Bottom sediments in a polluted marine environment,upper Saronikos Gulf,Greece

The domestic and industrial waste water from most of the greater Athens, Greece area is discharged into shallow water at the upper end of the semi-enclosed Saronikos Gulf. The lack of circulation and excess organic matter has led to the formation of a rapidly expanding sludge field. Black anoxic sediments high in organic carbon now cover almost 9 sq km of sea floor and contain high concentrations of heavy metals. Maximum increases above background values range from 22× for mercury, 1500× for arsenic, 1200× for chromium, to 3000× for zinc. The principal sources of metals are 1) a fertilizer factory, 2) the Athens sewer outfall, and 3) the industries in eastern Elefsis Bay.     

Environmental considerations for design of the Athens sea outfall,Saronikos Gulf,greece

The pollution problems in Saronikos Gulf arise mainly from the discharge of about 600,000 m³/day of untreated wastewater into the northern part of this gulf. To alleviate the situation, a new major treatment and sea disposal system is under construction. Its design included various physical oceanographic and marine geological surveys. This article summarizes their results and assesses their impact on the unique design features of the outfall and diffusers.During summer, the stratification at the site of discharge is sufficiently strong to prevent the submerged sewage field from surfacing. This strong summer stratification coupled with the virtual absence of upwelling and the presence of a well-organized current field at the level of effluent trapping (about 40 m) ensures the offshore advection of the diluted submerged wastefield, via either the dominant cyclonic or the rarer anticyclonic circulatory patterns. The sea floor morphology is smooth (except near the Psyttalia coastline where poorly sorted coarse biogenic sands are steeply inclined), and the bottom is covered by an unconsolidated sedimentary layer with a thickness ranging from 10 to 167 cm and consisting in the western part of silty sand and in the eastern part of sandy silt. The seismic data indicated the absence of active faults, valleys, and channels. Below the surficial sediment cover, two seismic units were discerned, which may be correlated with the Quaternary and the Triassic outcrops on the island. The marine geological results indicated that rather minor technical work will be needed for the emplacement of the outfall system.     

3D crustal structure in the neotectonic basin of the Gulf of Saronikos (Greece)

An on-/offshore seismic network consisting of 36 three-component stand-alone digital stations was deployed in the area of the Saronikos Gulf, in the vicinity of Athens (Greece), in the fall of 2001. In the present study, from an initial set of more than 1000 micro-earthquakes, 374 were selected and 6666 P- and S-wave arrivals were inverted, based on a 3D linearized tomography algorithm, in order to determine the 3D velocity structure of the region.

The resulting 3D velocity distribution, in agreement to the micro-seismicity distribution, reflects the Saronikos structure down to a depth of 12 km. So, the neotectonic basin of the Saronikos Gulf is divided in two parts by a central platform, which implies the existence of a NNE–SSW-trending rupture zone. This zone is probably the offshore extension of a large thrust belt dominating the adjacent onshore areas. Due to their different structure, the two basins are dominated by different velocity values in comparison to the central platform.

The western part is characterised by higher seismic activity than the eastern one. Furthermore, the western Saronikos Gulf is divided in a northern and a southern part by a well-defined rupture zone trending E–W. This seems to be the extension of the Corinthiakos Gulf fault zone. At the depth of 17 km, the velocity increases considerably and the crustal thickness is restricted down to 20 km. This ‘unexpected’ low thickness in the region of Saronikos Gulf seems to be the result of the extensional stress field, which dominates the region, as well as of the emergence of the mantle material along the volcanic arc, which clearly appears at the depth of 12 km. Yet the lack of deep events and, hence, the poor resolution below the depth of 17 km does not support a definite conclusion about the crust–mantle boundary in this region.     

Ground zoning against seismic hazard in Athens, Greece

The 1999, Ms=5.9, Athens earthquake caused serious structural damage to buildings in the western part of Athens, Greece. This paper presents the ground zoning against seismic hazard proposed shortly after the earthquake in order to aid reconstruction of the area. Existing engineering geological and geotechnical data were combined with local observations to provide a unified set of classification criteria, consistent with provisions of the Greek Seismic Code EAK. The accuracy and the possible limitations of this zoning procedure are addressed through comparison with observed damage distribution as well as results from seismic ground response analyses performed at sites with well established soil profiles. There is clear evidence that the proposed zones correspond to geological formations exhibiting grossly different seismic response with regard to the design of common engineering structures. However, the mostly qualitative nature of the guidelines for ground categorisation provided by EAK and the general lack of systematic, site-specific geotechnical data for the whole area induce uncertainties in the definition of the seismic design actions for the different zones. These objective uncertainties certainly demand increased conservatism but do not limit application of the proposed methodology for first aid, preliminary planning in the event of destructive earthquakes.     

