HELCOM HOLAS II & Assessing fish as part of the Baltic Sea ecosystem Lena Bergström, Project Coordinator of HOLAS II
What are the aims of the HOLAS II project? What will be assessed? Where does fish come into the assessment?
Primary aims of the second HELCOM holistic assessment of ecosystem health of the Baltic Sea • Follow up on the Baltic Sea Action Plan (BSAP) • Serve as a base for the 2018 reporting of the MSFD Photo: Ulf Bergström Lena Bergström, HOLAS II
Also: Support the further development of a Baltic regional indicator-based assessment system Contributions from other projects, and from expert groups: • Better and more reliable indicators • Improved data flow • Increasingly automated and transparent assessment methods Lena Bergström, HOLAS II
Timeline Project from December 2014 to June 2018. Develop tools and concepts, data flows, Assess- Consul- Updates, ment finalize core indicators tation and report writing Develop and test methods RELEASE OF FIRST UPDATED RESULTS RESULTS Data! 2015 2016 2017 2018
Overview of HOLAS II outputs at different level of detail ”Chapters in the report” Results by species groups, descriptors, integrated assessments Results by indicator
What will be assessed? Where does fish come into the assessment? These slides reflect planned work! Many aspects are to be dicussed and agreed on further
HOLAS II in relation to the DPSIR framework Drivers Responses Pressures Impacts Status of the (ecosystem ecosystem services) To be developed further by HOLAS II together with the TAPAS project
Economic and social analyses (ESA): how to link the natural science-based assessment to analyses of benefits and consequences for human well-being • Use of marine waters – Linked to assessment of human activities and pressures • Cost of degradation – Benefits forgone if GES is not reached • Ecosystem services? To be considered further (Workshops for method development will be held 10-11 May, Helsinki and 8-9 September, Tallinn)
Assessment of Good Environmental Status D1= Biodiversity D2= Non-indigenous species D3 = Commercial fish D4 = Food webs Environmental D5 = Eutrophication status (GES) D6 = Seafloor integrity D7 = Hydrographical alterations D8= Contaminant concentrations D9 = Contaminants in food D10 = Marine litter D11 = Noise and energy Thematic outputs D2 D3 D6 D7 D9 D10 D11 BIODIV EUTRO D5 HAZ D8 D1,D4,D6 BIRDS MAM- FISH PELA- BENTIC MALS GIC Some pressure based desriptors may not be relevant to show in maps Results for groups of biodiversity elements
GES is assessed based on Core indicators • Biological elements: mammals, birds, fish, pelagic and benthic habitats • Pressure based indicators: Non-indigenous species, Commercial fishing, Eutrophication, Contaminants, Marine litter, Energy and noise
Indicators potentially available for HOLAS II C-GES=Core indicator with GES definition, C=Core indicator still lacking GES definition, PC=Pre-Core
Integrated assessment of biodiversity Integration steps
Other options to be evaluated for the integrated assessment of biodiversity Criteria-approach Species approach To be compared with the currently planned “species group” – compartments. Need to explore relationship between available indicators and criteria proposed in the draft new commission decision on GES criteria, to explore where gaps appear and how it affects the overall assessment.
Ways to present the results Aggregated results based on averaging or one-out-all-out Shades of red in this example show distance to the boundary Name 5/10/2016 Surname 15
Indicator Assessment units 1) Level 1: Entire Baltic Sea 2) Level 2: 17 units
Assessment units (cont.) 3) Level 3 17 units with coastal areas separated 4) Level 4: WFD Water bodies
Cumulative effect assessment Pressure data layer x Impact score x Ecosystem component data layer Impact scores rate the sensitivity of the ecosystem component to the concerned pressure, eg from 1-3.
Web questionaire in planning • A questionnaire will collect expert opinions to support setting the impact scores • The questionnaire will relate circa 19 pressures to their effects on ecosystem components • Time plan: June Name 5/10/2016 Surname 19
Ongoing collation of spatial datasets HUMAN ACTIVITIES PRESSURES 43 datasets aimed for 44 datasets aimed for The spatial datasets will be merged into thematic layers for the assessment – circa 20 layers representing pressures
Ongoing collation of spatial datasets ECOSYSTEM COMPONENTS • Pelagic habitats (2) • Broad-scale seabed habitats (6) • Habitat-forming species (5) • Natura 2000 habitats (8) • Fish species (7) • Important bird areas (3) • Marine mammals (3) Value in brackets give indicative number of layers considered in each group)
Ecosystem component layers for fish • Cod These will be included in the assessment provided • Sprat that spatial datasets of • Herring adequate quality can be obtained • Perch • Pikeperch Also maps over spawning areas where possible and • Flounder relevant • Roach
Example data sets on human activities Windfarms Pipelines - Status - Status - Capacity (MW) - N of turbines - Construction year
Example data sets on pressures Surface abrasion Data for 2009-2013
Fish related human activities in the spatial assessment Assessment: What pressures do these activities cause on the environment? What are the benefits of these activities on human well-being? Activity Example subactivity Potting/ creeling (FPO, FIX) Netting (GNS) Demersal long lining (LLS) Pelagic long lining (LLD) Benthic trawling (OTB, OTT, PTB) Fish and shellfish harvesting (professional, Pelagic trawling (OTM, PTM) recreational) Demersal seining (SDN, SSC) Purse seining (PS) Benthic dredging (HMD) Leisure fishing (RG, [GN, LX]) Finfish mariculture Aquaculture - marine Shellfish mariculture
Assessed pressures (prel.) Assessment: Which of these pressures affect fish and to what extent? Pressure Subpressure Substances, litter and energy Input of nutrients From atmospheric deposition, diffuse and point sources Input of organic matter From diffuse sources Input of hazardous substances From acute events, atmospheric deposition, diffuse sources, point sources Input of litter Solid waste and micro-sized litter Continuous sound Input of sound Impulsive sound Seismic waves Input of other forms of energy Change in water temperature Biological Input or spread of non-indigenous species Input or spread of non-indigenous species Disturbance of species due to human presence (layered combined from human activities) Extraction of, or mortality/injury to, species Target and non-targeted catches in commercial and recreational fishing Physical Disturbance or damage to seabed Disturbance or damage to seabed Extraction of seabed substrate Extraction of seabed substrate Change of seabed substrate or morphology Change of seabed substrate or morphology (physical loss) Changes to hydrological conditions Changes to hydrological conditions
Back to the fish indicators: Good environmental status is assessed using fish based and fish-related indicators Division in relation to the MSFD: - Descriptor 1, 4 (Biodiversity): HELCOM core indicators - Descriptor 3 (Commercially exploited fish and shellfish): ICES
How to include the indicators? • State based: All D1, D4, (D6) indicators, as well as D3 indicators under criteria D3.2 and D3.3. • Pressure based: D3 indicators criterion D3.1 • All state-based indicators are proposed to be included in the Biodiversity assessment of HOLAS II. Name 5/10/2016 Surname 28
Human activities and Introduction Assessment of Measures Ecosystem pressure acting on the marine ecosystem health services environment Overview State based descriptors BSPII output Characteristics to be to be Trends in key pressures of the Baltic developed developed Pressure based Core pressure indicators Sea further further descriptors Socioeconomic importance D2 D3 D6 D7 D9 D10 D11 BIODIV HAZ D8 EUTRO D5 D1,D4,D6 MAM- BIRDS FISH BENTIC PELA- MALS GIC Biodiversity elements
Assessment of ecosystem health State based descriptors Pressure based descriptors D3 BIODIVERSITY MAM- BIRDS FISH BENTIC PELA- MALS GIC CORE indicators ICES indicators
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