Many studies have tried to explain spatial and temporal variations in biodiversity status of marine areas
from a single-issue perspective, such as fishing pressure or coastal pollution, yet most continental seas
experience a wide range of human pressures. Cumulative impact assessments have been developed to
capture the consequences of multiple stressors for biodiversity, but the ability of these assessments to
accurately predict biodiversity status has never been tested or ground-truthed. This relationship has
similarly been assumed for the Baltic Sea, especially in areas with impaired status, but has also never
been documented. Here we provide a first tentative indication that cumulative human impacts relate to
ecosystem condition, i.e. biodiversity status, in the Baltic Sea. Thus, cumulative impact assessments offer
a promising tool for informed marine spatial planning, designation of marine protected areas and
ecosystem-based management, and may prove useful for setting limits on allowable levels of human
impact on ecosystems.