Quaternary tectonics in the Gulf of Patras, western Greece

Air gun seismic and 3.5 kHz profiling data from the Gulf of Patras, western Greece, show that it is occupied by a small asymmetric graben with several geometric similarities to the larger-scale graben in the Gulf of Corinth to the east. Major listric faulting characterizes the southern flank of the graben whilst the northern flank represents an associated rollover structure affected by antithetic and synthetic faulting. The present phase of subsidence is of Holocene age, but buried growth faults suggest earlier subsidence in the Gulf. The average rate of subsidence through the Holocene is estimated to be 10 mm/year.The Gulf of Patras graben, together with the Gulf of Corinth graben and the Megara basin, represent a continuous system of WNW-ESE trending grabens in a broad zone of intense seismicity within the Aegean domain. Individual grabens are offset and are interconnected by NE-SW trending fault systems.     

The use of various methods for the study of metal pollution in marine sediments,the case of Euvoikos Gulf,Greece

This study presents the results on heavy metal (Mn, Fe, Cu, Zn) analyses of sediments taken from Euvoikos Gulf, Greece, which is a semi-enclosed system receiving pollution loads from several urban and industrial sources and is affected by a strong tidal current. A sequential extraction schema and two single-step methods were used for the determination of trace metals. The data of the 1997 period are compared with data from previous studies carried out in the authors' laboratory in the area (1980, 1993) using various analytical techniques, in an attempt to evaluate both the evolution of pollution in the area and the effectiveness of analytical methods. It has been confirmed that a significant part of the pollution load remains in coastal localities in the vicinity of the land based pollution sources, whereas there are also some more remote sites where small polluted particles are transported, deposited and accumulated. The sedimentology regime of the area affects the concentration of metals in a rather complex way depending also on its content of carbonates, organic C and clay minerals. The study of sediment cores has indicated elevated metal concentrations in recent surface sediments. On the other hand, some environmentally positive trends were also observed (i.e. the reduction of mobile metals). A systematic monitoring is needed in the marine environment coupled with some reduction in pollution inputs and integrated management on the coastal zone because the overall hydrological characteristics of the area favour its rapid self-restoration.     

Engineering geological conditions and the effects of the 1981 earthquake in Athens,Greece

The 1981 earthquakes, manifested in the Gulf of Corinth, brought serious structural damage to buildings in the city of Athens. Because of the observed concentration of damages in the Halandri district of Athens, an investigation of soil conditions was carried out. This included boreholes, measurement of physicomechanical properties of soil and weak rock units and determination of the depth to top-of-rock and thickness of recent deposits. Based on stratigraphy, the area studied was divided in five zones. For each zone, the total number of damaged buildings was determined and the percentages of damage to three-storey and multi-storey buildings were calculated. Seismic characteristics, acceleration and dominant period of soil and weak rock formations were estimated. From the above analysis, it is concluded that the dominant period of the soil, in the zones where most of the damage to multi-storey buildings was observed, is approximately equal to the dominant period of these buildings.     

Environmental status of the metropolitan river (Kifissos) of Athens,Greece

Surficial and sub-surficial sediments obtained from the lower course of the Kifissos River, which drains the Athens Basin, have been analyzed for heavy metals and aliphatic and polycyclic hydrocarbons. Oddly, the calculated enrichment factors for the identified heavy metals, with the baseline taken from a pristine area in the adjacent Saronikos Gulf, are very low excluding only those related to Cu and Zn. In contrast, the enrichment factors for the measured hydrocarbons are particularly high. However, physicochemical water conditions and annual flushing episodes of the Kifissos River may have reduced significantly the sediment chemical fingerprint found out by the present study. Moreover, an evaluation of the fluvial sediment quality based on the enriched Cu and Zn amounts and concentration of PAH fraction with a consideration of the biological thresholds proposed by the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (USA) reveals little probability for serious biological impairments. Additionally, sediment toxicity due to the sediment PAH load may be considered as minimum.     

