In studies of plastic ingestion by marine wildlife, visual separation of plastic particles from gastrointestinal tracts or their dietary content can be challenging. Earlier studies have used solutions to dissolve organic materials leaving synthetic particles unaffected. However, insufficient tests have been conducted to ensure that different categories of consumer products partly degraded in the environment and/or in gastrointestinal tracts were not affected. In this study 63 synthetic materials and 11 other dietary items and non-plastic marine debris were tested. Irrespective of shape or preceding environmental history, most polymers resisted potassium hydroxide (KOH) solution, with the exceptions of cellulose acetate from cigarette filters, some biodegradable plastics and a single polyethylene sheet. Exposure of hard diet components and other marine debris showed variable results. In conclusion, the results confirm that usage of KOH solutions can be a useful approach in general quantitative studies of plastic ingestion by marine wildlife.

Polybrominated diphenyl ethers (PBDEs) were measured in the surface sediments collected in August 2015 in Sanggou Bay, China. The total concentrations of 13 PBDEs, including BDE-17, -28, -47, -66, -71, -85, -99, -100, -138, -153, -154, -183 and -190, and concentrations of BDE-209 were 0.223–1.259ng/g and 0.865–9.275ng/g, respectively. The PBDE levels increased from the outer bay to the inner bay. BDE-209 was the predominant congener, followed by BDE-47, BDE-71, and BDE-99. Significant positive correlations were observed for tri-BDEs with organic carbon (r=0.598, p<0.05) and with clay content (r=0.592, p<0.05). Principal component analysis revealed that PBDEs in Sanggou Bay were mainly derived from the usage, dismantling and degradation of commercial products (penta-, octa-, and deca-BDEs), which were then transported through continental runoff and atmospheric deposition. The ecological risks were mainly attributed to deca-BDE congeners with moderate risk level.

We found microplastic in 89.5% of 143 Northern Fulmars from 2008 to 2013 and 64% of 25 Sooty Shearwaters in 2011–2012 that were found dead or stranded on Oregon and Washington beaches. Average plastic loads were 19.5 pieces and 0.461g for fulmars and 13.3 pieces and 0.335g for shearwaters. Pre-manufactured plastic pellets accounted for 8.5% of fulmar and 33% of shearwater plastic pieces. In both species, plastic in proventriculi averaged 2–3mm larger in greatest dimension than in ventriculi. Intestinal plastic in fulmars averaged 1mm less in greatest dimension than ventricular plastic. There was no significant reduction in pieces or mass of plastic in 33 fulmars held for a median of seven days in a plastic-free environment. Three fulmars that survived to be released from rehabilitation regurgitated plastic, which provided an alternative outlet for elimination of plastic and requires reassessment of the dynamics of plastic in seabird gastrointestinal tracts.

Differences in the structure and functioning of intensively urbanized vs. less human-affected systems are reported, but such evidence is available for a much larger extent in terrestrial than in marine systems. We examined the hypotheses that (i) urbanization was associated to different patterns of variation of intertidal assemblages between urban and extra-urban environments; (ii) such patterns were consistent across mainland and insular systems, spatial scales from 10scm to 100skm, and a three months period. Several trends emerged: (i) a more homogeneous distribution of most algal groups in the urban compared to the extra-urban condition and the opposite pattern of most invertebrates; (ii) smaller/larger variances of most organisms where these were, respectively, less/more abundant; (iii) largest variability of most response variables at small scale; (iv) no facilitation of invasive species by urbanization and larger cover of canopy-forming algae in the insular extra-urban condition. Present findings confirm the acknowledged notion that future management strategies will require to include representative assemblages and their relevant scales of variation associated to urbanization gradients on both the mainland and the islands.

Biotic indices for monitoring marine ecosystems are mostly based on the analysis of benthic macroinvertebrate communities. Due to their high sensitivity to pollution and fast response to environmental changes, bacterial assemblages could complement the information provided by benthic metazoan communities as indicators of human-induced impacts, but so far, this biological component has not been well explored for this purpose. Here we performed 16S rRNA gene amplicon sequencing to analyze the bacterial assemblage composition of 51 estuarine and coastal stations characterized by different environmental conditions and human-derived pressures. Using the relative abundance of putative indicator bacterial taxa, we developed a biotic index that is significantly correlated with a sediment quality index calculated on the basis of organic and inorganic compound concentrations. This new index based on bacterial assemblage composition can be a sensitive tool for providing a fast environmental assessment and allow a more comprehensive integrative ecosystem approach for environmental management.

