Saturday 7 September
9am – 9.10am
Chairs opening remarks
Chairs opening remarks
Introduction & Closing
I wish to welcome to all our attendees, speakers and sponsors to the conference and introduce our purpose and key objectives whilst highlighting the importance of the theme; Mitigation and Monitoring. As we provide a platform for interesting discussion, the MMOA, and myself, wishes to inspire and connect attendees, for future collaborations outside this space.Speakers
Ashleigh Kitchiner
9.10am – 9.40am
From MMO to CEO – A Career in Marine Mammal Mitigation
From MMO to CEO – A Career in Marine Mammal Mitigation
Keynote
The world of marine mammal mitigation is a complex, multidisciplinary field encompassing policy, legislation, marine mammalogy, underwater acoustics, and economics (to name a few). My passion for the ocean and marine biology inspired a career that evolved into a business. That business began when I identified a gap in the market for mitigation training to Canadian regulations. This talk explores my journey from working offshore to establishing a successful business, highlighting the critical role of innovation in advancing marine environmental protection.Speakers
Ashley Noseworthy
9.40am – 10.10am
JNCC’s role and marine mammal mitigation in UK waters
JNCC’s role and marine mammal mitigation in UK waters
Mitigation & Monitoring
Introduction to the Joint Nature Conservation Committee (JNCC) and their environmental advisory role followed by an overview of marine mammal mitigation in UK waters, development of JNCC mitigation guidelines and how they interact with the UK licensing regime, and overview of recent / future developments.Speakers
Dr Sarah Canning
10.10am – 10.30am
MMO data – the importance of quality
MMO data – the importance of quality
Mitigation & Monitoring
Marine mammal observers (MMOs) and passive acoustic monitoring (PAM) operators routinely collect data on operations, their watches and sightings/acoustic detections using standard recording forms. Drawing from experience with data from UK waters, this talk examines what data are gathered and how they are used. Some key findings, and how these feed back into guideline revisions, are highlighted. Data quality is considered, highlighting some common errors that are made when recording data. The importance of checking data is highlighted, with tips for checking.Speakers
Dr Carolyn Barton
10.30am – 11am
The progression of underwater noise mitigation in Irish waters – an opportunity to substantially protect marine mammals
The progression of underwater noise mitigation in Irish waters – an opportunity to substantially protect marine mammals
Mitigation & Monitoring
Mitigation for underwater noise is a key topic in the consenting process for offshore renewable energy (ORE) in Irish waters. Ireland has ambitions to develop the huge potential for electricity generation within the exlusive economic zone (EEZ) with targets of 37GW by 2050. The role of ORE in decarbonising our energy systems, combating global warming and establishing energy security is recognised, as is the imperative to minimise negative impacts on the marine environment. The current underwater noise guidance is out-of-date, and needs refining. We are at a mitigation crossroads; will we adopt noise abatement strategies?Speakers
Dr Stephen Comerford
11.15am – 11.45am
How to approach assessment of impacts to inform mitigation measures
How to approach assessment of impacts to inform mitigation measures
Consenting & Licensing
When activities require a Marine mammal observer, typically some form of an assessment would be required to consider potential impacts on marine mammals and to identify what mitigation may be required, often following relevant legislation and/or guidance. In some cases a qualitative approach may be suitable, and in others a more robust quantitative assessment, which may require population consequences of disturbance modelling and underwater noise modelling, may be more appropriate. The presentation gives a high-level overview of how we approach such assessments considering key factors such as the activities planned, the location, and the jurisdictionSpeakers
Dr Ross Culloch
11.45am – 12.15pm
Habitats Regulations Assessment (HRA) for Nationally Significant Infrastructure Projects (NSIPs) with a key focus on marine mammals and offshore wind
Habitats Regulations Assessment (HRA) for Nationally Significant Infrastructure Projects (NSIPs) with a key focus on marine mammals and offshore wind
Consenting & Licensing
This presentation consists of two parts. The first part focuses on Maja’s career in the marine mammal field, serving as inspiration for those embarking on their own marine mammal career journey. The second part provides an overview of the Habitats Regulations Assessment (HRA) process for Nationally Significant Infrastructure Projects (NSIPs), with a specific emphasis on marine mammal requirements in UK waters. We delve into marine mammal protected areas, particularly Special Areas of Conservation (SACs), and explore the specific protections afforded to them under the Habitat Regulations, which ultimately shape the mitigation measures implemented primarily during the construction phase of the project.Speakers
Maja Nimak-Wood
12.15pm – 12.45pm
From Field to Leadership: Managing environmental challenges and empowering teams on large-scale projects.
