Ecosystem objectives to support the UK vision for the marine environment

European Maritime States already have commitments to protect species and habitats and maintain quality standards in coastal and offshore waters. These are a direct response to environmental legislation in Europe and commitments made to biodiversity conservation in OSPAR and at the World Summit on Sustainable Development. An integrated approach to management requires that these are consistent with the requirements for sustainable development, and include wider social considerations and active stakeholder participation. This review describes a hierarchical framework that incorporates the marine objectives and delivery statements of ecological, social and economic sectors. The framework leads from the UK's guiding principles for sustainable development, through visionary statements and strategic goals for high level delivery, to operational objectives and statements of action which deliver management. Parts of this hierarchy can already be populated for the UK, especially those at the higher levels. At the operational level, however, there is less clarity. The review shows that, despite some gaps, existing commitments for ecological components of the ecosystem are transparent and generally conform to this framework, due largely to high profile government funding of environmental protection and science and a single national vision for the marine environment. Specific objectives for six components of the ecosystem were developed; benthic habitats, seabirds and mammals, phytoplankton and zooplankton, fish, and physical/chemical quality of the water and atmosphere. The objectives included some that avoided limits and others that aimed to achieve targets, and for management to be effective it will be important to have a common understanding of how these can together be interpreted and made operational. In a review of 13 social and economic sectors, few provided a clear breakdown of objectives leading from a high level vision or a sustainable development principle. Six sectors did not have high level government targets for production or other measures of sectoral performance. Such commercial operations generally determine their own operational delivery targets based on market forces. Recent proposals in Europe to create an integrated framework for social, economic and environmental activities will need to carefully balance the development of a strong and competitive marine economy with existing international obligations to environmental protection.     

Ocean in peril: Reforming the management of global ocean living resources in areas beyond national jurisdiction

This article presents the outcome of research aimed at assisting governments in meeting their commitments and legal obligations for sustainable fisheries, based on increasing evidence that global fisheries are in crisis. The article assesses the effectiveness of the existing legal and institutional framework for high seas living resources. It focuses on: (1) the role of regional fisheries management organizations (RFMOs); (2) tools for compliance and enforcement to stem illegal fishing; and (3) mechanisms for habitat protection. The article further highlights a variety of options for addressing key weaknesses and gaps in current ocean governance, including United Nations General Assembly (UNGA) resolutions, reforms at the regional level, as well as a possible new legal instrument, with a view to informing international discussions on ways to ensure the sustainable use of high seas resources without compromising the health of the marine environment.     

Environmental responsibility and co-operation between Baltic and North Sea municipalities: Part 1: The Baltic Eco-Cities programme and its pilot function for the municipalities bordering the North Sea

National governments have greater legislative authority than local governments in marine environmental protection, on the global basis, but local governments both invest more money than national governments in environmental protection and often execute more environmental policies. When national governments have established regional marine resources management programmes, e.g. the Baltic, the Mediterranean, or the Great Lakes region, the final remediation planning responsibility has ultimately been delegated to local authorities.

The United Nations Conference on Environment and Development held in Rio de Janeiro in June 1992 did not consider this dichotomy and the International Council for Local Environmental Initiatives (ICLEI) and a coalition of other local government associations are considered to have a role within the two sectors, national governments and non-governmental organizations. Chapter 17 of Agenda 21 on Protection of the Oceans gives little attention to the primary role presently being played by the local authorities in controlling marine pollution. Chapter 17 states that 70% of the marine pollution comes from land-based sources, and that more than half of the world's population is settled in coastal communities. But the Chapter does not present the fact that local authorities are the primary force in organizing and managing the coastal settlements concerning the greatest sources of marine pollution. The role of local authorities in Agenda 21 and the partnership between the international community and local authorities to achieve Agenda 21 objectives must be defined.     

A UK perspective on the development of marine ecosystem indicators

This paper reviews the suite of marine ecosystem indicators currently in use or under development in the UK to support the major national and international biodiversity and ecosystem policies. Indicators apply to a range of different ecosystem components, and range from those that can only be used for high level environmental health monitoring, to those which actively support management. Assessment of indicators against a management framework of driving force, pressure, state, impact and response, has shown that there are many indicators of state for ecosystem components, but relatively few for pressure of human activities on the environment, or of the socio-economic response to those pressures. This outcome, a result of unplanned sectorally driven indicator development, is not a co-ordinated contribution to marine environmental management and must be addressed if we are to avoid high monitoring costs and duplication of effort.     

