The Common Fisheries Policy: An enforcement problem

Marine populations in Europe are in decline due to the unsuccessful results of the Common Fisheries Policy. By combining data of scientific recommendations from ICES, TACs approved and reported landings with an age-structured model, the objectives of this paper are to investigate the level of compliance of the TAC regulation, and the level of enforcement and its economic impact on fishery resources. The results presented here suggest that while there does not exist a regular pattern between TAC proposal and TAC approved, there is a clear pattern between TAC approved and reported landings. As a consequence, there is a regular lack of enforcement at national fisheries authority level. The paper also presents results of the recovery plans for the Southern hake and the Atlantic cod fisheries as case studies to illustrate the level of enforcement based on collusion between national fisheries advisers and industry. The results from both cases studies analyzed here indicate that drastic solutions could generate positive results for the recovery of the stocks, but perhaps they are not always the best measure in fisheries management due to the high economic losses for fishermen and social effects on coastal communities in the short and medium term. Finally, this work demonstrates that if the recovery plans had been implemented, the net present profits for both fisheries would have increased over time.     

Coral communities and reefs from Guerrero,Southern Mexican Pacific

Corals in the Eastern Pacific extend south from the Gulf of California to Ecuador and oceanic Chile, and west from Colombia to Clipperton Atoll. Nevertheless, large stretches of the Mexican Pacific remain fundamentally unstudied. Therefore, to assess the current conditions of coral communities, a coastal fringe ～300 km long (17°40′ N, 101°39′ W to 16°46′ N, 99°49′ W) was surveyed within the Southern Mexican Pacific, between 2005 and 2009. Fifteen stony coral species were identified at 13 coral communities and six Pocillopora‐dominated fringing reefs, with Pocillopora verrucosa and Pocillopora damicornis the primary contributing taxa. Reef development was identified in embayments or behind rocks or islands that offered shelter from northern and northwestern winds. Observations of Pocillopora effusus, Pocillopora inflata, Porites lobata, Pavona clavus, and Pavona varians expanded the species known geographic ranges by several degrees of latitude, suggesting reef building fauna comprised a mixture of widespread and relatively rare Eastern Pacific corals. Results indicated greater live coral cover in the Ixtapa‐Zihuatanejo area (15–73%) than in the Acapulco localities, which had high algal dominance; the reefs in the latter region exhibited high erosion. Regional differences are likely the result of long‐standing anthropogenic pressures around Acapulco since 1950, when it became an important tourist destination. This paper is the first detailed report of ecologically stressed corals and coral reefs from the state of Guerrero on the Mexican Southern Pacific coast.     

The effect of human use of sandy beaches on developmental stability of Talitrus saltator (Montagu, 1808) (Crustacea, Amphipoda). A study on fluctuating asymmetry

In recent years, there has been an increasing intensity of human use of coastal areas in Galicia (NW Spain). Actually, there is great concern about rapid and unplanned urban and industrial development on certain locations, as this can generate adverse impacts on those areas. In this study, we selected three sandy beaches along the Galician coast (Chanteiro, Insuela and Valieros) facing different levels of anthropic pressure, and we analysed Talitrus saltator individuals with the aim of elucidating whether anthropogenic pressures on beaches such as tourism or pollution have an influence on the incidence of morphological developmental alterations in sandhoppers in the field. Specifically, levels of fluctuating asymmetry were selected as indicators of environmental stress. Results of two sampling dates (May and September) show that individuals collected at the most touristy and polluted beach were those showing the highest asymmetry values, although results were only statistically significant for samples collected during spring. Results are in accordance with the hypothesis that beach management and pollution reduce symmetry in sandhoppers living in altered beaches.     

