OSPAR regional action plan for Underwater Noise – Stakeholder Consultation

OSPAR, a Regional Seas Convention, is the mechanism by which 15 Governments and the EU cooperate to protect the marine environment of the North-East Atlantic. OSPAR invites interested stakeholders to contribute to the development of a regional action plan for underwater noise in the North-East Atlantic.

OSPAR’s new North-East Atlantic Environment Strategy (NEAES 2030) commits to taking action to reduce underwater noise to achieve productive and sustainably used seas. It aims to ‘Reduce anthropogenic underwater noise to levels that do not adversely affect the marine environment‘ (Strategic objective 8). It emphasises the importance of setting out a series of national and collective actions and, as appropriate, OSPAR measures to reduce noise pollution, highlighting the need for the development of an action plan.

OSPAR has started to work on the development of the regional action plan. The action plan will tackle pressures from both impulsive and continuous noise. The action plan is being developed for the period 2025 – 2035. This timespan allows for sufficient time to measure effectiveness of implemented measures and actions. The plan will add value to existing OSPAR actions and will identify and address gaps. The regional action plan aims to:

1. Develop harmonised targets, standards and approaches towards the reduction of anthropogenic noise;
2. Develop sub-regional approaches for noise management in order to reduce both pressure and exposure;
3. Share bestpractice; 
4. Collaborate internationally with other Regional Seas Conventions;
5. Collaborate with other International Organisations such as IMO in order to improve protection of the North-East Atlantic and promote effective regional implementation of globally agreed measures and guidelines;
6. Support Contracting Parties in the development, implementation and coordination of their programmes on underwater noise, including those for the implementation of the EU’s Marine Strategy Framework Directive (MSFD);
7. Improve the knowledge base on underwater noise, through the OSPAR Science Agenda, and the OSPAR Joint Assessment and Monitoring Programme.

If you wish to participate in the consultation, we would like to invite you to complete an online questionnaire. This questionnaire aims to collect information and views of interested stakeholders. 

The online questionnaire can be accessed via the following link: https://ospar.typeform.com/to/lPGykayL

We would appreciate your input on issues and specific actions to be addressed under the action plan.

The questionnaire is open until 21 August 2023. 

Thank you for your contribution!

If you have any questions about OSPAR and the regional action plan for Underwater Noise, you can contact the OSPAR Secretariat: franziska.bils@ospar.org.

On the OSPAR website you can find further information on the OSPAR Commission, underwater noise in the OSPAR area and recent assessments considering underwater noise.