Impacts of milkfish (Chanos chanos) aquaculture on carbon and nutrient fluxes in the Bolinao area,Philippines

Sediment oxygen consumption, TCO2 production and nutrient fluxes across the sediment-water interface were measured in sediments within and along a transect from four fish pens with production of milkfish (Chanos chanos) in the Bolinao area, The Philippines. The four fish pens were each representing a specific period in the production cycling. There was a positive linear relationship between the rates of sedimentation inside the fish pens and the sediment oxygen consumption indicating that the benthic processes were controlled by the input of organic matter from fish production. The nutrient fluxes were generally higher inside the fish pens, and nitrate was taken up (1.7-5.8 mmol m(-2) d(-1)) whereas ammonium (1-22 mmol m(-2) d(-1)) and phosphate (0.2-4.7 mmol m(-2) d(-1)) were released from the sediments. The sediments were enriched in organic matter with up to a factor 4 compared to outside. A mass balance for one crop of milkfish was constructed based on production data and on measured fluxes of nutrients in the fish pens to assess the loss of carbon and nutrients to the environment. There was a loss to the surroundings of carbon and nitrogen of 51-68% of the total input, whereas phosphorus was buried in the sediments inside the fish pens which acted as net sinks of phosphorus. The results obtained suggest that fish pen culture as practiced in the Bolinao area, leads to even greater impacts on benthic carbon and nutrient cycling than those found in suspended cage cultures.     

Petroleum hydrocarbon residues in the marine environment of Bassein-Mumbai

The paper reports PHc contamination in water, sediment and biota of the coastal area of Bassein-Mumbai in relation to relatively less polluted sites (Dabhol and Ratnagiri) off the west coast of India. To facilitate inter-comparison three standards have been used though the results are reported in terms of SAM (Residue of Saudi Arabian Mix crude). The concentration of PHc in water off Bassein-Mumbai varies widely (2.9-39.2 microg l(-1)) as compared to the average baseline (2.8 microg l(-1)) with higher values generally confined to creeks and estuaries. The higher concentration of PHc in the bottom water of shallow areas is attributed to the contribution from the sediment-associated petroleum residue. High concentration of PHc in the surficial sediment of inshore area Ratnagiri (107.7 ppm, dry wt) is perhaps the remnants of an oil spill that occurred in the Bombay High region on May 17, 1993. The majority of values of PHc concentration in the surficial sediment of the Bassein-Mumbai region exceed 15 ppm (dry wt) against the expected background (<3 ppm, dry wt) and the trend is indicative of transfer of PHc loads from the inshore areas to the open-shore sediments. The PHc concentration of 0.8-2.6 ppm (dry wt) in sediment deposited prior to the first global commercial use of petroleum in core R5 represents the biogenic background. Based on the period of industrialisation and the horizon of PHc accumulation, a sedimentation rate of 0.2 and 1.0 cm y(-1) respectively is estimated for cores U11 and U12. Substantial increase in the concentration of PHc in sediment after 1950 in cores T8 and T10 correlates well with the establishment of refineries on the western shore of the Thane Creek in 1955-1960. A minor peak in most cores in the top 10 cm sediment probably results from biological transfer of PHc lower into the sediment by benthic organisms. Excess of PHc retained in the sediment of the Bassein-Mumbai region over the biogenic background is estimated at 40,000 t. The PHc residues (1.8-10.8 ppm, wet wt) in fish caught off Bassein-Mumbai do not suggest bioaccumulation.     

Spatial variations of DMS, DMSP and phytoplankton in the Bay of Bengal during the summer monsoon 2001

Data on the distribution of dimethylsulphide (DMS) and dimethylsulphoniopropionate (DMSP) in relation to phytoplankton abundance in different oceanic environments is important to understand the biogeochemistry of DMS, which plays an important role in the radiation balance of the earth. During the summer monsoon of 2001 measurements were made for DMS and DMSPt (total DMSP) together with related biological parameters in the Bay of Bengal. Both DMS and DMSPt were restricted to the upper 40 m of the water column. Diatoms accounted for more than 95% of the phytoplankton and were the major contributors to the DMS and DMSPt pool. The mean concentration of DMS in the upper 40 m was observed to be around 1.8+/-1.9 nM in the study area, while DMSPt concentrations varied between 0.7 nM and 40.2 nM with a mean of 10.4+/-8.2 nM. The observed lower DMSPt in the northern Bay in spite of higher mean primary productivity, chlorophyll a and phytoplankton cell counts seemed to result from grazing. Though salinity divides the Bay into different biogeochemical provinces there is no relation between salinity and DMS or DMSPt. On the other hand DMS was linearly related to chlorophyll a:phaeopigments ratio. The results suggest the need for deeper insight into the role of diatoms in the biogeochemical cycling of DMS.