In a review of the literature on impacts of spilled oil on marshes, 32 oil spills and field experiments were identified with sufficient data to generate recovery curves and identify influencing factors controlling the rate of recovery. For many spills, recovery occurred within 1–2 growing seasons, even in the absence of any treatment. Recovery was longest for spills with the following conditions: Cold climate; sheltered settings; thick oil on the marsh surface; light refined products with heavy loading; oils that formed persistent thick residues; and intensive treatment. Recovery was shortest for spills with the following conditions: Warm climate; light to heavy oiling of the vegetation only; medium crude oils; and less-intensive treatment. Recommendations are made for treatment based on the following oiling conditions: Free-floating oil on the water in the marsh; thicker oil (>0.5cm) on marsh surface; thinner oil (<0.5cm) on marsh surface; heavy oil loading on vegetation; and light to moderate oil loading on vegetation.

China’s coastal area is severely damaged by marine invasive species. Traditional tort theory resolves issues relevant to property damage or personal injuries, through which plaintiffs cannot cope with the ecological damage caused by marine invasive species. Several defects exist within the current legal regimes, such as imperfect management systems, insufficient unified technical standards, and unsound legal responsibility systems. It is necessary to pass legislation to prevent the ecological damage caused by marine invasive species. This investigation probes the fundamental principles needed for the administration and legislation of an improved legal framework to combat the problem of invasive species within China’s coastal waters.

As human civilization is becoming more aware of the negative impact our actions can inflict upon the natural world, the intensification of fossil fuel extraction and industrial development is being met with increasing opposition. In Western Canada, proposals that would increase the volume of petroleum transported by pipelines and by tankers through the coastal waters of British Columbia have engaged the province in debate. To ease public concern on the risk of a coastal oil spill, there are additional commitments that involved parties could make. There is evidence to show that the practice of registering vessels under foreign flags of states that have exhibited failure in compliance with international obligations is more common amongst petroleum tankers that have been involved in large-scale oil spills. To prove that they are committed to reducing the risk of oil spills, businesses need to stop registering their vessels under flags of foreign, non-compliant states.

Although numerous studies have shown that hypoxia affects cortisol and aldosterone production in vivo, the underlying molecular mechanisms regulating the steroidogenic genes of these steroid hormones are still poorly known. MicroRNAs are post-transcriptional regulators that control diverse biological processes and this study describes the identification and validation of the hypoxia-inducible microRNA, miR-10b, as a negative regulator of the CYP11B1 and CYP11B2 steroidogenic genes in H295R human adrenocortical cells. Using the human TaqMan Low Density miRNA Arrays, we determined the miRNA expression patterns in H295R cells under normoxic and hypoxic conditions, and in cells overexpressing the human HIF-1α. Computer analysis using three in silico algorithms predicted that the hypoxia-inducible miR-10b molecule targets CYP11B1 and CYP11B2 mRNAs. Gene transfection studies of luciferase constructs containing the 3′-untranslated region of CYP11B1 or CYP11B2, combined with miRNA overexpression and knockdown experiments provide compelling evidence that CYP11B1 and CYP11B2 mRNAs are likely targets of miR-10b.

Contaminations in sediments by polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) and alkylated PAHs were investigated at 44 sites in Osaka Bay, Japan. Concentrations of total PAHs and alkylated PAHs were in the range 6.40–7800ng/g dry weights and 13.7–1700ng/g dry weights, respectively. The PAH concentrations tended to be higher along the shoreline in the vicinities of big ports, industrialized areas, and densely populated regions such as the cities of Osaka and Kobe. The major sources appeared to be pyrogenic or both pyrogenic and petrogenic at most of the sites. PAH concentrations were remarkably high at a site near Kobe, where the concentrations of dibenzo(a,h)anthracene and benzo(g,h,i)perylene exceeded the effects-range-medium concentration and eight PAHs were above the corresponding effects-range-low concentrations. Those PAHs may have been derived from the great fire associated with the large earthquake in 1995.