POC and particulate Th export fluxes estimated using Th/U disequilibrium in an enclosed Eastern Mediterranean region (Saronikos Gulf and Elefsis Bay, Greece) in seasonal scale

Activity concentrations of the naturally occurring, short-lived and highly particle-reactive radionuclide tracer ²³⁴Th in the dissolved and particulate phase were determined at 7 shallow-water stations (maximum depths: 30 (S.1 and S.2), 65 (S.3), 97 (S.5), 105 (S.6) and 220 m (S.4 and S.7) in Saronikos Gulf and Elefsis Bay (central Aegean Sea, Greece) during 3 seasonal cruises (summer 2008, autumn 2008 and winter 2009) to assess the time scales of the dynamics and the depositional fate of particulate matter (POC, particulate ²³⁴Th). For that reason, in situ filtrating systems were deployed in several depths of the water column consisting of GF/A disc prefilters to scavenge particulate fraction of ²³⁴Th and organic carbon and impregnated cartridges to adsorb dissolved ²³⁴Th.The obtained data showed average particulate ²³⁴Th activity concentrations of 3.7 ± 0.4 Bq m⁻³ in summer, 2.1 ± 0.2 Bq m⁻³ in autumn and 2.4 ± 0.2 Bq m⁻³ in winter. The respective average dissolved ²³⁴Th activity concentrations were 30.1 ± 2.8 Bq m⁻³ in summer, 30.2 ± 2.9 Bq m⁻³ in autumn and 27.4 ± 3.0 Bq m⁻³ in winter. The activity ratios of total ²³⁴Th and its long-lived conservative parent ²³⁸U were below unity in most of the stations indicating radioactive disequilibrium throughout the water column, thus very dynamic trace-metal scavenging and particle export from the water column. These profiles (²³⁴Th and ²³⁸U) were used to estimate the export fluxes and scavenging rates of ²³⁴Th, as well as their residence times in the water column. The average cumulative export fluxes of particulate ²³⁴Th were estimated to be 33 ± 4 Bq m⁻² d⁻¹ in summer, 35 ± 5 Bq m⁻² d⁻¹ in autumn and 45 ± 6 Bq m⁻² d⁻¹ in winter, whereas the respective average cumulative scavenging rates of dissolved ²³⁴Th were 39 ± 5, 33 ± 5 and 50 ± 7 Bq m⁻² d⁻¹. Moreover, the cumulative average residence times of ²³⁴Th were 25 ± 4 d in summer, 45 ± 6 d in autumn and 64 ± 7 d in winter 2009 for the dissolved fraction and 4 ± 1, 3 ± 1 and 4 ± 1 d for the particulate one, respectively.POC/ ratio profiles decreased versus depth showing a variety of marine processes, such as loss of POC due to dissolution after biological activity, impact of minerals in particle sinking and microbial remineralization. Average cumulative export fluxes of POC were 162 ± 18 mmol m⁻² d⁻¹ in summer, 107 ± 19 mmol m⁻² d⁻¹ in autumn and 157 ± 25 mmol m⁻² d⁻¹ in winter 2009. The seasonal data of POC fluxes certified the existence of phytoplankton bloom in winter for Saronikos Gulf. In addition, after evaluating the maxima of POC fluxes in Elefsis Bay (a small embayment in northern Saronikos Gulf) during summer, potential bloom of phytoplankton also concluded; this approach is in agreement with previous data of the same area. Finally, the elevated POC concentrations and fluxes in the region certify that the Gulf is still one of the most organic polluted in the Mediterranean Sea.     

Site-Specific Analysis of Strong Motion Data from the September 7, 1999 Athens,Greece Earthquake

The strong ground motion from Athens, Greece 07/09/1999 earthquake has been recorded by eighteen (18) stations, fourteen (14) within the central Athens area and four (4) at the centers of nearby towns. The ground conditions for most of the recording sites were identified, based on previous geotechnical investigations carried out in the wider area of the sites, and consequently correlated to the seismic motion characteristics. Hence, it has been possible to evaluate the accuracy of different seismological methods for site characterization and also estimate soil effects on peak ground acceleration and elastic response spectra. In addition, preliminary estimates are drawn for the seismic motion characteristics at the epicentral area, where no strong motion recordings are available. The detailed soil profiles at the recordingsites are placed in the Appendix.     

A palaeoseismological and geoarchaeological investigation of the Eliki fault,Gulf of Corinth,Greece

Palaeoseismological and morphotectonic analyses enable us to define a 400-m-wide actively deformed zone associated with the active Eliki normal fault, central Greece, bounded on the south by a second-order fault and on the north by a composite and prominent fault scarp. This scarp is further analysed by trenching. Based on colluvium stratigraphy, displacement of distinct horizons and deposition of sedimentary layers, three faulting events have been identified along four fault strands affecting unconsolidated sediments in the trench. The two younger events, with throws of 0.93 and 1.37 m, respectively, the third event, with a throw of 0.44 m, and the penultimate 373 BC event suggest a variable seismic history.The entire alluvial plain of the Kerynitis and Vouraikos rivers, which cross the Eliki fault, has subsided at a rate of 1.4 mm/year, resulting in the burial of the Late Hellenistic–Roman occupation horizons under 3 m of fluvial and colluvial sediments in places.Extension in the broader area is accommodated by the seismically active Eliki and Egion faults. Structural and palaeoseismological analysis of those two faults indicates that they accommodate 1.5 mm/year, or about 10% of the geodetically estimated extension of up to 13 mm/year.     

