147465 - Eight habitats, 38 threats and 55 experts.pdf (2.61 MB)
Eight habitats, 38 threats and 55 experts: assessing ecological risk in a multi-use marine region
journal contribution
posted on 2023-05-21, 03:41 authored by Doubleday, ZA, Jones, AR, Deveney, MR, Timothy WardTimothy Ward, Gillanders, BMIdentifying the relative risk human activities pose to a habitat, and the ecosystem services they provide, can guide management prioritisation and resource allocation. Using a combination of expert elicitation to assess the probable effect of a threat and existing data to assess the level of threat exposure, we conducted a risk assessment for 38 human-mediated threats to eight marine habitats (totalling 304 threat-habitat combinations) in Spencer Gulf, Australia. We developed a score-based survey to collate expert opinion and assess the relative effect of each threat to each habitat, as well as a novel and independent measure of knowledge-based uncertainty. Fifty-five experts representing multiple sectors and institutions participated in the study, with 6 to 15 survey responses per habitat (n = 81 surveys). We identified key threats specific to each habitat; overall, climate change threats received the highest risk rankings, with nutrient discharge identified as a key local-scale stressor. Invasive species and most fishing-related threats, which are commonly identified as major threats to the marine environment, were ranked as low-tier threats to Spencer Gulf, emphasising the importance of regionally-relevant assessments. Further, we identified critical knowledge gaps and quantified uncertainty scores for each risk. Our approach will facilitate prioritisation of resource allocation in a region of increasing social, economic and environmental importance, and can be applied to marine regions where empirical data are lacking.
History
Publication title
PLoS ONEVolume
12Issue
5Article number
e0177393Number
e0177393Pagination
1-15ISSN
1932-6203Department/School
Institute for Marine and Antarctic StudiesPublisher
Public Library of SciencePlace of publication
United StatesRights statement
Copyright: © 2017 Doubleday et al. Licensed under Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International (CC BY 4.0) https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/Repository Status
- Open