Recent climate observations suggest that extreme climatic events (ECE; droughts, floods, tropical cyclones, heat waves) have increased in frequency and/or intensity in certain world regions, consistent with climate model projections that account for man’s influence on the global climate system. A synthesis of existing literature is presented and shows that ECE affect estuarine water quality by altering: (1) the delivery and processing of nutrients and organic matter, (2) physical–chemical properties of estuaries, and (3) ecosystem structure and function. From the standpoint of estuarine scientists and resource managers, a major scientific challenge will be to project the estuarine response to ECE that will co-occur with other important environmental changes (i.e., natural climate variability, global warming, sea level rise, eutrophication), as this will affect the provisioning of important ecosystem services provided by estuaries.

The objectives of this study were to (i) assess trace metal concentrations in Hydrilla verticillata and sediment from an estuarine creek in Alabama (USA), where high metal levels in biota were previously reported, and (ii) investigate the relationship between metal concentrations in H. verticillata and the sediment compartment. Our results indicate that sediment and H. verticillata exhibit moderate metal concentrations in the study area. We found that levels in plant tissues can be up to five times higher than in the sediment (e.g., Cd), suggesting that H. verticillata can take up and store several trace metals (Cd, Hg, Ni, and Zn) from this compartment. Together with studies focused on the uptake and accumulation of trace metals from the surrounding water, laboratory- and field-based studies are needed to better evaluate this plant’s ability to acquire metals from the sediment that constitutes a contaminant sink in human-impacted coastal regions.

The main objective of this study was to test water samples collected from 10 locations in the Dilovası area (a town in the Kocaeli region of Turkey) for heavy metal contamination and to classify the heavy metal (Cr, Mn, Co, Ni, Cu, Zn, As, Cd, Pb and Hg) contents in water samples using chemometric methods. The heavy metals in the water samples were identified using inductively coupled plasma-mass spectrometry (ICP-MS). To ascertain the relationship among the water samples and their possible sources, the correlation analysis, principal component analysis (PCA), and cluster analysis (CA) were used as classification techniques. About 10 water samples were classified into five groups using PCA. A very similar grouping was obtained using CA.

In addition to monitoring trends in plastic pollution, multi-species surveys are needed to fully understand the pervasiveness of plastic ingestion. We examined the stomach contents of 20 bird species collected from the coastal waters of the eastern North Pacific, a region known to have high levels of plastic pollution. We observed no evidence of plastic ingestion in Rhinoceros Auklet, Marbled Murrelet, Ancient Murrelet or Pigeon Guillemot, and low levels in Common Murre (2.7% incidence rate). Small sample sizes limit our ability to draw conclusions about population level trends for the remaining fifteen species, though evidence of plastic ingestion was found in Glaucous-Winged Gull and Sooty Shearwater. Documenting levels of plastic ingestion in a wide array of species is necessary to gain a comprehensive understanding about the impacts of plastic pollution. We propose that those working with bird carcasses follow standard protocols to assess the levels of plastic ingestion whenever possible.

Distributions and magnitude of metals in water, sediment and soil collected from the watershed and estuarine areas of southern Bohai Sea, were investigated. The largest dissolved concentrations of As, Cu and Zn in water were 347.70, 2755.00, 2076.00μg/L, respectively, much higher than corresponding drinking water guidelines. The greatest concentrations of Cu, Zn, Cr, Ni, Pb, As and Cd in sediments were 1462.2, 1602.17, 196.43, 67.15, 63.54, 73.86 and 1.41mg/kg, dw, respectively. The mean concentrations of Cu, Ni, Cd, Zn, Cr, Pb and As in soils were 24.67, 24.73, 0.14, 64.75, 56.52, 25.12 and 9.34mg/kg, dw, respectively. Land use was confirmed to be an important factor of influence on soil metal concentrations. Metal contents along the watershed of Jie River were significantly greater than in other locations. The detection of metals in relatively high concentrations from different environmental matrices in this region indicates the necessity of further studies.