Analysis of a Long Record of Annual Maximum Rainfall in Athens,Greece, and Design Rainfall Inferences

An annual series of maximum dailyrainfall extending through 1860–1995, i.e., 136 years,was extracted from the archives of a meteorologicalstation in Athens. This is the longest rainfall recordavailable in Greece and its analysis is required forthe prediction of intense rainfall in Athens, wherecurrently major flood protection works are under way.Moreover, the statistical analysis of this long recordcan be useful for investigating more generalisedissues regarding the adequacy of extreme valuedistributions for extreme rainfall analysis and theeffect of sample size on design rainfall inferences.Statistical exploration and tests based on this longrecord indicate no statistically significant climaticchanges in extreme rainfall during the last 136 years.Furthermore, statistical analysis shows that theconventionally employed Extreme Value Type I (EV1 orGumbel) distribution is inappropriate for the examinedrecord (especially in its upper tail), whereas thisdistribution would seem as an appropriate model iffewer years of measurements were available (i.e., partof this sample were used). On the contrary, theGeneral Extreme Value (GEV) distribution appears to besuitable for the examined series and its predictionsfor large return periods agree with the probablemaximum precipitation estimated by the statistical(Hershfield's) method, when the latter is consideredfrom a probabilistic point of view. Thus, the resultsof the analysis of this record agree with a recently(and internationally) expressed scepticism about theEV1 distribution which tends to underestimate thelargest extreme rainfall amounts. It is demonstratedthat the underestimation is quite substantial (e.g.,1 : 2) for large return periods and this fact must beconsidered as a warning against the widespread use ofthe EV1 distribution for rainfall extremes.     

Sea-level changes and tectonics in the Quaternary extensional basin of the South Evvoikos Gulf, Greece

The tectonically active South Evvoikos Gulf forms the submerged part of a young basin produced by Neogene fragmentation of the Hellenides, so furnishing an opportunity to study the earliest stages of an extensional rift. Reflection profiles show three seismo-stratigraphic units: a thin Holocene unit A, a thick Late and Middle Pleistocene unit B, and a deformed Mesozoic-Cenozoic basal unit C. In the eastern Gulf, at least seven alternatingly stratified and acoustically transparent subunits are related to Pleistocene sea-level changes that episodically isolated the Gulf. Correlation with the global eustatic sea-level curve indicates that deposition in the Gulf, formed by southeastward divergence of its northern and southern boundary faults, began during the last million years. Subsequent glacio-eustatic sea-level changes superimposed major variations in depositional conditions on long-term subsidence. Lack of Pleistocene marine beds on the adjacent land implies that a high rate of subsidence confined lacustrine and marine deposition to the basin itself.     

Foreshock activity as a precursor of strong earthquakes in Corinthos Gulf,Central Greece

Foreshock activity preceding strong (M_s ≥ 5) main shocks in the Corinthos Gulf, Central Greece, is examined from primarily a data set of 1970–1998 and supplementary from data sets of 1785–1910 and 1911–1969. It has been found that foreshock activity appears at time T ≤ 4 months before the main shock. In general there is no apparent tendency of foreshock epicenters to move towards the main shock epicenter. The last 10 days of the foreshock period is the most important phase since the probability for the main shock occurrence at any time within that time window is very high exceeding 0.83. The duration of the foreshock period as well as the largest foreshock magnitude are both independent of the main shock magnitude. Obtained results are important for inclusion in probabilistic earthquake predictions in the Corinthos Gulf.     

Implications of structural segmentation during earthquakes: the 1995 Egion earthquake, Gulf of Corinth, Greece

The Egion earthquake which occurred in the Gulf of Corinth, central Greece (Ms = 6.2) on 15 June 1995 was caused by normal slip on the north-dipping and WNW-trending Egion fault. The Egion fault ruptured at depth during the Egion mainshock and probably re-ruptured at shallow level during the largest aftershock. The surface trace of the Egion fault has a segmented geometry. Linkage between three segments, which show long-term deformation differences as well as coseismic segmentation, enabled all segments to be incorporated in an earthquake segment. The surface ruptures continued to grow after the coseismic motion; the afterslip throw of the fault 10 weeks after the main event was equal to the 3 cm value for maximum coseismic slip. This afterslip was accompanied by uplift of the footwall block and a warp-like hangingwall subsidence (folding). This pattern of deformation was associated with more complex deformation at the western end of the earthquake segment. Here, afterslip was accompanied by general subsidence of the whole area (between 25th June and 30th July), followed by uplift of the whole area without afterslip (between 30th July and 2nd September). The afterslip-rate averaged over the 73 day period after the main event varied from 0.48 mm day⁻¹ along the central part of the earthquake segment to 0.16 mm day⁻¹ at the eastern end of the earthquake segment.     

