Deadline Date: September 17, 2026
The European Commission is requesting grant applications to support research and innovation that improve the monitoring and mitigation of underwater noise impacts on marine ecosystems in the European Union.
The focus areas include understanding the impacts of continuous and impulsive underwater noise on marine organisms, ecosystems, and related ecosystem services, including cumulative impacts with other environmental pressures. It also focuses on developing advanced monitoring tools, indicators, and assessment methods for environmental authorities, and improving understanding of regional differences in marine ecosystem responses. Funding for this topic is set at €10,000,000.
The initiative addresses the need to better understand how underwater noise pollution affects marine biodiversity and ecosystem services, supporting the development of evidence-based approaches to environmental protection and marine management.
The scope includes developing or improving scientific methods and tools for monitoring the impact of anthropogenic underwater noise on marine species across different trophic levels and regions. It also includes the development of indicators to assess noise exposure and cumulative effects, aligned with EU-level methods for determining good environmental status.
Projects are expected to explore mitigation measures to safeguard ecosystem services such as carbon sequestration and to develop tools for evaluating the effectiveness of such measures. The work supports implementation of the Marine Strategy Framework Directive by providing new data, evidence, and assessment methods for underwater noise impacts at national, regional, and EU levels.
Eligible participants include any legal entity, regardless of place of establishment, including those from non-associated third countries and international organisations, provided they comply with Horizon Europe Regulation requirements and specific call conditions.
For more information, visit European Commission.
