In order to evaluate the levels and the influence on phytoplankton productivity of dissolved nutrients, concentrations and distribution of N, P and Si were studied in coastal areas profoundly influenced by human activities in Guangdong Province, South China. Generally, concentrations of dissolved inorganic nitrogen were high in wet periods because of the inputs from strong seasonal land runoff. Si and P concentrations were generally low in summer due to the consumption by phytoplankton growth. Dissolved organic N and P were important in study area. Chl a and primary productivity (PP) were relatively high and showed seasonal and geographical variations. Concentrations of Chl a were the highest in summer, and the high water temperature and sufficient illumination accelerated the growth of phytoplankton, especially in surface water. Additionally, water stratification in summer decreased mixed layer depth and trapped PP in upper layer.

Public perception research evaluating awareness and attitudes towards marine protection is limited in the United Kingdom (UK) and worldwide. Given public opinion can help drive policy and affect its successful delivery we conducted nationwide surveys in 2005, 2010 and 2015 to assess public knowledge of UK (England, Scotland and Wales) sea ‘health’ and management. Respondents from all three surveys were relatively pessimistic about sea ‘health’, perceiving this as poor-fair and largely in decline. Enthusiasm for marine conservation was high with almost two-thirds of respondents in each survey wanting >40% of UK seas highly protected from fishing and damaging activities. In 2015 there was considerable dissatisfaction with the rate of progress in Marine Conservation Zone designation and over three-quarters of respondents considered dredging and trawling to be inappropriate in protected areas, contrary to management. The UK government and devolved administrations need to better align future conservation and management with public expectations.

Penaeus monodon, the Asian black tiger shrimp is one of the most widely consumed marine crustaceans worldwide. In this study, we examine and compare the fecal microbiota of P. monodon from highly polluted waters around Jakarta Bay, with those of less polluted waters of Bali. Using next generation sequencing techniques, we identified potential bacterial pathogens and common viral diseases of shrimp. Proteobacteria (96.08%) was found to be the most predominant phylum, followed by Bacteriodetes (2.32%), Fusobacteria (0.96%), and Firmicutes (0.53%). On the order level, Vibrionales (66.20%) and Pseudoaltermonadales (24.81%) were detected as predominant taxa. qPCR profiling was used as a confirmatory step and further revealed Vibrio alginolyticus and Photobacterium damselae as two potential pathogenic species present in most of the samples. In addition, viral diseases for shrimp were discovered among the samples, WSSV in Jakarta free-living samples, YHV in Bali free-living samples and IHHNV in both.

Echinometra mathaei is a common echinoid on tropical reefs and where abundant plays an important role in the control of algal communities. Despite high prevalence of E. mathaei on southern Persian/Arabian Gulf reefs, their abundance and distribution is poorly known. Spatial and temporal patterns in population abundance were examined at 12 sites between breakwater and natural reef habitats in Dubai (UAE) every 3months from 2008 to 2010. Within the breakwater habitat, densities were greatest at shallow wave-exposed sites, and reduced with both decreasing wave-exposure and increasing depth. Interestingly, E. mathaei were significantly more abundant on exposed breakwaters than natural reef sites, presumably due to differences in habitat structure and benthic cover. Population abundances differed seasonally, with peak abundances during summer (July–September) and lower abundances in winter (December–February). Seasonal fluctuations are likely the result of peak annual recruitment pulses coupled with increased fish predation from summer to winter.

Parrotfishes (f. Labridae) are a unique and ubiquitous group of herbivorous reef fishes. We compared the distribution and ecosystem function (grazing and erosion) of parrotfishes across 75 reefs in Arabia. Our results revealed marked regional differences in the abundance, and taxonomic and functional composition of parrotfishes between the Red Sea, Arabian Sea, and Arabian Gulf. High densities and diversity of parrotfishes, and high rates of grazing (210%year−1) and erosion (1.57kgm−2year−1) characterised Red Sea reefs. Despite Arabian Sea and Red Sea reefs having broadly comparable abundances of parrotfishes, estimates of grazing (150%year−1) and erosion (0.43kgm−2year−1) were markedly lower in the Arabian Sea. Parrotfishes were extremely rare within the southern Arabian Gulf, and as such rates of grazing and erosion were negligible. This regional variation in abundance and functional composition of parrotfishes appears to be related to local environmental conditions.

The combination of the sensitive characteristics of the Baltic Sea and the intense maritime traffic makes the marine environment vulnerable to anthropogenic influences. The theoretical scenario calculated in this study shows that the annually generated food waste onboard ships in traffic in the Baltic Sea contains about 182tonnes of nitrogen and 34tonnes of phosphorus. Today, all food waste generated onboard can be legally discharged into the marine environment at a distance of 12NM from the nearest land. The annual load of nitrogen contained in the food waste corresponds to 52% of load of nitrogen from the ship-generated sewage. Future regulations for sewage discharge in the Baltic Sea will require significant reduction of total nitrogen and phosphorus released. The contribution of nutrients from food waste compared to sewage will therefore be relatively larger in the future, if food waste still can be legally discharged.