Crustacean decapod assemblages associated with fragmented Posidonia oceanica meadows in the Alboran Sea (Western Mediterranean Sea): composition,temporal dynamics and influence of meadow structure

The decapod assemblage associated with a Posidonia oceanica meadow located near its western limit of biogeographic distribution was studied over an annual cycle. Fauna samples were taken seasonally over a year (five replicates per season) in two sites located 7 km apart, using a non‐destructive sampling method (airlift sampler) for the seagrass. The dominant species of the assemblage, Pisidia longimana, Pilumnus hirtellus and Athanas nitescens, were associated with the protective rhizome stratum, which is mainly used as a nursery. The correlations between decapod assemblage structure and some phenological parameters of the seagrass shoots and wave height were negative or null, which reflects that species associated with the rhizome had a higher importance than those associated with the leaf stratum. The abundance and composition of the decapod assemblage as well as the ecological indexes displayed a seasonality trend with maximum values in summer‐autumn and minimum in winter‐spring, which were related to the seawater temperature and the recruitment periods of the dominant species. The spatial differences found in the structure and dynamics of the assemblages may be due to variations in the recruitment of the dominant species, probably as a result of the influence of local factors (e.g. temperature, currents) and the high dispersal ability of decapods, together with the patchy configuration and the surrounding habitats. The studied meadows are fragmented and are integrated within a mosaic of habitats (Cymodocea nodosa patches, algal meadows, rocky and sandy bottoms), which promotes the movement of individuals and species among them, maintaining a high species richness and evenness.     

Morphosedimentary features and recent depositional architectural model of the Cantabrian continental margin

Multibeam bathymetry, high (sleeve airguns) and very high resolution (parametric system-TOPAS-) seismic records were used to define the morphosedimentary features and investigate the depositional architecture of the Cantabrian continental margin. The outer shelf (down to 180–245 m water depth) displays an intensively eroded seafloor surface that truncates consolidated ancient folded and fractured deposits. Recent deposits are only locally present as lowstand shelf-margin deposits and a transparent drape with bedforms. The continental slope is affected by sedimentary processes that have combined to create the morphosedimentary features seen today. The upper (down to 2000 m water depth) and lower (down to 3700–4600 m water depth) slopes are mostly subject to different types of slope failures, such as slides, mass-transport deposits (a mix of slumping and mass-flows), and turbidity currents. The upper slope is also subject to the action of bottom currents (the Mediterranean Water — MW) that interact with the Le Danois Bank favouring the reworking of the sediment and the sculpting of a contourite system. The continental rise is a bypass region of debris flows and turbidity currents where a complex channel-lobe transition zone (CLTZ) of the Cap Ferret Fan develops.The recent architecture depositional model is complex and results from the remaining structural template and the great variability of interconnected sedimentary systems and processes. This margin can be considered as starved due to the great sediment evacuation over a relatively steep entire depositional profile. Sediment is eroded mostly from the Cantabrian and also the Pyrenees mountains (source) and transported by small stream/river mountains to the sea. It bypasses the continental shelf and when sediment arrives at the slope it is transported through a major submarine drainage system (large submarine valleys and mass-movement processes) down to the continental rise and adjacent Biscay Abyssal Plain (sink). Factors controlling this architecture are tectonism and sediment source/dispersal, which are closely interrelated, whereas sea-level changes and oceanography have played a minor role (on a long-term scale).     

MedFlux: Investigations of particle flux in the Twilight Zone

The MedFlux project was devised to determine and model relationships between organic matter and mineral ballasts of sinking particulate matter in the ocean. Specifically we investigated the ballast ratio hypothesis, tested various commonly used sampling and modeling techniques, and developed new technologies that would allow better characterization of particle biogeochemistry. Here we describe the rationale for the project, the biogeochemical provenance of the DYFAMED site, the international support structure, and highlights from the papers published here. Additional MedFlux papers can be accessed at the MedFlux web site (http://msrc.sunysb.edu/MedFlux/).     

