Using monthly otter-trawl deployments, spatial and temporal variability among the relative densities of marine debris were assessed in the Paranaguá estuarine complex; a subtropical World Heritage Listed area in southern Brazil. During 432 deployments over 12months, 291 marine debris items were identified; of which most (92%) were plastic, and more specifically shopping bags, food packages, candy wrappers and cups typically >21mm long. The most contaminated sectors were those closest to Paranaguá city and the adjacent port, and had up to 23.37±3.22 pieces ha−1. Less urbanized sectors had between 12.84±1.49 and 9.32±1.10 pieces ha−1. Contamination did not vary between dry or wet seasons, but rather was probably affected by consistent urban disposal and localized hydrological processes. Marine debris might be minimized by using more environment friendly materials, however a concrete solution requires adequately integrating local government and civil society.

Marine organisms are exposed to low doses of anthropogenic contaminants during their entire life. Authorized amounts of radionuclides are discharged in the Channel by nuclear facilities. The Pacific oyster was used to investigate the potential impact of chronic exposure to ionizing radiation. Though we exposed larvae and spat for two weeks to much higher concentrations than those encountered near nuclear facilities, oyster growth and expression of 9 selected stress genes were not significantly changed. To determine potential DNA damage, 2year old oysters were exposed for two weeks to tritiated water. The comet assay was used to evaluate the level of DNA strand breaks in haemocytes, whilst the ‘clearance rate’ was used as a measure of physiological effects. Whilst other parameters did not alter, DNA damage significantly increased. Our results highlight the significance of the observed DNA damage and their potential consequences at higher levels of biological organization.

Using enrichment culture technique, three isolates marked as ODB-1, ODB-2 and ODB-3, were selected from oil contaminated seawater. 16S rDNA gene sequencing indicated that ODB-1 affiliated with Pseudomonas sp. while ODB-2 and ODB-3 affiliated with Brevundimonas sp. Subsequently, the bacterial cells were immobilized on the surface of expanded graphite (EG), expanded perlite (EP) and bamboo charcoal (BC). Among the three isolates, ODB-1 showed a strong binding to the bio-carriers through extracellular polysaccharides, while ODB-2 and ODB-3 made the adhesion to bio-carrier through direct physical adsorption. The immobilized bacteria exhibited good salinity tolerance compared with the planktonic bacteria. Their total diesel oil removal rates were more than 85% after 6 days’ incubation. Adsorption–biodegradation process played an important role in the oil-pollution remediation. EG-bacteria system was treated as a promising remediation method, which achieved nearly 100% removal of diesel oil. Thereinto, over 83% removal of diesel oil owed to biodegradation.

PM1.0 and PM2.5 samples are collected in Lin'an, a Regional Atmosphere Background Station in spring (1–30 April), summer (1–31 July), autumn (1–31 October) and winter (1–31 January) in 2011 to investigate the seasonal characteristics of aerosol pollution in the Yangtze River Delta region. The daily concentrations of water-soluble ions are 24.6 ± 12.0 μg m−3 and 36.6 ± 23.6 μg m−3 in PM1.0 and PM2.5, respectively. SO42−, NO3− and NH4+ are the dominant contributors of water-soluble ions, accounting for 78.6% (spring), 83.5% (summer), 80.6% (autumn) and 81.9% (winter) of the total ions measured in PM1.0 and 80.2% (spring), 85.4% (summer), 78.9% (autumn) and 78.9% (winter) in PM2.5. Seasonal variation is observed, with the lowest ions concentration in winter and the highest one in summer. Nevertheless, the crustal elements (e.g., Ca, Mg, Al, Fe, etc.) have the highest concentrations in spring. Most of the pollution species (Sb, Se, Cd, Pb, As and Zn) have enrichment factor values higher than 100, implying a strong possibility that the air pollution originates from anthropogenic sources and have no evident seasonal variation. The high concentration of K+ and biomass burning potassium (K+BB) in PM2.5 in autumn and winter and its good correlation with black carbon (r = 0.74) suggest that the most severe pollution derives from biomass burning. Factor analysis results indicate that road dust, combustion processes (biomass burning and fossil fuels combustion), sea salt from marine sources and industrial activities are main sources of aerosol pollution in Lin'an.

