The Art of Listening: Under Water
About Anthropogenic Noise Pollution
The Soundscape of the Anthropocene
February 5, 2021
Abstract
Oceans have become substantially noisier since the Industrial Revolution. Shipping, resource exploration, and infrastructure development have increased the anthrophony (sounds generated by human activities), whereas the biophony (sounds of biological origin) has been reduced by hunting, fishing, and habitat degradation. Climate change is affecting geophony (abiotic, natural sounds). Existing evidence shows that anthrophony affects marine animals at multiple levels, including their behavior, physiology, and, in extreme cases, survival. This should prompt management actions to deploy existing solutions to reduce noise levels in the ocean, thereby allowing marine animals to reestablish their use of ocean sound as a central ecological trait in a healthy ocean.
Read more on Science Magazine
In the Oceans, the Volume Is Rising as Never Before
By Sabrina Imbler
February 4, 2021
A new review of the scientific literature confirms that anthropogenic noise is becoming unbearable for undersea life.