LOWNOISER Project

This European project belongs to the Horizon Europe programme and is classified as an Innovation Action.

As a pioneering initiative unique in its approach, its overall goal is to reduce underwater noise pollution.

The European Union has granted 6.3 million € to the LOWNOISER project, led by Maritime CleanTech, to tackle the issue of underwater noise pollution caused by maritime traffic — a growing environmental challenge that severely affects marine species. Técnicas y Servicios de Ingeniería (TSI) joins 15 other partners in this innovative initiative.

Underwater noise generated by ships interferes with vital activities of marine species such as communication, feeding, and reproduction. LOWNOISER aims to develop cutting-edge technologies to mitigate this impact, establish regulatory standards, and promote sustainable practices within the maritime industry.

A Growing Environmental Challenge.

Underwater noise emitted by ships is a major source of continuous underwater acoustic pollution. It affects marine species that rely on sound to survive, such as whales, fish, and invertebrates. The European Commission has highlighted this problem in its Marine Strategy Framework Directive, which requires that 80% of the target species’ habitats remain free from biologically harmful noise levels.

Full-Scale Demonstrations and Collaboration.

Five full-scale demonstrators — including the Montesperanza oil tanker (Ibaizabal) and the Roald Amundsen cruise ship (HX Hurtigruten Expeditions) — will validate the effectiveness of these technologies by measuring the reduction of impact on various marine species, from cetaceans to invertebrates. The project also engages key stakeholders in the maritime sector to raise awareness about noise pollution and promote sustainable solutions.

A Unique Framework for Industry Change.

LOWNOISER seeks to establish a lasting legacy by developing tools and guidelines that will influence international standards for underwater noise reduction. These guidelines will support shipbuilders, equipment suppliers, and regulatory bodies in adopting sustainable practices.

A Unique Framework for Industry Change.

LOWNOISER seeks to establish a lasting legacy by developing tools and guidelines that will influence international standards for underwater noise reduction. These guidelines will support shipbuilders, equipment suppliers, and regulatory bodies in adopting sustainable practices.

How Is TSI Participating in This Project?

TSI contributes its extensive expertise in Underwater Radiated Noise (URN) from ships — including measurement methods, monitoring systems, and mitigation solutions — and will be responsible for developing the URN emission estimation system based on onboard measurements, among other tasks.

This work package includes the following activities:

• Preparing the monitoring framework for project demonstrators, particularly those using the onboard estimation system.

• Developing the onboard system for estimating underwater radiated noise from measurement data, focusing on the sensor module for monitored noise sources.

• Developing and evaluating various noise-source processing algorithms, selecting the most effective methods based on earlier work packages.

• Conducting a full-scale testing campaign, performing URN measurements according to international standards on the first two demonstrators to gather data for system calibration.

• Developing a long-term data exploitation platform, designed to improve estimation algorithms and evaluate the effectiveness of different mitigation measures in reducing marine life impact across all five project demonstrators.

PROJECT COORDINATOR

Maritime CleanTech