ORCID
- Thomas Davies: 0000-0002-4673-9893
Document Type
Article
Abstract
There is now a growing recognition internationally that the impacts of Artificial Light at Night (ALAN) on marine biodiversity require regulation. How ALAN should be regulated and what constitutes ‘Good Environmental Status’ (GES) for underwater ALAN remain open questions that if resolved would accelerate the integration of ALAN management into existing policy instruments. In the European Union, interpretations of Descriptor 11 of the Marine Strategy Framework Directive (MSFD) - ‘Introduction of Energy’ - have historically focused exclusively on underwater noise. As a result, no formal targets, thresholds or assessment structures currently exist for marine light pollution across EU Member States. Building on the methodological precedent established by the D11 Technical Group on Underwater Noise, we evaluate the applicability of a multi-indicator and Level of Onset of Adverse Biological Effects (LOBE) approach to defining GES for ALAN. Adopting a precautionary stance, we recommend 0.1 μW m 2 as a provisional LOBE threshold, based on the most light-sensitive marine taxa currently documented. This threshold is applied to define a classification system (nil to high exposure risk) for two different ecosystems separately (pelagic and benthic), and calculate aggregate exposure risk scores that describe the status of a defined geographic area. Application of these criteria across European Regional Seas reveals pronounced spatial variability, with the highest exposure concentrated in coastal zones, enclosed seas and regions with dense infrastructure. The proposed framework provides a coherent, operational methodology for assessing ALAN under the MSFD and establishes a foundation for future threshold-setting, monitoring and mitigation worldwide.
DOI Link
Publication Date
2026-10-07
Publication Title
Ocean and Coastal Management
ISSN
0964-5691
Acceptance Date
2026-09-21
Deposit Date
2026-10-07
Funding
The research leading to this publication was supported by the European Union under the Horizon Europe Programme, Grant Agreement No. 101135471 (AquaPLAN). Views and opinions expressed are however those of the author(s) only and do not necessarily reflect those of the European Union or European Research Executive Agency (REA). Neither the European Union nor the granting authority can be held responsible for them. UK participants in AquaPLAN are supported by the UKRI’s Horizon Europe Guarantee under the Grant No. 10107549 (PML); No. 10098417 (UOP) and No. 10108824 (CEFAS).
Creative Commons License
This work is licensed under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License.
Recommended Citation
Davies, T., Rendón, O., O'Driscoll, B., Seddon, R., Maggi, E., Rossi, F., Fabrizio Borsani, J., & Smyth, T. (2026) 'A proposed methodology for defining the criteria of ‘Good Environmental Status’ for artificial light at night in marine waters', Ocean and Coastal Management, . Available at: 10.1016/j.ocecoaman.2026.108383