Slip rates on the Helike Fault, Gulf of Corinth, Greece: new evidence from geoarchaeology

Palaeoseismological and archaeological analysis of a trench enabled us to estimate the Holocene slip rates on the East Helike Fault, flanking the south-western Gulf of Corinth. We recognized two major fault strands within the trench: the ‘north fault’ controls a succession of three colluvial wedges and the deposition of a 2.7 m thick sedimentary sequence. The ‘south fault’ controls the deposition of a 2.9-m thick brownish-red colluvium. Based on colluvial stratigraphy, radiocarbon dating of the sediments suggests that the slip rate was c. 0.3 mm yr⁻¹ from 10 250 to c. 1400 bp , when it increased dramatically to c. 2.0 mm yr⁻¹ after a strong earthquake event near 1400 bp . The faster slip rate evidently increased the sedimentation rate.     

Geochemical associations for evaluating the availability of potentially harmful elements in urban soils: Lessons learnt from Athens,Greece

The estimation of potentially harmful element (PHE) availability in urban soil is essential for evaluating impending risks for human and ecosystem health. In the present study five single extraction procedures were evaluated based on the analysis of 45 urban top-soil samples from Athens, Greece. The pseudototal (aqua regia), potentially phytoavailable (0.05 M EDTA), mobilizable (0.43 M HAc), bioaccessible (0.4 M glycine) and reactive pools (0.43 M HNO₃) of PHEs were determined. In general, geogenic elements in Athens soil (Ni, Cr, Co, As) are relatively less available than typical tracers of anthropogenic contamination (Pb, Zn, Cu, Cd). Results of principal component analysis (PCA) indicate an association between available fractions of Pb, Cu, Zn, Cd and amorphous Fe oxides, whereas amorphous Mn oxides account for the available concentrations of Mn, Ni and Co. Empirical multiple linear regression models demonstrate that pseudototal concentration is the predominant explanatory factor of variability for the available pools of the anthropogenic elements. Major elemental composition and total organic carbon (TOC) improve the predictions for the geogenic group of elements, although the explained variability remains low. Dilute HNO₃ is a better predictor of Zn, Ni, As and Mn availability, whereas Pb and Cu available fractions are predicted more accurately by the classical aqua regia protocol. This study contributes to the international database on the environmental behavior of PHEs and provides additional knowledge that can be used toward the harmonization of chemical extraction methodology in urban soil.     

Tsunami Hazard in the Eastern Mediterranean: Strong Earthquakes and Tsunamis in the Corinth Gulf,Central Greece

The exhaustive review of a long number of historical documents, books, reports,scientific and press reports, instrumental recordings, previous catalogues andpersonal field observations, concluded with the production of a completely newtsunami catalogue for the Corinth Gulf, Central Greece, which is arranged in theformat adopted by the GITEC group for the new European Tsunami Catalogue.The catalogue is presented in three sections: the Quick-Look Table, the Quick-LookAccounts File and the References File. An Appendix explains why some particularsea disturbances were not included in the new catalogue although they were consideredas tsunami events by previous researchers. Past history clearly shows that most tsunamis in the Corinth Gulf are produced by strong (Ms 5.5) offshore and near shore earthquakes. However, seismic or aseismic sliding of coastal and submarine sediments is a significant factor in tsunamigenesis. Calculations based on the random model indicate that the probability for at least one tsunami occurrence of intensity TI 2 TI 3 and TI 4 within 50 years equals 0.851, 0.747 and 0.606, respectively. From the intensity–frequency relationship the mean return period of tsunami intensity TI 2, TI 3 and TI 4 equals to 16, 40 and 103 years. The tsunami geographicaldistribution, however, is non-random with a clear trend for the tsunamigenesis todecrease drastically from west to east within the Corinth Gulf. In fact, the probabilityfor a strong earthquake to cause a tsunami of TI 3 in the Corinth Gulf consideredas an entity is 0.35, while in the western part of the Gulf it goes up to 0.55. Therefore, the rapid and accurate determination of the earthquake focal parameters is of great importance in an algorithm of a real-time tsunami warning system in the Corinth Gulf.