From Field to Leadership: Managing environmental challenges and empowering teams on large-scale projects.
Freelance Consultant Life
The Global Environmental, Social, and Governance (ESG) Manager at BGP Offshore will share her journey from marine mammal observer (MMO) to a leadership position. She will address the complex challenges in environmental management on large international projects, including compliance with regulations, stakeholder engagement, and data collection, and will also discuss the strategies adopted to overcome these issues.Speakers
Daniella Bordon
2.15pm – 3pm
Panel Session
3.10pm – 3.20pm
The IMarEST & Professional Development
The IMarEST & Professional Development
Institute of Marine Engineering, Science and Technology (IMarEST)
Introducing the Institute of Marine Engineering, Science and Technology (IMarEST), the largest institute dedicated to marine professionals. As a registered charity and learned society, IMarEST brings together over 12,500 marine engineers, scientists, and technologists. Learn about the routes to professional recognition, the work of the IMarEST Marine Mammal Special Interest Group, involvement with the United Nations (UN) Ocean Decade, and our collaborative efforts in supporting marine mammal observer (MMO) training programs, international partnerships, and scholarship awards for aspiring marine scientists.Speakers
Niru Dorrian CSci CMarSci FIMarEST
3.20pm – 3.45pm
Dolphin-itely Advanced: AI-Powered Marine Mammal Monitoring
Dolphin-itely Advanced: AI-Powered Marine Mammal Monitoring
Technology & Innovation
Scaling marine mammal observation is crucial for meeting industry demands and conservation goals. Traditional visual analysis is labour-intensive and inconsistent. Integrating AI with human expertise standardises data and scales operations. Our human-in-the-loop approach empowers human MMOs to do more, enhancing consistency and efficiency. By standardising data and scaling marine mammal observer (MMO) activities, Artifical intelligence (AI) creates a win-win for conservation and industry, ensuring high-quality monitoring and better decision-making. Making these advanced tools available to MMOs in the field is of the highest priority, facilitating on-the-ground impact and improved outcomes.Speakers
Emily Charry Tissier
3.45pm – 4.10pm
Underwater noise monitoring: technology, methods, and the role of the noise monitoring operator
Underwater noise monitoring: technology, methods, and the role of the noise monitoring operator
Technology & Innovation
Underwater noise monitoring has become a key element of the construction phase environmental monitoring requirements for offshore wind farm development. Seiche will highlight the technology and methods used in underwater noise monitoring studies and discuss the role of the noise monitoring operator, including the skills, and training requirements for offshore environmental professionals seeking experience in this exciting area of offshore environmental consultancy.Speakers
Lorenzo Scala
4.10pm – 4.35pm
Evaluation of an acoustic buoy system for cetacean detections and mitigation zone monitoring
Evaluation of an acoustic buoy system for cetacean detections and mitigation zone monitoring
Technology & Innovation
Effective monitoring of mitigation zones is essential to minimise impacts to marine mammals, reduce unnecessary delays to activities and ensure regulatory compliance. However, designing effective systems is challenging, particularly where mitigation zones are large. We describe a passive acoustic monitoring (PAM) buoy system with real-time detection, classification and localisation capabilities and present a system validation case study. This includes a tool to optimise performance, considering the influence of detection range, ambient noise and instrument configurations. This tool provides a means for effective PAM system design in advance of operations, to help to provide confidence to regulators and clientsSpeakers
Dr Alex Brown
4.35pm – 5pm
Long-term Monitoring of Scottish Seas: The Role of Acoustic Ocean Observatories and Data Sharing
Long-term Monitoring of Scottish Seas: The Role of Acoustic Ocean Observatories and Data Sharing
Technology & Innovation
Through its research community, citizen science, NGOs and wildlife charities and in collaboration with industry, Scotland has organically created a combined expertise in marine mammal research and monitoring. Collaborative efforts are beginning to form which bring together local knowledge and cutting-edge scientific discovery, complemented by exciting new uses of artificial intelligence. By harnessing our collective expertise, we can better understand marine mammal behaviours and their seasonal and spatial distributions. This is key for developing solutions to threats impacting their populations, including fisheries, marine traffic, tourism, offshore industries, and climate change.
Speakers
Dr Denise Risch
