Abstract
A pilot‐scale tidal hydrokinetic energy project is proposed for Admiralty Inlet, Puget Sound, WA (United States). Quantifying the potential impact on the underwater acoustic environment requires knowledge of pre‐installation ambient noise levels, sound production characteristics of tidal turbines, periods for turbine operation, transmission losses in the complex coastal environment, and the response of marine species to received sound levels. Acoustics data obtained during six 3‐month deployments at the proposed site are used to characterize ambient noise levels at the site between 20 Hz and 30 kHz. Ancillary data sets reveal shipping and ferry traffic to be the most important sources of anthropogenic noise, and these sources are used to estimate (empirically) transmission losses in the project area. During strong currents, pseudosound from turbulent pressure fluctuations can mask ambient noise at low frequencies while increases in background noise levels at higher frequencies are consistent with bedload transport. Ambient noise due to natural physical processes such as rain, breaking waves, and surf noise are identifiable but secondary to anthropogenic sources. The intensity, frequency, and duration of turbine noise are discussed in the context of existing ambient noise and provide an initial estimate of the impact of the underwater acoustic environment.
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