Caithness – Moray HVDC Link - Controlled Flow Excavation / Rock Placement Marine Protected Areas Assessment Project Ref: J/7/19/18 Originator: Redacted Date: 01/02/2019 Circulation: Restricted: Commercial-in-confidence Caithness – Moray HVDC Link - Controlled Flow Excavation / Rock Placement Marine Protected Areas Assessment Caithness – Moray HVDC Link - Controlled Flow Excavation / Rock Placement Marine Protected Areas Assessment Prepared by: MarineSpace Ltd MarineSpace Ltd Ocean Village Innovation Centre Ocean Way, Southampton SO14 3JZ Prepared for: NKT HV Cables AB, SE 37123 Karlskrona Sweden ii Caithness – Moray HVDC Link - Controlled Flow Excavation / Rock Placement Marine Protected Areas Assessment Date Originator Version Action Signature Redacted 18/05/2018 I Reach 0.1 Internal Draft Redacted 21/05/2018 I Reach 0.2 Internal Draft Director Sign-off / Redacted 21/05/2018 J Lewis 1.0 External Document Redacted 21/12/2018 J Lewis 1.1 Internal Draft Redacted 23/01/2019 I Reach 1.2 Internal Draft Technical Review / Redacted 23/01/2019 J Lewis 1.3 Editorial Review Redacted 28/01/2019 B Forrow 1.4 Editorial Review Internal Draft - Redacted 31/01/2019 I Reach 1.5 Addressing Client / Regulator Comments Internal Draft - Redacted 01/02/2019 I Reach 1.6 Addressing Client / Regulator Comments Redacted Technical Review / 01/02/2019 J Lewis 1.7 Editorial Review Redacted Director Sign-off / 01/02/2019 J Lewis 2.0 External Document © Crown Copyright, 2019. All rights reserved. Licence No. EK001-0760-MF0210. NOT TO BE USED FOR NAVIGATION. The cover image of horse mussel Modiolus modiolus beds © NKT 2017 ©. All rights reserved. iii Caithness – Moray HVDC Link - Controlled Flow Excavation / Rock Placement Marine Protected Areas Assessment Contents 1. Introduction ................................................................................................................................. 1-1 1.1. Status of the C-M Project ..................................................................................................... 1-1 1.2. Context of Marine Protected Areas Assessment ................................................................. 1-3 1.3. Scope of the Marine Protected Areas Assessment .............................................................. 1-9 2. Relevant Environmental Legislation – Habitats Regulations Assessment ................................... 2-1 2.1. The EC Habitats Directive and UK Regulations .................................................................... 2-1 2.2. Overview of the Habitats Regulations Assessment Process ................................................ 2-1 2.2.1. The Role and Requirements of the Competent Authority ____________________________ 2-3 2.3. Domestic Nature Conservation Marine Protected Areas .................................................... 2-3 3. Activities to be Assessed and Associated Pressures (Effects) ...................................................... 3-1 3.1. Sources of Evidence Reviewed to Inform Assessment ........................................................ 3-1 3.2. Pressures Associated with Proposed CFE and / or Rock Placement Works and CPS and Emplacement and Presence of Rock Berm ...................................................................................... 3-3 4. Screening of Marine Protected Areas .......................................................................................... 4-1 4.1. Screening Rationale ............................................................................................................. 4-1 4.2. Exposure Pathways and Connectivity .................................................................................. 4-4 4.3. Sites Designated for Habitat Features ................................................................................. 4-5 4.3.1. Screening of Designated Habitat Features ________________________________________ 4-5 4.4. Sites Classified or Designated for Ornithological Features .................................................. 4-8 4.4.1. Foraging Ranges _____________________________________________________________ 4-8 4.4.2. Period of Works and Seasonality of Classified Populations ___________________________ 4-9 4.4.3. Screening of Classified and Designated Populations of Birds __________________________ 4-9 4.4.4. Over-wintering Diver, Grebe, Merganser and Seaduck Species _______________________ 4-10 4.4.5. Classified Breeding Populations ________________________________________________ 4-11 4.4.6. Designated Habitat Within a Special Protection Area or Ramsar Site __________________ 4-16 4.5. Sites Designated for Annex II Marine Mammal Features .................................................. 