain critical gaps in our understanding of the combined occurrence and impacts of LNP across the breadth of aquatic ecosystems, particularly at large spatial scales and over long-time frames. While numerous abatement options exist, pathways to achieving their effective implementation remain unclear. AquaPLAN is an interdisciplinary pan-European consortium that are world leaders in the fields of aquatic light and/or noise pollution. AquaPLAN aims to quantify the combined impacts of LNP on aquatic biodiversity across European seas, lakes, and rivers, and facilitate the implementation of empirically sound strategies for managing these pollutants through novel interdisciplinary approaches. AquaPLAN will: i) provide a comprehensive review of the state of the art on the impacts of LNP on aquatic biodiversity; ii) assess perceptions of LNP impacts and the need for their management across key stakeholder groups; iii) quantify the combined impacts of LNP on the conservation status of biodiversity in aquatic habitats; iv) identify the mechanisms leading to individual and combined impacts of LNP on aquatic biodiversity; v) explore innovative interdisciplinary solutions to prevent and mitigate LNP impacts on aquatic biodiversity; vi) build an international, interdisciplinary network to assess, prevent and mitigate the combined impacts of LNP on aquatic biodiversity. Building on AquaPLAN's objectives, other knowledge gaps will be filled by a new partner coming from Portugal, with a two-fold novelty: an incremental novelty, adding a new land-cover type (urban), a new habitat (small ponds and streams), and a new suite of taxa (freshwater macroinvertebrates and amphibians); and a scientific novelty, considering the potential impacts of noise-induced substrate vibration, which can be more important in shallow water systems, such as urban aquatic habitats. While direct noise impacts large bodies of water, sound-induced substrate vibration can cause additional stress in organisms that use these areas for food or shelter. This approach will contribute to and increase AquaPLAN's objectives. Because multiple stressors (other than LNP) are found in urban areas, AquaPLAN will consider the impacts of LNP and substrate vibration along with air pollution and urban heat island effects. Since measures to decrease the impact of noise on humans are built into cities, AquaPLAN will test their potential role in protecting biodiversity, including calculating thresholds for effects. Taking this information together with new knowledge of the role of substrate vibration (which can be manipulated when building or restoring urban aquatic habitats), the project will contribute to improving policies and technological development for dealing with LNP. Considering the novel LNP sources and biodiversity taxa, AquaPLAN's original range of habitats and taxa will be widened, which is especially relevant for sensitive taxa, such as amphibians and some freshwater macroinvertebrates. This will also contribute to the implementation of long-term monitoring of LNP combined impacts on aquatic ecosystems.

Keywords: artificial light at night noise pollution marine freshwater biodiversity ecosystem services monitoring marine spatial planning policy good environmental status stakeholders participation