The Fukushima Nuclear Power Station incident and marine pollution

Based on the facts relating to the radioactive wastewater discharged by the Fukushima Nuclear Power Station in Japan, this paper intends to explore the international legal obligations for Japan from three perspectives, namely, the immediate notification, the prevention of transboundary harm and the prevention of dumping. Furthermore, this article defines and compares two types of international legal liabilities, the traditional state responsibility and the responsibility for transboundary harm. Through comparison, the international legal liability of Japan is discussed. After detailed analysis, the conclusion is that Japan should be responsible for the obligation of immediate notification and since Japan unilaterally discharge the wastes without prior specific permits of other contracting countries, it should also be responsible for the violation of prevention of dumping. Since so far, no material injury has emerged and there would appear to be no culpability as regards the prevention of transboundary harm. Finally, this paper stresses the necessity to develop a worldwide agreement concerning the liability for transboundary harm and to establish an institutional framework for the enforcement of a state's obligations, and also the great significance of international cooperation between nations and organisations in relation to marine environmental protection.     

Mechanisms for the prevention of marine bioinvasions for better biosecurity

Biosecurity management allows countries to meet a number of international obligations and provides some protection from potential degradation of environmental, economic, social and cultural values. Ocean governance relies on the precepts of ecologically sustainable development to manage the multiple uses in the coastal zone. The increasing reliance on aquaculture to provide food security and economic development has led to an increase in the use of non-native target species grown as food sources. Increased economic activity has led to shifting trade patterns and increased efficiencies in vessels with the resulting increase in the number of introduced marine species via ballast water and hull fouling. Herein we review the different marine biosecurity strategies and legislation that have been implemented internationally and locally that aid in preventing and managing introduced marine species, with some attention to Australia and New Zealand as examples. Typical tools being used include quarantine, Import Health Standards, voluntary cleaning guidelines, and risk assessment, all of which aim to prevent introductions.     

Economic valuation for the conservation of marine biodiversity

Policy makers are increasingly recognising the role of environmental valuation to guide and support the management and conservation of biodiversity. This paper presents a goods and services approach to determine the economic value of marine biodiversity in the UK, with the aim of clarifying the role of valuation in the management of marine biodiversity. The goods and services resulting from UK marine biodiversity are detailed, and 8 of the 13 services are valued in monetary terms. It is found that a decline in UK marine biodiversity could result in a varying, and at present unpredictable, change in the provision of goods and services, including reduced resilience and resistance to change, declining marine environmental health, reduced fisheries potential, and loss of recreational opportunities. The results suggest that this approach can facilitate biodiversity management by enabling the optimal allocation of limited management resources and through raising awareness of the importance of marine biodiversity.     

Management of the marine environment: integrating ecosystem services and societal benefits with the DPSIR framework in a systems approach

Ever increasing and diverse use of the marine environment is leading to human-induced changes in marine life, habitats and landscapes, making necessary the development of marine policy that considers all members of the user community and addresses current, multiple, interacting uses. Taking a systems approach incorporating an understanding of The Ecosystem Approach, we integrate the DPSIR framework with ecosystem services and societal benefits, and the focus this gives allows us to create a specific framework for supporting decision making in the marine environment. Based on a linking of these three concepts, we present a set of basic postulates for the management of the marine environment and emphasise that these postulates should hold for marine management to be achieved. We illustrate these concepts using two case studies: the management of marine aggregates extraction in UK waters and the management of marine biodiversity at Flamborough Head, UK.     

Why astrobiology needs collaboration

David Wynn-Williams reports on the current state of astrobiological affairs in the UK, strengthened by national and international collaboration.
Antarctic astrobiological research has benefited from the affiliation of the UK Astrobiology Forum (UKAF) to the NASA Astrobiology Institute (NAI). NAI funding of a miniature Raman spectrometer for the characterization of biomolecules in Antarctic cold deserts as a prelude to its space qualification for a future Mars lander/rover mission is a practical example of collaboration between the UK and USA fostered by this agreement. Research by the British Antarctic Survey into cyanobacterial communities under stress from UV, desiccation, salinity stress and low temperature features in joint studies associated with NASA Ames Research Center, Montana State University and the International Space Station.     

Identifying potential marine pests--a deductive approach applied to Australia

Introduced marine organisms continue to threaten coastal resources around the world. Many agencies rely on lists of potentially harmful species for risk assessment and to prioritise management responses to an incursion. This study outlines a deductive hazard assessment technique to identify potential marine pests that may arrive via ballast water and/or hull fouling. This technique is then applied in an Australian context to identify potential "next pests" for this region. An extensive literature review identified 851 introduced marine species from around the world. The following selection criteria were then applied to develop a next pest list: (a) the species has been reported in a shipping vector or has a ship-mediated invasion history; (b) the vector still exists; (c) the species is responsible for economic or environmental harm; and, (d) it is exotic to Australia or present in Australia but subject to official control. The selection criteria are transparent and consistent with other international and national biosecurity initiatives. Thirty three of the species identified in the initial literature review satisfied all four selection criteria. These species are described here together with their associated vectors and impacts.     

