2010, ABP Mer, A Framework for Evaluating Restoration Requirements Following Marine Aggregate Extraction

Description

The aim of this study was to develop a decision-making framework for the evaluation of site specific restoration requirements which has regard to legal/policy drivers and the costs and benefits of restoriation, where appropriate, equipping environmental managers and regulators to identify when and where restoration may be required and may be beneficial.  There is still much uncertainty in relation to the impacts from marine aggregate dredging and the rates of natural recovery that reduce the confidence in predictions surrounding restoration costs and benefits.  The framework developed makes those uncertainties explicit and allows refinement of decision-making process as more information becomes available.