Large-Scale and Mesoscale Distribution of Plankton Biomass and Metabolic Activity in the Northeastern Central Atlantic

Plankton biomass and indices of metabolism and growth [electron transport system (ETS), glutamate dehydrogenase (GDH) and aspartate transcarbamylase (ATC) activities] were studied over a 2,800 km east-west section of the tropical North Atlantic Ocean (21°N) in <200, 200–500 and >;500 µm size classes. On the large-scale, zooplankton (>;200 µm) enzymatic activities increased westward in the study section, where large cyanobacteria chains (Trichodesmium spp.) were observed. Parallel to it, an increase in medium calanoids (1–2 mm length) was observed towards the western part of the transect, whereas small calanoids (<1 mm) were dominant throughout the boundary area of the subtropical gyre. Microplankton ETS and mesoplankton ETS and ATC activities seemed to match the wave length of low frequency waves. Our results suggest that such waves are related to the observed enhancement of metabolic activity of micro- and mesoplankton. The large-scale and mesoscale variability observed give evidence of the inadequacy of assuming a steady-state picture of the euphotic zone of tropical and subtropical waters.     

Sediment bioavailable organic matter,deposition rates and mixing intensity in the Setúbal–Lisbon canyon and adjacent slope (Western Iberian Margin)

The role of the Setúbal–Lisbon canyon in accumulation and transport of labile organic matter from the coastal sea and ocean surface water towards the deep sea was assessed by investigating the distribution of organic matter of different quality in sedimentary aggregates and surface sediments of the canyon and adjacent slopes. Total hydrolysable amino acids (THAA) and organic carbon (Corg) were measured from aggregates, and contents of Corg, chlorophyll a (chl a), phaeopigments (phaeo), chloroplastic pigment equivalents (CPE) from sediments. As indices of organic matter (OM) quality THAA:Corg, degradation index (DI), chl a:phaeo, chl a:Corg and C:N ratio were determined. Sediment profiles of chl a and the isotope 210 of lead (²¹⁰Pb) were used as tracers in a transport model to estimate deposition rates and background levels of the tracers, and sediment mixing rates (Db). Whereas bulk Corg contents of canyon and slope sediments were practically similar at all depths, higher contents of THAA, chl a and CPE, as well as higher THAA:Corg, DI and chl a:Corg, in aggregates and sediments from the upper reaches of the canyon indicate that labile organic matter accumulates in the upper canyon. This is confirmed by higher chl a and ²¹⁰Pb deposition and Db calculated from the model. Hence, the Setúbal–Lisbon canyon, specially the upper region, acts as a natural trap of organic matter that is transported to the region via lateral transport and vertical settling from primary productivity. Organic matter might be further transported in downward canyon direction via rebound processes. The chl a and ²¹⁰Pb profiles reveal active sediment mixing by physical processes and/or animal reworking.     

Theoretical Analysis of A Buoyant Jet Interacting with Small Amplitude Waves

A new theoretical solution is presented here for the dynamic characteristics of a buoyant jet due to opposing small amplitude waves.The conservation equations of mass,tangential momentum and vertical momentum are solved by the integral method which encompasses the Gaussian profiles of velocity and density.The action of waves is incorporated into the equations of motion as an external force and a new exact solution is obtained to predict the trajectory,velocity distribution and boundary thickness of the buoyant jet over an arbitrary lateral cross section.It is found that the velocity along the centerline is inversely proportional to the ratio of the momentum of the wave to the buoyant jet.The averaged boundary width varies with the fluctuation of the boundary width,the distance from the orifice and the velocity correction function.Owing to the motion d waves,the fluctuation of the boundary width is proportional to the wave steepness.     

Effect of Fly Ash on Frost-Resistance and Chloride Ions Diffusion Properties of Marine Concrete

It is necessary to pay more attention to the durability of concrete undergoing freeze-thaw cycles and seawater attack simultaneously.Investigated are the effects of water-binder ratio,fly ash (FA) contents and air-entraining agent on resistance to frost and chloride diffusion of marine concrete blended with FA in natural seawater.The results show that fly ash does not improve the frost resistance of concrete but can improve its resistance to chloride diffusion by addition of less than 30%.The resistance to frost and chloride diffusion of FA concrete can be improved with the decrease of water-binder ratio,and FA may improve both of them simultaneously only being mixed with air-entraining agent.A ratio (named as R) of the frost-resisting durability factor to chloride diffusion coefficient can be used to evaluate the durability of marine concrete.Scanning electron microscope (SEM) analyses are consistent with the evaluations by the value of R.