The effect of anchoring disturbance on seabed ecosystems

海洋资源的可持续管理需要了解海洋环境的现状，什么样的良好状况看起来/应该/可能是什么样的，以及什么样的人类活动水平和类型与实现或维持良好的生态系统状态是相容的。沉积海底生态系统具有广泛的重要功能。它们可以具有非常高的生物多样性，为商业鱼类和受保护的海鸟提供食物，并有助于营养循环的生态地球化学。英国海洋战略（UKMS）和欧盟海洋战略框架指令要求海床处于良好状态。虽然人们很清楚底拖网捕捞和疏浚等其他人类活动对海底造成的影响，并将其纳入评估，但锚定的影响迄今为止被完全忽视，尽管受锚定影响的海底面积可能大于用于集料疏浚的面积，而且扰动的强度可能很严重。因此，要可持续地管理海底抛锚，就必须评估这一活动的足迹及其在这一足迹内造成的干扰，以及这种影响如何随环境条件而变化。对锚定可能对海底产生的影响有一个正确的认识，将有助于对目前可能受到这种扰动影响的生境优先采取环境管理行动。该项目将与威尔士自然资源部合作进行，其研究结果将与联合王国的国家海洋战略直接相关。这项工作的意义有可能产生更广泛的影响，因为在威尔士通过这项详细的现场工作建立和验证的模型有可能扩大规模，以了解全球锚损坏的影响。

The sustainable management of marine resources requires an understanding of the current condition of the marine environment, what good status does/should/could look like and what level and types of human activity are compatible with the achievement or maintenance of a good ecosystem state. Sedimentary seabed ecosystems provide a wide range of important functions. They can have a very high biodiversity, provide food for commercial fish and seabirds of conservation concern, and contribute to the biogeochemistry of nutrient cycling. The UK Marine Strategy (UKMS) and the EU Marine Strategy Framework Directive require the seabed to be in a good state. Although the effect of other human activities that disturb the seabed, such as bottom trawling and dredging, are well understood and included in assessments, the effects of anchoring, have so far been totally ignored, even though the area of seabed that is affected by anchoring is likely to be larger than the area used for aggregate dredging, and the intensity of disturbance is likely to be severe. Sustainable management of the seabed for anchoring therefore requires an assessment of the footprint of this activity and the disturbance that it causes within this footprint, and how this impact varies with the environmental conditions. Developing a sound understanding of the impact that anchoring can have on the seabed will support the prioritization of environmental management actions for habitats that may currently be affected by this disturbance. This project will be done in collaboration with Natural Resources Wales, and the findings will be of direct relevance to the United Kingdom's national Marine Strategy. The implication of this work has potential for impact more broadly, as the models built and validated by this detailed site-based work in Wales has the potential to be scaled up to understand anchor damage impacts globally.