As Harris et al. (2014) warn in their review of principles of sound
ecotoxicology, there is a danger associated with an incomplete understanding
of exposure pathways and the use of conditions that are unrepresentative
of the majority of situations typically encountered by
wildlife. This statement seems applicable to studies on the effects of sediments
on corals (see also Storlazzi et al., 2015; Storlazzi et al., 2011), as
many experiments have been conductedwithout explicit justification of
the exposure regimes especiallywith studies examining sedimentation.
Harris et al. (2014) suggest authors should be open and honest about
the context of their study to those conditions which have been measured
(or predicted) in the real environment and the explanation of
the exposure conditions for futures studies should be comprehensive.
This will then enable judgements to be made of whether high
suspended-sediment concentrations and the associated light reduction
and sediment smothering at different distances from dredging is a hazard
or a risk to underlying communities, and allow the development of