542 / 2024-09-18 11:09:18
The impact of wind farm construction on swimming animals: an evaluation based on the biodiversity and emerging pollutants in the South Yellow Sea
Wind farm; Swimming animal; Microplastics pollution; Ecological risk; South Yellow Sea
Session 51 - The changing coastal environment: from Land-sourced pollution to marine ecological risk
Abstract Accepted
Wind farm (WF) has grown significantly in recent years, especially in the offshore sector. However, WF construction may have impacts on living marine resources and may expose swimming animals to microplastics (MPs) pollution. This study investigated the changes of biological resources during the WF construction, as well as investigated the characteristics of MPs in three typical swimming animals: Portunus trituberculatus, Collichthys lucidus, and Coilia nasus before and after the completion of the WF construction. The study found that the impact on biological resources was most significant in the initial stage of construction, and then gradually recovered or even increased. MPs were identified in every biological sample, and the mean abundance of MPs in swimming animals within the WF region (8.98 ± 5.58 items/individual) was significantly greater than that outside the wind farm (OWF) area (5.64 ± 3.36 items/individual) and pre-construction levels (5.27 ± 2.12 items/individual). After completion of construction, the hazard index of MPs in WF and OWF increased to 265 (Level III) and 207 (Level III) respectively, which was higher than 90 (Level II) before construction. The study shows that the impact on biological resources can be summarized as short-term negative impacts, followed by long-term positive impacts. In addition, the WF construction area may experience a high level of MPs pressure. This study further deepens the understanding of biological resources and MPs pollution in the context of WF construction, and contributes to sustainable development.