Caribbean reef corals have declined sharply since the 1980s, but the lack of prior baseline data has hindered identification of drivers of change. To assess anthropogenic change in reef environments over the past century, we tracked the composition of subfossil assemblages of bivalve and gastropod mollusks excavated from pits below lagoonal and offshore reefs in Bocas del Toro, Panama. The higher prevalence of (a) infaunal suspension-feeding bivalves and herbivorous and omnivorous gastropods in lagoons and (b) epifaunal and suspension-feeding bivalves and carnivorous and suspension-feeding gastropods offshore reflected the greater influence of land-based nutrients/sediments within lagoons. Temporal changes indicated deteriorating environmental conditions pre-1960 in lagoons and post-1960 offshore, with offshore communities becoming more similar to lagoonal ones since 1960. Relative abundances of dominant bivalve species tracked those of their coral hosts, revealing broader ecosystem effects of coral community change. The nature and timing of changes implicate land-based runoff in reef deterioration.

Surface sediments from the intertidal zone of the southwestern Laizhou Bay were analyzed for heavy metals to seek their concentrations, distributions, pollution status, potential ecological risks and possible sources. The concentrations of As, Cd, Cr, Cu, Hg, Ni, Pb and Zn were in the ranges of 4.65–9.65, 0.11–0.28, 25.85–42.75, 7.57–21.29, 0.022–0.054, 12.85–25.35, 9.65–17.65 and 38.22–73.81μgg−1 dry sediment weight, respectively. Cd and Hg presented a status of no pollution to moderate pollution and moderate to considerable potential ecological risks; they were enriched to some extent at some sampling stations, while the other studied metals were not. The combined effects of the studied metals in the sediments made them have a 21% probability of being toxic to biota. The results indicated that As, Cr, Cu, Zn, Ni and Pb were mainly from natural contribution, while a significant portion of Cd and Hg was likely from anthropogenic discharges in addition to natural inputs.

Although considered pristine, Antarctica has not been impervious to hydrocarbon pollution. Antarctica’s history is peppered with oil spills and numerous abandoned waste disposal sites. Both spill events and constant leakages contribute to previous and current sources of pollution into marine sediments. Here we compare the response of the benthic diatom communities over 5years to exposure to a commonly used standard synthetic lubricant oil, an alternative lubricant marketed as more biodegradable, in comparison to a control treatment. Community composition varied significantly over time and between treatments with some high variability within contaminated treatments suggesting community stress. Both lubricants showed evidence of significant effects on community composition after 5years even though total petroleum hydrocarbon reduction reached approximately 80% over this time period. It appears that even after 5years toxicity remains high for both the standard and biodegradable lubricants revealing the temporal scale at which pollutants persist in Antarctica.

The removal of ammonium (NH4+), nitrite (NO2−), nitrate (NO3−), and phosphate (PO4−3) in a closed silvofishery system was examined using three mangrove species (i.e., Avicennia germinans, Laguncularia racemosa, and Rhizophora mangle). Specifically, six closed tanks were installed for this experiment with a population of 60 Dormitator latifrons fishes per tank. We planted 40 seedlings in each of three experimental tanks separated by species, while the remaining tanks were used as control. During 15weeks, nutrient concentrations among the three mangrove systems presented no significant differences (P>0.05). However, nutrient removal variability was minimum during the last 2–5weeks. Mangroves presented an average efficiency of 63% for the removal of NH4+ and NO2−. Contrary, the average removal potential of NO3− and PO4−3 was 50%. Results from this study suggest that the three mangrove species could be used in a closed silvofishery systems for the biological removal of NH4+, NO2−, NO3−, and PO4−3.

Changes in sediment input to marine systems can influence benthic environments in many ways. Sponges are important components of benthic ecosystems world-wide and as sessile suspension feeders are likely to be impacted by changes in sediment levels. Despite this, little is known about how sponges respond to changes in settled and suspended sediment. Here we review the known impacts of sedimentation on sponges and their adaptive capabilities, whilst highlighting gaps in our understanding of sediment impacts on sponges. Although the literature clearly shows that sponges are influenced by sediment in a variety of ways, most studies confer that sponges are able to tolerate, and in some cases thrive, in sedimented environments. Critical gaps exist in our understanding of the physiological responses of sponges to sediment, adaptive mechanisms, tolerance limits, and the particularly the effect of sediment on early life history stages.