Recently in the Sultanate of Oman, there has been a rapid surge of coastal developments. These developments cause metal contamination, which may affect the habitats and communities at and near the coastal region. As a result, a study was conducted to assess the level of metal contamination and its impact on the marine sediments in the vicinity of the Single Buoy Moorings 3 (SBM3) at Mina Al Fahal in the Sultanate of Oman. Marine subtidal sediment samples were collected from six different stations of the SBM3 for the period ranging from June 2009 to April 2010. These samples were then analyzed for their level and distribution of the heavy metals of cadmium (Cd), copper (Cu), lead (Pb) and vanadium (V). Overall, low concentrations of all four heavy metals were measured from the marine sediments, indicating that the marine at SBM3 is of good quality.

Effects of fish culture can alter the adjacent ecosystems. This study compared seagrass species compositions in 2012 with those in 1995, when fish culture was less intensive compared to 2012 in the region. Observations were conducted at the same four sites around Santiago Island, Bolinao: (1) Silaqui Island, (2) Binaballian Loob, (3) Pislatan and (4) Santa Barbara, and by using the same methods as those of Bach et al. (1998). These sites were originally selected along a siltation gradient, ranging from Site 1, the most pristine, to Site 4, a heavily silted site. By 2012, fish culture had expanded around Sites 2, 3 and 4, where chlorophyll a (Chl a) was greater in 2012 than in 1995 by one order of magnitude. Enhalus acoroides and Cymodocea serrulata, which were recorded in 1995, were no longer present at Site 4, where both siltation and nutrient load are heavy.

This paper presents the first detailed investigation on the residual levels of organochlorine insecticide (OCI) concentrations in the Cochin estuarine sediment. It aims in elucidate their distribution and ecological impact on the aquatic system. Concentrations of persistent organochlorine compound (OC) were determined for 17 surface sediment samples which were collected from specific sites of Cochin Estuarine System (CES) over a period of November 2009 and November 2011. The contaminant levels in the CES were compared with other worldwide ecosystems. The sites bearing high concentration of organochlorine compounds are well associated with the complexities and low energy environment. Evaluation of ecotoxicological factors suggests that adverse biological effects are expected in certain areas of CES.

Hypoxia associated with eutrophication is a potential threat to the Chinese horseshoe crab Tachypleus tridentatus which inhabits intertidal sand flats in Asia. This study investigated the effect of dissolved oxygen level (DO) (6, 4 and 2mg O2 l−1) on the physiological energetics in the juvenile T. tridentatus. They were exposed to various oxygen levels for three days and then transferred to normoxia for three days to examine the recovery from low oxygen stress. Feeding rate, respiration rate and scope for growth were reduced at lower DO levels while absorption efficiency and excretion rate were independent of DO levels. Although full recovery of the physiological responses and scope for growth from hypoxis stress was observed when normoxia resumed, their long term survival in suboptimal habitats with frequent occurrence of hypoxia deserves a close monitoring as hypoxia may be even more common in future in a warming world.

The major aim of this study was to investigate heavy metal content of edible fish in the PRD. Eleven species of fish (consisting of 711 individuals) [catfish (Clarias fuscus), tilapia (Oreochromis mossambicus), grass carp (Ctenopharyngodon idellus), bighead carp (Aristichthys nobilis), mandarin fish (Siniperca kneri), snakehead (Channa asiatiea), black bass (Micropterus salmoides), mangrove snapper (Lutjanus griseus), star snapper (Lutjanu stellatus), snubnose pompano (Trachinotus blochii) and orange-spotted grouper (Epinephelus coioides)] were collected for the analyses of heavy metals. Overall concentrations (mg/kg, ww) in the fish muscles were: As (0.03–1.53), Pb (0.03–8.62), Cd (0.02–0.06), Ni (0.44–9.75), Zn (15.7–29.5), Cr (0.22–0.65), Cu (0.79–2.26), Mn (0.82–6.91). Significant level of Pb were found in tilapia at all locations. It is recommended that heavy metal concentrations in different fish species must be determined on a regular basis in the future so as to reduce human health risks from acute and chronic food intoxication.