Angiosperms (seagrass) within the EU water framework directive: a UK perspective

Taxonomic composition, the presence of disturbance-sensitive species and abundance are attributes for monitoring the status of marine angiosperms; a biological quality element required for assessment of environmental condition under the Water Framework Directive (WFD). Their relevance for defining the ecological status of UK water bodies and the establishment of reference conditions for these attributes are described. Founded on quantitative measurements of these attributes, a set of metrics has been developed for monitoring and assessment of the only truly marine angiosperms, seagrass. The proposed metrics are presented and tested against a variety of littoral and sublittoral UK seagrass beds. In combination they express the cumulative response of marine angiosperms to different levels of anthropogenic disturbance.     

Assessing the skill of the UK Hydrological Outlook

ABSTRACT

The UK Hydrological Outlook (UKHO) is a seasonal forecast of future river flows and groundwater levels. The UKHO contains both presentations of outputs from models simulating future conditions and a high-level summary. The summary is produced by an expert panel of forecasters that considers the model outputs together with other recent hydrological and meteorological information. Whilst the skill and uncertainty of the individual models have been explored and published, this study sets out to establish the performance of the high-level summary, and presents such an assessment of the river flow forecasts at the 1-month timescale. Both qualitative and quantitative assessments are presented and compared with two naïve forecasting methods. The UKHO summary is found to have a similar Gerrity skill score to a “same as last month” forecast, an outcome that generates suggestions for improvements in how the different model outputs should be considered and presented in the high-level summary.     

美、英国家研究计划揭示国际地球科学研究新动向

近日,在美国最新国家研究计划“大数据计划”框架下,包括美国国家科学基金会、美国地质调查局和美国国家航空航天局在内的美国政府主要机构同时推出新的研究项目,并对现有研究部署做出相应调整,此举将带动包括地球科学在内的各领域研究的新发展;与此同时,英国地质调查局也公布了其地球科学新领域的最新研究进展.通过解读这些最新的研究计划,可以揭示出国际地球科学研究的新动向.     

Assessment of a Bayesian Belief Network-GIS framework as a practical tool to support marine planning

For the UK continental shelf we developed a Bayesian Belief Network-GIS framework to visualise relationships between cumulative human pressures, sensitive marine landscapes and landscape vulnerability, to assess the consequences of potential marine planning objectives, and to map uncertainty-related changes in management measures. Results revealed that the spatial assessment of footprints and intensities of human activities had more influence on landscape vulnerabilities than the type of landscape sensitivity measure used. We addressed questions regarding consequences of potential planning targets, and necessary management measures with spatially-explicit assessment of their consequences. We conclude that the BN-GIS framework is a practical tool allowing for the visualisation of relationships, the spatial assessment of uncertainty related to spatial management scenarios, the engagement of different stakeholder views, and enables a quick update of new spatial data and relationships. Ultimately, such BN-GIS based tools can support the decision-making process used in adaptive marine management.     

Developing a saltmarsh classification tool for the European water framework directive

The Water Framework Directive (WFD) identifies marine angiosperms (seagrasses and saltmarshes) as one of the biological elements used to classify water body status. This paper concentrates on the saltmarsh classification tools currently under development in the UK and RoI by the Marine Plants Task Team (MPTT) of the UK Technical Advisory Group (UK TAG). Saltmarsh classification is presently focusing on habitat extent, zonation and species diversity in order to fulfil the requirements of the WFD normative definitions. One of the many issues is that the natural rates of erosion and/or accretion differ between locations - this spatial and temporal natural variation is difficult to quantify; the tools and reference conditions developed will need to take this into consideration. To accurately quantify the classification boundaries and natural variability has posed a number of challenges; possible solutions are identified in this paper. Novel future classifications may also include saltmarsh ecosystem functioning (e.g., as a marine fish nursery) which may be further developed in an integrated saltmarsh tool.     

Environmental challenges and priorities for action

The oceans have a major influence on world climate and are an important source of food, most of which comes from the coastal zones. These zones, and the traditional, sustainable, life-styles of the fishing communities that live there, are under immense and growing pressure. Urbanization, pollution, sea level rise, and the destruction of natural coast defences and fish nursery grounds are undermining sustainability. Although chemical pollution in some areas, with some substances, is falling it remains a serious problem over the world as a whole.

The United Nations Conference on the Human Environment, held at Rio de Janeiro in June 1992, recognized the need for more effective protection of the resources of the coastal seas, and a number of specific actions are set out in Agenda 21. But action is still not being taken on a scale which matches the problem. There are four probable reasons: first, the sea is still assumed to be too big to damage; second, jurisdiction is inadequate; third, serious national and international conflicts of interest remain; and fourth, economic distortions hamper sound judgement. The northern seas, which suffer less from these problems, should be demonstration areas for sound marine resource management.     

