Microplastics in the marine environment

This review discusses the mechanisms of generation and potential impacts of microplastics in the ocean environment. Weathering degradation of plastics on the beaches results in their surface embrittlement and microcracking, yielding microparticles that are carried into water by wind or wave action. Unlike inorganic fines present in sea water, microplastics concentrate persistent organic pollutants (POPs) by partition. The relevant distribution coefficients for common POPs are several orders of magnitude in favour of the plastic medium. Consequently, the microparticles laden with high levels of POPs can be ingested by marine biota. Bioavailability and the efficiency of transfer of the ingested POPs across trophic levels are not known and the potential damage posed by these to the marine ecosystem has yet to be quantified and modelled. Given the increasing levels of plastic pollution of the oceans it is important to better understand the impact of microplastics in the ocean food web.     

Methyltins in the marine environment

Methyltins were occasionally observed in some natural waters. The nature of a marine sediment determines its organotin burdens. Mono- and dimethyltin compounds were found in polluted marine sediments whereas non-polluted, oxiccoastal sediments contained primarily trimethyltin. The net methylation rate is evidently independent of the inorganic tin content of a sediment. Methyltin in fish is about 3–6% of the total tin content while limpets contain significant amounts of organotin compounds, ranging between 35 and 75% of the total tin. No trimethyltin was detected in green macro-algae and seawater, although limpets, fish and sediments have measurable levels.     

Regulations concerning risk analysis and their application in environmental safety protection in Norway

The Norwegian Petroleum Directorate (NPD), together with the State Pollution Control Authorities, administers the regulations concerning the implementation and use of risk analyses in petroleum activities.

This paper presents the main requirements contained in the Norwegian regulations concerning risk analyses, and focuses on their interaction with the legislation concerning safety for people, the environment, assets and financial interests.

In this context the NPD emphasizes the authorities' expectations with regard to the use of risk analyses in the management of risks to the environment, especially when conducting petroleum activities in environmentally vulnerable areas on the Norwegian continental shelf.     

Modeling of the marine environmental pollution by petroleum hydrocarbons and their biotransformation in Tatar Strait waters

A hydroecological model is used for simultaneous studying water pollution processes by petroleum hydrocarbons and their decay under the oceanographic conditions of Tatar Strait. The model calculations were based on long-term averaged observational data on interannual variations of water temperature, light intensity, and transparency. Some oceanographic characteristics of the strait were reconstructed with the help of GIS “Sakhalin Shelf.” The strait’s water area was divided into three regions, and water exchange between them and the neighboring regions of the Sea of Japan was estimated by a hydrodynamic model. The results of the study made it possible to assess interannual variations in the concentrations and inner fluxes of petroleum hydrocarbons, oil-oxidizing bacteria biomasses, and the characteristics of their oxidation activity.     

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.     

Natural and anthropogenic hydrocarbons in the Antarctic marine environment

The Antarctic marine environment contains a range of hydrocarbons at low concentrations, which are generally biogenic in origin. All major classes of hydrocarbons have been found in the Antarctic ecosystem. At present, anthropogenic input is very low and difficult to resolve from background levels. Pollution in the Antarctic is limited to only a few sources and although contamination can be locally chronic it is very restricted in extent. To date there have been few studies of hydrocarbon pollution and those available have been patchy in spatial coverage and generally lack time-series data. The low levels of natural hydrocarbons and restricted human activity make the Antarctic ecosystem suitable as an indicator of global hydrocarbon pollution.     

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.     

Safeguarding the future marine environment of Europe

The priorities for the protection of the seas have been discussed extensively. Many consider that the problem of marine pollution can only be solved on the basis of joint international actions. This is particularly true for the various countries bordering on the North Sea. To implement such ‘Joint Actions’, a new understanding of safety, namely ‘global maritime safety’ should be discussed with all those involved.     

Mathematical modeling of marine environment pollution processes by petroleum hydrocarbons and their degradation in Caspian Sea ecosystem

The available observational data on the pollution of tributaries and areas of the Caspian Sea by petroleum hydrocarbons and products are examined. The possible petroleum input from sources in the sea is assessed using up-to-date data of satellite observations of sea surface pollution by oil films. The hydroecological CNPSi-model is applied to studying water pollution processes by petroleum hydrocarbons in ten areas chosen in the Caspian Sea and the subsequent biodegradation of those pollutants. The model calculations of the within-year dynamics of petroleum hydrocarbon concentrations use mean annual observational data on within-year variations in water mediium characteristics (water temperature, light intensity, and transparency), as well as the morphometric parameters of sea areas (the area, mean depth, and water volumes). The characteristics of water exchange between the areas were evaluated using a hydrodynamic model. The model calculations were used to characterize the within-year variations in petroleum hydrocarbon concentrations, the biomasses of petroleum-oxidizing bacteria, the characteristics of their oxidation activity and bioproduction, and the internal fluxes of petroleum hydrocarbons (their input from various sources, horizontal and vertical transport, and biotransformation) in different sea areas. Calculation results were used to compile annual balances for the processes of input and consumption of petroleum hydrocarbons in the chosen and aggregated sea areas.     

Biomonitoring of heavy metal availability in the marine environment

Biomonitors can be used to establish geographical and/or temporal variations in the bioavailabilities of heavy metals in the marine environment, offering time-integrated measures of those portions of the total ambient metal load that are of direct ecotoxicological relevance. Heavy metal biomonitors need to conform to certain required characteristics, not least being metal accumulators. Use of a suite of biomonitors allows recognition of the presence and relative magnitude of different metal sources. For example, a macrophytic alga responds essentially to dissolved metal sources only, a suspension feeder like a mussel responds to metal sources in dissolved and suspended phases, and a deposit feeder responds to metal available in the sediment. Examples are given of suitable heavy metal biomonitors in the coastal waters of Europe, New Zealand, Hong Kong and China. It is not valid to compare absolute accumulated metal concentrations in biomonitors interspecifically, although interspecific comparisions of rank orders do allow cross correlations of relative bioavailabilities of heavy metals to different biomonitors at the same sites. There is a need to identify widespread cosmopolitan biomonitors to allow intra-specific comparisons of bioavailabilities between geographical areas. Such cosmopolitan biomonitors may include the alga Ulva lactuca, mussels of the genera Mytilus and Perna, the oysters Ostrea and Crassostrea, barnacles like Balanus amphitrite and Tetraclita squamosa, and the talitrid amphipod Platorchestia platensis. A major caveat in the use of such cosmopolitan biomonitors remains the need for reliable, specific taxonomic identification.