4-18 4.5.1. Annex II Marine Mammal Features – Foraging Ranges _____________________________ 4-19 4.5.2. Screening of Annex II Marine Mammal Features – Foraging Ranges ___________________ 4-20 iv Caithness – Moray HVDC Link - Controlled Flow Excavation / Rock Placement Marine Protected Areas Assessment 4.5.3. Screening of Annex II Marine Mammal Features – Underwater Sound Emissions ________ 4-21 4.5.4. Screening of Annex II Marine Mammal Features – Damage and Disturbance ___________ 4-21 4.6. Sites Designated for Annex II Migratory Fish Features ...................................................... 4-22 4.6.1. Annex II Migratory Fish Features - Damage and Disturbance ________________________ 4-23 5. Assessment of Adverse Effects on Integrity of Sites .................................................................... 5-1 5.1. Designated Habitat Features ............................................................................................... 5-1 5.1.1. Removal or Abrasion from CFE and / or Placement of Rock __________________________ 5-1 5.1.2. Increased Turbidity and Smothering from Deposition of Advected Sediments and Plumes from Controlled Flow Excavation and / or Placement of Rock ______________________________________ 5-1 5.1.3. Determination of Impacts from Increased Turbidity and Smothering from Deposition of Advected Sediments and Plumes from Controlled Flow Excavation and / or Placement of Rock ______ 5-3 5.2. Ornithological Qualifying Features ...................................................................................... 5-4 5.2.1. Increased Turbidity from CFE and / or Placement of Rock ____________________________ 5-4 5.2.2. Determination of Impacts of Increased Turbidity and Deposition ______________________ 5-5 5.2.3. Prey Species Habitat Loss and Loss of Foraging Habitat ______________________________ 5-5 5.2.4. Determination of Impacts on Prey Species and Loss of Foraging Habitat ________________ 5-7 5.2.5. Underwater Sound Emissions on Prey Species _____________________________________ 5-8 5.2.6. Determination of Impacts from Underwater Sound Emissions on Prey Species ___________ 5-9 5.3. Annex II Marine Mammal Features ..................................................................................... 5-9 5.3.1. Prey Species Habitat Loss, Loss of Foraging Habitat Space and Impacts from Underwater Sound Emissions and Foraging Success _________________________________________________________ 5-9 5.3.2. Determination of Impacts on Prey Species Habitat Loss, Foraging Area and from Underwater Sound Emissions on Prey Species ________________________________________________________ 5-9 5.3.3. Impacts from Damage and Disturbance __________________________________________ 5-9 5.4. Annex II Migratory Fish Features ....................................................................................... 5-14 5.4.1. Damage and Disturbance _____________________________________________________ 5-14 6. In-combination Assessment ......................................................................................................... 6-1 7. Mitigation Measures Proposed for the use of USBL Systems and Beacons ................................ 7-1 7.1. Mitigation ............................................................................................................................. 7-1 7.1.1. Pre-Work Searches ___________________________________________________________ 7-1 7.1.2. Soft Starts __________________________________________________________________ 7-2 v Caithness – Moray HVDC Link - Controlled Flow Excavation / Rock Placement Marine Protected Areas Assessment 7.1.3. Transit Watches _____________________________________________________________ 7-2 8. References ................................................................................................................................... 8-3 9. Annex A ........................................................................................................................................ 9-1 List of Figures Figure 1.1: Location of proposed works in associated with Marine Protected Areas in the Assessment Area ...................................................................................................................................................... 1-2 Figure 4.1: The suite of European Marine Sites and Nature Conservation Marine Protected Areas within the Assessment Area ................................................................................................................ 4-3 Figure 4.2: Area of proposed works at the northern part of the cable close to the Pentland Firth potential Special Protection Area and Noss Head Nature Conservation Marine Protected Area ....... 4-4 Figure 4.3: Area of proposed works at the southern part of the cable within the Moray Firth potential Special Protection Area