Data use and information creation: challenges for marine scientists and for managers

In the coastal waters of European countries and in the offshore waters of the north-east Atlantic, there is an increasing need for scientists to meet challenging objectives, such as to identify meaningful measures of 'quality', and to recommend 'indicators' to underpin implementation of directives, conventions, statutes and other more informal national and international initiatives. Those indicators may relate to particular species or habitats, to changes in physical and chemical characteristics, and even to the use to which the system is put. The problems to be overcome are difficult, but new and developing approaches will make a significant contribution. The approaches include: criteria to identify 'sensitivity' and 'importance', structures to organise information and electronic information resources to access data.The real challenge is to make the results of the various scientific initiatives relevant to and understandable by a wide range of customers with similar overlapping requirements, and thus make a genuine contribution to protecting the marine environment. Above and beyond that is the need for scientists to drive the agenda to enable real and lasting progress to be made towards ecosystem-based management of our seas and a proper consideration of what 'sustainability' may mean in the marine environment and how we utilise its resources.     

The need for international co-operation in the management of coastal environments

The coastal zones are areas of high biological productivity and intense human pressure. Environmental challenges arise from pollution and from urban and industrial development. Administrative, social and legal challenges centre upon the need for sound management of coastal zone resources, as an important component of national strategies for sustainability. A number of specific actions have been set out in Agenda 21, the principal product of the Earth Summit held in Rio de Janeiro in 1992. But these need to be carried forward within cross-sectoral, integrated coastal area management procedures. International action is also needed because marine ecosystems rarely coincide with national boundaries, and are affected by international economic, social and legal decisions.

International scientific co-operation on marine issues is already well established, and many regional action plans and Conventions have been adopted. Technological co-operation is less advanced. Such efforts need to be intensified, and continuously adapted. Sound plans for the future must be based on good science, critical economic evaluation of resources, sensitive evaluation of social and cultural factors and of the needs of local communities, evaluation of the risks of climate change, sea-level rise and other changes, and monitoring as a basis for continuing adaptation.     

How useful are port surveys focused on target pest identification for exotic species management?

Monitoring surveys are an important tool for detecting new arrivals of exotic species, for documenting patterns of invasion, and exotic species impacts. Faced with time and cost constraints, these surveys are increasingly focused on lists of target pest species, identified as being most likely to arrive and cause significant harm. We used the national survey of Australian international ports for introduced marine pests as a case study to assess: (1) the taxonomic rigor of surveys focused on detection of target species; and (2) how the ability of port surveys to inform invasion patterns is dependent on taxonomic approach. Our analysis of the 46 available reports revealed common sub-optimal taxonomic practices that compromised their utility to identify abiotic conditions that are good predictors of biological invasion. Thus, although surveys for target species may provide information on the distribution of a handful of species, they may fail to do much else.     

Marine pollution from antifouling paint particles

Antifouling paint particles (APP) are generated during the maintenance of boats and are shed from abandoned structures and grounded ships. Although they afford a highly visible, colourful reflection of contamination in the vicinity of the source, little systematic study has been undertaken regarding the distribution, composition and effects of APP in the wider marine environment. This paper reviews the state of knowledge in respect of APP, with particular emphasis on those generated by recreational boatyards. The likely biogeochemical pathways of the biocidal and non-biocidal metals in current use (mainly Cu and Zn) are addressed in light of recent research and an understanding of the more general behaviour of contaminants in marine systems.Analyses of paint fragment composites from recreational facilities in the UK reveal chemical compositions that are similar to those representing the net signal of the original formulations; significantly, dry weight concentrations of Cu and Zn of up to about 35% and 15%, respectively, are observed and, relative to ambient dusts and sediment, elevated concentrations of other trace metals, like Ba, Cd, Cr, Ni, Pb and Sn, occur. These metals leach more rapidly from APP than a painted surface due to the greater surface area of pigments and additives exposed to the aqueous medium. In suspension, APP are subject to greater and more rapid environmental variation (e.g. salinity, pH, dissolved oxygen) than painted hulls, while settled APP represent an important source of persistent and degradable biocides to poorly circulating environments. Through diffusion and abrasion, high concentrations of contaminants are predicted in interstitial waters that may be accumulated directly by benthic invertebrates. Animals that feed non-selectively and that are exposed to or ingest paint-contaminated sediment are able to accelerate the leaching, deposition and burial of biocides and other substances, and represent an alternative vehicle for contaminant entry into the marine foodchain. Clearly, an extensive understanding of biocide behaviour on painted surfaces is not sufficient for predictive or management purposes regarding APP. Greater caution is required by boaters and boatyards during the removal and disposal of solid wastes, and more awareness or stricter enforcement of relevant codes of practice or legislation is recommended.