The determination of the microplastic distribution will be beneficial as a measure of the potential effects on the environment. The Mediterranean Sea had a high risk of pollution as it was enclosed by highly populated and industrialized countries. Here, we determined the level of micro- and mesoplastic pollution in Iskenderun and Mersin Bays, located in the Northeastern Levantine coast of Turkey. The average level of both micro- and mesoplastic was determined to be 0.376 item/m2 at seven stations. The highest level was determined in Mersin Bay at the mouth of the Seyhan river (Station no. 7, with 906 items), and the lowest level was found in Station no. 4 in Iskenderun Bay (78 items). As a result of this study, it was determined that the microplastic pollution level in the Mediterranean coast of Turkey was similar to the other regions of the Mediterranean Sea.

Mobile monitoring is a strategy to characterize spatially and temporally variable air pollution in areas near sources. EPA's Geospatial Measurement of Air Pollution (GMAP) vehicle – an all-electric vehicle is outfitted with a number of measurement devices to record real-time concentrations of particulate matter and gaseous pollutants – was used to map air pollution levels near the Port of Charleston in South Carolina. High-resolution monitoring was performed along driving routes near several port terminals and rail yard facilities, recording geospatial coordinates and concentrations of pollutants including black carbon, size-resolved particle count ranging from ultrafine to coarse (6 nm–20 μm), carbon monoxide, and nitrogen dioxide. Additionally, a portable meteorological station was used to characterize local conditions. The primary objective of this work was to characterize the impact of port facilities on local scale air quality. The study determined that elevated concentration measurements of black carbon and PM correlated to periods of increased port activity and a significant elevation in concentration was observed downwind of ports. However, limitations in study design prevented a more complete analysis of the port effect.

There is a critical knowledge gap regarding the impacts of seismic air gun signals on the physiology of adult crustaceans. We conducted four controlled field experiments to examine the impact of seismic acoustic signals on spiny lobster, Jasus edwardsii. Seismic air gun exposure suppressed total haemocyte count (THC) for up to 120days post-exposure, suggesting a chronic negative impact of immune competency. THC levels after 365days post-exposure, were elevated two fold, potentially indicating an immune response to infection. Haemolymph refractive index was reduced after 120days post exposure in one experiment, suggesting a chronic impairment of nutritional condition. There was no effect of air gun exposure on 24 haemolymph biochemical parameters, hepatopancreas index or survival. Collectively these results indicate that the biochemical haematological homeostasis of J. edwardsii is reasonably resilient to seismic acoustic signals, however, air gun exposure may negatively influence the lobster's nutritional condition and immunological capacity.

Toxic air pollution on city streets is a very important issue, as pollutants are associated with adverse health effects, including respiratory and cardiovascular diseases. This study compared commuters' exposures to inhalable suspended particulate matter (PM) for different transportation modes in Xi'an City, China. Four commuting modes—private car, subway, bus and walking—were selected for the study. Commuter exposure concentrations to PM (PM10, PM2.5, PM1.0) were investigated in the following microenvironments: private cars under four ventilation modes, subway trains and station platforms, buses under two different ventilation modes, and pedestrians. Pearson correlation analysis was used to analyze the relationships between commuter PM10, PM2.5 and PM1.0 exposure concentrations under the different commuting modes. A mixed-effect linear model was used to identify the effects of different commuting modes on PM mass and number concentrations in these different traffic microenvironments. The results indicated that the concentration of particulate matter (PM) is significantly influenced by transportation mode as well as by vehicle ventilation systems. Among the four commuting modes, commuters were exposed to the lowest concentrations of PM10 (11.83 ± 7.60 μg m−3), PM2.5 (10.09 ± 6.63 μg m−3) and PM1.0 (9.52 ± 6.17 μg m−3) in a private car with air conditioning recirculation. In contrast, passengers waiting for a train on a subway station platform were exposed to the highest PM concentrations (244.99 ± 43.19 μg m−3). Size fractions of PM differed greatly across PM exposures with the ratio of fine particles to coarser particles (PM2.5/PM10) varying from 45 to 96%.

The indication of spatial variations in annual cycles of functional groups of planktonic ciliates to environmental changes was studied in a bay, northern Yellow Sea. Samples were biweekly collected at five stations with different hydrographic conditions during a 1-year cycle. The second-stage-matrix-based multivariate approach was used to summarize the internal interactions of the ciliate functional groups among five stations during a 1-year period. The functional groups of the ciliates represented a clear spatial variation in annual cycle among five stations. Mantel analysis demonstrated that the spatial variation in annual cycles of the ciliate functional groups were significantly correlated with the changes nutrients (mainly soluble reactive phosphates and nitrates), alone or in combination with salinity among five stations. Based the results, it is suggested that the spatial variation in annual cycles of functional groups of planktonic ciliates may indicated the changes of hydrographic conditions.