The development of water quality assessment strategies investigating spatial and temporal changes caused by natural and anthropogenic phenomena is an important tool in management practices. This paper used cluster analysis, water quality index method, sensitivity analysis and canonical correlation analysis to investigate priorities in pollution control activities. Data sets representing 22 surface water quality parameters were subject to analysis. Results revealed that organic pollution was serious threat for overall water quality in the region. Besides, oil and grease, lead and mercury were the critical variables violating the standard. In contrast to inorganic variables, organic and physical-inorganic chemical parameters were influenced by variations in physical conditions (discharge, temperature). This study showed that information produced based on the variations and correlations in water quality data sets can be helpful to investigate priorities in water management activities. Moreover statistical techniques and index methods are useful tools in data – information transformation process.

Environment Canada currently assesses dredged material proposed for disposal at sea using a two-tiered assessment framework. Tier 1 determines sediment geophysical properties and concentrations of four regulated chemical constituents (Cd, Hg, PAH and PCB), and “other chemicals of interest” based on lower action levels; this is followed by biological assessment. EC is pursuing a “data mining” approach to evaluate potential refinements by compiling sediment chemistry and toxicity datasets, and subjecting them to a series of decision protocols. This paper reports on database development and initial use, and recommends potential changes to Tier 1 chemical protocols and further work to address other aspects of the framework. Major findings include the poor performance of Hg and Cd as sentinels for other metals, the significance of the list of analytes (vs. the specific SQGs used) in decisions, and the potential for chemical upper action levels to save the expense of unnecessary toxicity testing.

Tidal variation in tropical coastal water plays an important role on physicochemical characteristics and nutrients concentration. Baseline measurements were made for nutrients concentration and physicochemical properties of coastal water, Port Dickson, Malaysia. pH, temperature, oxidation reduction potential, salinity and electrical conductivity have high values at high tides. Principal Components Analysis (PCA) was used to understand spatial variation of nutrients and physicochemical pattern of Port Dickson coastal water at high and low tide. Four principal components of PCA were extracted at low and high tides. Positively loaded nutrients with negative loadings of DO, pH and ORP in PCA outputs indicated nutrients contribution related with pollution sources. This study output will be a baseline frame for future studies in Port Dickson involving water and sediment samples. Water and sediment samples of future monitoring studies in Port Dickson coastal water will help in understanding of coastal water chemistry and pollution sources.

A survey of tissue-δ15N and tissue-N values in the green macroalga, Ulva, was conducted around the coast of New Zealand to determine if these indices could be used as indicators of anthropogenic nutrient loading in coastal waters. In addition, data from four case studies showed temporal and spatial responses of tissue-δ15N and tissue-N in Ulva to significant terrestrial nutrient inputs. Tissue-δ15N in Ulva from ‘natural’ exposed coastal sites showed a relatively narrow baseline range of values (6.6±0.1–8.8±0.1‰) in both summer and winter that was consistent throughout New Zealand. Departures in Ulva tissue-δ15N ratios outside this range, particularly when coupled with high (>3.1%) tissue-N values, indicate significant contributions of terrestrially-derived nitrogen to coastal seawater. We note that tissue-N content is also affected by exposure, light and season; however provided such factors are taken into account Ulva can be a cost-effective indicator of relative changes in both source and amount of nitrogen-loading.

Birds are often the most numerous vertebrates damaged and rehabilitated in marine oil spills; however, the efficacy of avian rehabilitation is frequently debated and rarely examined experimentally. We compared survival of three radio-marked treatment groups, oiled, rehabilitated (ORHB), un-oiled, rehabilitated (RHB), and un-oiled, non-rehabilitated (CON), in an experimental approach to examine post-release survival of surf scoters (Melanitta perspicillata) following the 2007 M/V Cosco Busan spill in San Francisco Bay. Live encounter-dead recovery modeling indicated that survival differed among treatment groups and over time since release. The survival estimate (±SE) for ORHB was 0.143±0.107 compared to CON (0.498±0.168) and RHB groups (0.772±0.229), suggesting scoters tolerated the rehabilitation process itself well, but oiling resulted in markedly lower survival. Future efforts to understand the physiological effects of oil type and severity on scoters are needed to improve post-release survival of this species.