The content and distribution of heavy metals in sediments of the intermittent and contaminated Asopos River, located in Central Greece, was assessed by means of total dissolution, dilute acid and sequential extraction procedures. Mineral magnetic properties were used as proxy parameters of transport mechanisms of land-derived material to the sea. The combination of enrichment factors estimated against local background levels and the levels of labile metals revealed that surface sediments are enriched in Cu, Cd, Ni and Cr. The low flow of the system allows particles and organic matter to accumulate in the estuarine shallow “pools” where they undertake a series of redox reactions, authigenic formation, etc. The most fine of these particles, which are metal rich, are transported to relatively long distances off the Asopos River mouth, even under low energy conditions, converting the system to a secondary source of pollution for the adjacent marine environment.

The concentrations of heavy metals and organic carbon in sediment of the Homa Lagoon which is one of the most productive lagoons and commercial important active fish trap in the Eastern Aegean Sea, were investigated in order to describe the temporal and spatial distributions of metals. These results were used to evaluate possible ecological risks that could be a problem for the environment of the lagoon in the future. Sediments were enriched with Cr, Ni and considered as heavily polluted per the SQG. The Cf of Ni and Cr were presented moderate level of contamination in this area. The Cd levels indicated moderate degree of contamination at station B, C, D and E due to agricultural drainage water, industrial and domestic wastewater, are transported by the Gediz River. Sediments from Homa Lagoon were most toxic for Ni due to exceedances of the TEL and PEL values.

Benthic Ecological Quality Ratios (EQR) are important tools for assessing the ecological status of coastal and transitional water bodies. Here, we use spatial and time-series data from Kinsale Harbour, Ireland to examine the effects of sample processing methodologies on the outputs of two EQRs: Multivariate AMBI (M-AMBI) and Infaunal Quality Index (IQI). Both EQRs were robust to changes in sieve size from 1mm to 0.5mm, and to changes in the taxa identified in spatial calibration. Both EQRs classified habitat quality in Kinsale as generally Good or High with no evidence of significant change over the time series (1981–2006). IQI classified the ecological status as higher than M-AMBI. There was a significant relationship between IQI and M-AMBI in spatial calibration, but no significant relationship between them in time series. Further research into the behaviour of EQRs in relation to natural variability over long time-scales is needed to discriminate anthropogenic impacts reliably.

Due to increasing global population, salt marshes have been subjected to multiple stressors such as increasing nutrient loadings and historical contamination. In order to better understand how does the salt marsh plants auto-remediation capacity (phytoaccumulation of metals) is affected by cultural eutrophication, an experiment was performed under controlled conditions. Plants were exposure to equal metal concentrations (Zn, Cu, and Ni – micronutrients, and Cd – class B metal) simulating historical contamination and three different concentrations of nitrogen (nitrate) simulating steps of cultural eutrophication. According to our study, under the tested concentrations, cultural eutrophication does not seem to affect Zn, Cu and Ni phytoremediation of H. portulacoides, but the ecosystem service of Cd phytoremediation seems to be promoted. Nevertheless, Cd high toxicity and bioaccumulation should be taken into account, as well as the vulnerability of salt marsh ecosystems, whose reduction will have drastic consequences to the ecosystem health.

Plastic debris is known to undergo fragmentation at sea, which leads to the formation of microscopic particles of plastic; the so called ‘microplastics’. Due to their buoyant and persistent properties, these microplastics have the potential to become widely dispersed in the marine environment through hydrodynamic processes and ocean currents. In this study, the occurrence and distribution of microplastics was investigated in Belgian marine sediments from different locations (coastal harbours, beaches and sublittoral areas). Particles were found in large numbers in all samples, showing the wide distribution of microplastics in Belgian coastal waters. The highest concentrations were found in the harbours where total microplastic concentrations of up to 390particleskg⁻¹ dry sediment were observed, which is 15–50 times higher than reported maximum concentrations of other, similar study areas. The depth profile of sediment cores suggested that microplastic concentrations on the beaches reflect the global plastic production increase.

