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Summary of Findings
Benthos
Post-construction
Reduction in habitat at platform area
- 0.4 to 1.2% of shallow soft bottom habitat in South Bay
Construction
Direct loss of benthic organisms
Recolonization
Notes:
Benthos -- benthic organisms are the organisms that live on the bottom. In this case, what we looked at specifically were infaunal benthos. Those are the organisms that live in the mud. The project platforms will reduce benthic habitat by about .4 to 1.2 percent in the Bay due to the platforms themselves. During construction, organisms will be dredged up along with the dredging, and so we will have a loss of organisms there, as well as in areas immediately adjacent to the dredging we will see a loss of some organisms due to the high sedimentation rates in those areas. Now after the disturbance is complete in a given area, we expect to see re-colonization by the benthos, first by opportunistic species. The disturbance could favor an increase in abundance of non-native species in those areas. What we expect is that within several months to several years, the natural variability in the benthic communities will begin to mask any further indications of change due to the project.