Marine ecosystems rarely face single threats in isolation; rather, they are exposed to a mosaic of anthropogenic pressures that interact in complex ways.

 A new scientific paper from the Synthesis Working Group “Multiple Stressors in the Skagerrak”, supported by AquaSYNC, established a state-of-the-art cumulative impact assessment (CIA) baseline for the Skagerrak region, providing a comprehensive and updated picture of how human activities combine to impact marine ecosystems.

The study also advances the original Halpern cumulative impact method with a more systematic approach for sensitivity calculations, improving the robustness and transparency of the CIA. In addition, it proposed a new method for evaluating the effectiveness of Marine Protected Areas (MPAs), offering a data-driven approach to evaluate whether these areas are delivering their intended environmental protection or not.

The approach is designed to be reproducible and scalable, offering strong potential for application in other regions. Interested partners are encouraged to get in touch to explore further collaboration.

Access the article from Frontiers.

Questions regarding the article, please contact research assistant Paula Ramon at paula.ramon@niva-dk.dk

Inquiries regarding project collaboration contact chief scientist Jesper H. Andersen at jha@niva-dk.dk