Inverted microscopy is widespread employed for the analysis of phytoplankton composition within water quality monitoring networks. However, the analysis at the lowest taxonomical level is not always required for ecological status assessment. In addition, inverted microscopy can underestimate the small phytoplankton, and not always distinguish photoautotrophic from heterotrophic cells. In this study, as alternative tools, epifluorescence microscopy and High Performance Liquid Chromatography (HPLC) were employed to characterize phytoplankton communities within waters of different trophic condition. Epifluorescence microscopy confirmed its effectiveness to count the small phytoplankton. Furthermore, significant correlations between nutrients of anthropogenic origin and nanoplankton abundances were found. However, this technique resulted very time-consuming. HPLC together with the CHEMTAX program was more appropriate than inverted microscopy, in terms of cost-effectiveness. Also, the main variability patterns observed in the phytoplankton community structure by HPLC coincided with previous findings in the study area. Nevertheless, a rapid screening at the inverted microscope is recommended.

A large-scale, manipulative experiment was conducted to examine the extent and rate of recovery of meadows of the temperate Australian seagrass, Amphibolis griffithii to different light-reduction scenarios typical of dredging operations, and to identify potential indicators of recovery from light reduction stress. Shade cloth was used to mimic different intensities, durations and start times of light reduction, and then was removed to assess the recovery. The meadow could recover from 3months of light stress (5–18% ambient) following 10months re-exposure to ambient light, even when up to 72% of leaf biomass was lost, much faster recovery rates than has previously been observed for large seagrasses. However, when the meadow had been shaded for 6–9months and more than 82% of leaf biomass was lost, no recovery was detected up to 23months after the light stress had ceased, consistent with other studies. Five potential indicators of recovery were recommended.

Concentrations of Zn, Cd and Pb were measured in muscle of pelagic, demersal and benthic fishes, captured in the coastal area adjoining the Tagus estuary (Portugal), in 1998 and 2010. Additionally, Pb and Cd were determined in estuarine waters, showing a pronounced decrease between 1999 and 2010. Accordingly, specimens captured in 2010 presented significantly lower metal concentrations than individuals caught in 1998. Reductions were more evident for Pb (reduction of 59–99%) than for Cd (14–93%) and Zn (17–54%). Values in pelagic and demersal species exhibited higher reductions than in benthic species. Decrease of metal concentrations in fish appears thus to reflect the improvement of estuarine water quality as anthropogenic sources have been reduced or eliminated. Furthermore, it emphasises the usefulness of the descriptor “Contaminants in Fish” to assess the efficiency of measures to achieve a good environmental status, in the scope of the Marine Strategy Framework Directive.

Data on the occurrence and accumulation profiles of butyltins (BTs), including tributyltin (TBT), in marine mammals are scarce. This is the first study to investigate residue levels and accumulation patterns of BTs in cetaceans from Korean coastal waters. The total concentrations of BTs (sum of mono- to tri-butyltins) in minke whales (Balaenoptera acutorostrata) and long-beaked common dolphins (Delphinus capensis) ranged from 15.7 to 297ng/g wet weight (mean: 100ng/g wet weight) and from 59.0 to 412ng/g wet weight (mean: 228ng/g wet weight), respectively. Dibutyltin (DBT) accounted for 63% of the total BTs in all cetacean samples. Significant species-specific differences in BT concentrations, possibly due to the differences in their habitat and diet, were found between the two cetacean species. The concentrations of DBT and TBT in most cetacean samples exceeded the threshold value for cytotoxic effects in cetaceans, implying potentially adverse health risks from exposure to BTs.

Ten sediment core samples with lengths ranging from 35 to 100cm were collected in the Baixada Santista region and analyzed to determine As, Br, Co, Cr, Cs, Fe, Rb, Sb, Ta, Th, U, Zn and rare earths (Sc, Ce, Eu, La, Lu, Nd, Sm, Tb and Yb) level concentrations using instrumental neutron activation analysis (INAA). The studied region is located in the southeastern coast of São Paulo State and is comprised of a densely urbanized area, the largest industrial complex of the country, with a predominance of petrochemical and fertilizer plants. It is also home to Brazil’s most important and busiest port. The conclusions found that the As, La, Sm, Ne, Ce, Eu, Hf, Ta, Th, and U elements have a high background level in the region and that Fe and Zn were the main indicators of anthropogenic contribution in the sediments.