The present paper reviewed the average concentrations of trace elements in soils near coal mine areas from various cities/countries to provide a current global summary of this issue. The contamination of soils was assessed by using global reference materials and various contamination indices. The results show that the average concentrations of trace elements varied widely: As (0.5–38.3 mg/kg), Mn (86–3,700 mg/kg), Zn (1.5–296 mg/kg), Cu (0.5–110 mg/kg), Cr (17.5–954 mg/kg), Ni (4.3–390 mg/kg), Pb (0.5–433 mg/kg), Cd (0.02–4.48 mg/kg), and Hg (0.02–0.69 mg/kg). Most of these values are higher than the average world background soils and upper continental crust (UCC). The geo-accumulation (I gₑₒ) and contamination factor (CF) indices show that the contamination levels of Ni and Pb are higher than other elements. The potential ecological risk index (E ᵢ) suggests a high risk from Cd, especially in the Tabagi River watershed in Brazil and Ledo coal mines in India, and Hg, especially in Oltu (Turkey). The degree of contamination index (C d) reveals that the soils from Barapukuria (Bangladesh), Ledo (India), Ptolemais-Amynteon (Greece), and the Tibagi River (Brazil) have a higher degree of contamination than other sites. To control soil contamination, effective monitoring and legislative measures must be taken immediately. For the long term, various physical, chemical, and biological methods should be implemented. Although the selection of suitable methods is site-specific based on the extent and nature of contamination, in general, phytoremediation seems to be more beneficial and cost-effective than physical/chemical techniques.

Secondary pollutant impacts from emissions of single sources may need to be assessed to satisfy a variety of regulatory requirements including the Clean Air Act New Source Review and Prevention of Significant Deterioration programs and the National Environmental Policy Act. In this work, single source impacts on O3 and secondary PM2.5 are estimated with annual 2011 photochemical grid model simulations where new hypothetical sources are added to the central and eastern United States with varying precursor emission rates and emission release heights. Impacts from these hypothetical sources are tracked with photochemical grid model source apportionment. Single source impacts on downwind 8-hr maximum O3 tend to increase as emissions of NOX or VOC increase. Downwind impacts on PM2.5 sulfate and nitrate also tend to increase as emissions of SO2 and NOX increase. For all secondary pollutants, impacts from these hypothetical sources tend to decrease as distance from the source increases. However, peak impacts on O3 and secondary PM2.5 are not at the facility fence-line but typically within 50–100 km depending on the emissions rate, precursor pollutant, and emissions release point. Downwind impacts are not uniform directionally from these sources due to varying downwind availability of chemical reactants and prevailing meteorology. Peak impacts for O3 (∼15 ppb) and PM2.5 sulfate (∼8 μg/m3) were within 50 km of these hypothetical sources and peak impacts for PM2.5 nitrate (∼1 μg/m3) were within 125 km. The daily maximum 8-hr O3 and maximum daily average PM2.5 sulfate and nitrate ion impacts for the new hypothetical sources modeled here are generally consistent with those reported in literature. Additional assessments of single source impacts on secondary pollutants are still needed to provide a more comprehensive assessment of different source types and source environments.

Passive air samplers (PAS) have become recurrent methods for environmental monitoring. However, the influence of environmental variables, such as temperature, over these devices has not been fully investigated. Since climate change is likely to induce major environmental changes, the role of the temperature needs to be studied to assure the suitability of PAS for the long-term monitoring of semi-volatile organic compounds (SVOCs) and their utility to compare data from different locations. This study aimed at evaluating the potential loss of polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) in PAS containing disks of polyurethane foam (PUF) at different temperatures. The gradient of temperature inside and outside the PAS was firstly determined, being noted an internal/external difference of up to 5 °C. Secondly, a lab-controlled experiment was performed by daily analyzing PAHs in PUF-based PAS exposed to 25 °C and 38 °C, for a period of 7 days. A significant loss of PAHs in PUFs was not observed for any of both scenarios, remaining constant through time. Moreover, PAH levels were not significantly different according to the temperature. These findings indicate that the environmental temperature does not affect the stability of PAHs in PAS. Once PAHs have been uptaken, they are not easily volatilized from these devices. Consequently, PAS are good environmental monitors independently on the ambient conditions of temperature, being suitable for the comparability of data, either temporally or spatially, on the airborne concentrations of PAHs.