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News & Events in 2024

Overview

New Insights on the impact of shipping traffic on the spatial distribution of harbour porpoises in the North Sea

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Grafics: Remi Pigeault

In CoastalFutures, we aim to identify the processes that lead to interannual and seasonal variability in marine mammal distribution and to make predictions about spatial and temporal changes in their occurrence.
In our recent publication, we used species distribution models to investigate the impact of maritime traffic on the spatial distribution of the harbour porpoise in the North Sea. Our findings suggest that the abundance of these animals decreased in areas with high maritime traffic, both in terms of the number of vessels and the approach distance of these vessels. Significant effects were detected up to 9 km away, highlighting the need to consider this anthropogenic factor for the conservation of harbour porpoises in the marine spatial planning process.
Our findings address knowledge gaps regarding the factors influencing the distribution of marine mammals and their behavioural adaptations in response to human activities. This will enable us to parameterise these responses in the ecosystem model.
The tool we have developed to analyse the substantial data volume of ship positions from the Automatic Identification System (AIS) is now available for download on the sustainMare website (Products). https://www.sustainmare.de/112656/index.php.de

Pigeault, R., Ruser, A. Geelhoed, S.C.V., Haelters, J., Nachtsheim, D.A., Ramírez-Martínez, N.C., Schaffeld, T., Sveegaard, S., Siebert, U., Gilles, A. (2024). Maritime traffic alters distribution of the harbour porpoise in the North Sea. Marine Pollution Bulletin 208: 116925. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.marpolbul.2024.116925

Coastal Summer School 2024

This year's Coastal Summer School features the DAM project sustainMare and will take place from 02. - 13. September 2024 on the island of Helgoland. The focus is on the topic "Offshore Windfarms: innovative and sustainable options for multiuse concepts?" The target group are Msc grades, Phd students and young researchers already working in the field.
The coastal summer school is realized in cooperation of some of the leading national centres for coastal research in Germany: Leibniz Institute for Baltic Research Warnemünde, Helmholtz Centre Hereon Geesthacht and Alfred Wegener Institute for Polar and Marine Research (Helmholtz Association of German Research Centers).
Further information can be found on the following webpage, please register by 30.04.2024 at the latest. Summer School Website

Second annual meeting of the CoastalFuture project: A step towards a sustainable coastal future

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2nd CF Meeting 03.06.2024

The second annual meeting of the CoastalFuture project took place from 3 to 5 June at the renowned Helmholtz Centre Hereon. The event focussed on the key topics of sand management, climate change and offshore wind energy (OFW). In addition, the meeting offered a deep insight into current research on hydrogen and OFW.

As a transdisciplinary project dealing with the impact of climate change on coastal regions, the CoastalFuture project presented its latest findings in various research areas.

The participants of the meeting had the opportunity to exchange views on the innovative modelling tools developed in the project to investigate future use scenarios and the impacts of climate change. In addition, holistic modelling methods developed to support the management and assessment of climate change impacts as well as use and protection measures were presented.

The project works closely with authorities and stakeholders to develop and evaluate future scenarios and conservation measures. The contributions of the representatives of these groups during the annual meeting contributed significantly to the discussions.

The second annual meeting of the CoastalFuture project was an important step towards a sustainable future for our coastal regions. It showed how solutions to the challenges of climate change can be found through collaboration and innovation.

Facing the future: Is sustainable ocean management possible?

At the kick-off event for decision-makers and stakeholders as part of the One Ocean Summit in Bergen, Norway, this question was generally answered in the affirmative. However, the challenges were also pointed out, e.g. that space in the North Sea is a finite resource (Prof. Ignacio Herrera Anchustegui), and that the consequences of the planned expansion of offshore wind energy by 2050 will be enormous and are still largely unknown (Prof. Corinna Schrum from CoastalFutures).
The panel also discussed the principle of sustainability and made it clear in the discussion that sustainability is more than "just" nature conservation. The generation of clean and affordable energy, food production and climate protection are also part of the UN's sustainable development goals.
The event took place in Håkons Hall, Norway's first castle dating back to 1261. to the event

sustainMare Lecture Series 2024 (in German)

In the summer semester 2024, the second edition of the sustainMare Lecture Series will take place in the general lecture system of the University of Hamburg.
In addition, it was selected as an elective module for the extracurricular study program "Certificate Intercultural Competence", i.e. students from Hamburg University can have regular participation credited as academic achievement. The CIC is an extracurricular course offered by the University of Hamburg. The certificate is awarded to students of the University of Hamburg who are particularly involved in intercultural topics. It is a recognition of intercultural commitment and an additional award for students. And for us as well. However, our lectures are still in German only. more

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