Several environmental laws include provisions on natural causes or force majeure, which except States from their commitments if it can be proven that the failure to meet the commitment is due to factors outside their control. The European Union Marine Strategy Framework Directive (MSFD) has a pivotal role in managing EU marine waters. This paper analyses natural causes and force majeure provisions of the MFSD and other marine legislation, and addresses their interaction with climate change and its consequences, especially the effect on the obligation of ensuring seas are in Good Environmental Status. Climate change is an exogenic unmanaged pressure in that it emanates from outside the area being managed but in which the management authority has to respond to the consequences of climate change, such as sea level rise and temperature elevation, rather than its causes. It is suggested that a defence by a Member State of force majeure may be accepted if an event was proven to be due to an externality of control, irresistible and unforeseeable. The analysis contends that countering such a legal defence would centre on the fact that climate change is a well-accepted phenomenon, is foreseen with an accepted level of confidence and probability and is due to human actions. However, as yet, this has not been legally tested.

Spatial and temporal distributions of polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) were investigated in Eastern Guangdong coast, China. Total PAH concentrations in oysters ranged from 231 to 1178ng/g with a mean concentration of 622ng/g dry weight. Compared with other bays and estuaries, PAH levels in oysters were moderate. Spatial distribution of PAHs was site specific, with relatively high PAH concentrations observed in Zhelin Bay and Kaozhouyang Bay. Based on the Spearman test analysis, only PAH concentration in oysters from Jiazi Harbor showed a significant increasing trend (P<0.05). Three-ring PAHs were the most abundant, accounting for 54.2%–88.4% of total PAHs. Diagnostic ratios suggested that PAHs were derived mainly from petroleum origin. BaP and ∑4PAH concentrations were well within the European Union limits (5ng/g and 30ng/g wet weight, respectively). The incremental lifetime cancer risks (ILCR) for PAHs were <10−5, indicating that the adverse health risks associated with oyster consumption in this area were minimal.

A single method modified for monitoring of emerging contaminants in river water was developed for large sample volumes. Water samples from rivers of the lagoon system in the city of Rio de Janeiro (Brazil) were analyzed by the SPE-HPLC-MS-TOF analytical method. Acetaminophen was detected in four rivers in the concentration range of 0.09μgL−1 to 0.14μgL−1. Salicylic acid was also found in the four rivers in the concentration range of 1.65μgL−1 to 4.81μgL−1. Bisphenol-A was detected in all rivers in the concentration range of 1.37μgL−1 to 39.86μgL−1. Diclofenac was found in only one river, with concentration of 0.22μgL−1. The levels of emerging organic pollutants in the water samples of the Jacarepaguá hydrographical basin are significant. The compounds are not routinely monitored and present potential risks to environmental health.

Sensitivity of interactive Weather-Chemistry model has been examined to predict the air quality (1 and 3 days in advance) of Indian mega city Delhi during two identical extreme events of Diwali in 2012 and 2013. Analysis is conducted 3 days prior to 3 days later of Diwali day for both events to verify the rapid changes in fine particulate matter (PM2.5) due to widespread display of Diwali fireworks. The model successfully predicted the variability in PM2.5 during 2012 for the entire period of analysis with reasonable accuracy. Although model performed reasonably well until Diwali day in 2013 but it was unable to simulate rapid built up of PM2.5 (1500 μg−3 hourly average) during post Diwali day as it failed to capture unusual mid-night steep temperature gradient followed by a record lowering of boundary layer height. The predictability of the model and its limitation to micrometeorological processes are discussed in detail.

Concentrations of PM10 (particulate matter less than 10 μm in diameter) were measured at sampling points located in the vicinity of the Turów open-pit mine, southwest Poland, in April 2008. The samples were analysed by isotope ratio mass spectrometry (IR-MS) to determine the stable carbon isotope compositions of organic carbon (δ13COC) and elemental carbon (δ13CEC). The daily PM10 concentrations ranged from 15 to 99 μg m−3 with an average value of 50 ± 24 μg m−3. The analysed δ13COC values ranged from −25.1 to −19.9‰ with an average value of −23.1 ± 1.9‰, and the values of δ13CEC ranged from −25.6 to −24.1‰ with an average value of −25.0 ± 0.5‰. Additionally, the average δ13CTC value of lignite from the open-pit mine reached −25.8‰, and calculated δ13COC of lignite using an isotopic mass balance (IMB) value reaches −25.7 ± 0.1‰, whereas lignite δ13CEC value reaches −25.9 ± 0.2‰. The calculated major possible sources indicated that organic carbon (OC) in PM10 are represented probably by primary OC originated from the local lignite open-pit mine, whereas elemental carbon (EC) in PM10 are probably derived from local coal/lignite combustion products. If a data base of δ13COC and δ13CEC values from other possible “pure” sources (coal/gasoline/diesel/biomass/etc) is created, it will be possible to calculate individual isotopic mass balances for OC and for EC, which would yield more information than was obtained for total carbon (TC). The method could be a new and very helpful tool for calculating the percentage input of possible sources of OC and EC in atmospheric particles, and it can be applied to data from locations throughout the whole world.

33 surface sediment samples from the Luanhe River Estuary have been analyzed for heavy metals to evaluate the spatial distribution pattern and their potential ecological risk. Higher metal concentrations were found in the river mouth and southern areas where being covered by fine particulate matters. In comparison with the threshold effect level and the probable effect level, Cu, Pb, Cr, Ni, and As had occasionally adverse biological effects on the aquatic ecosystems. Both the enrichment factor and geoaccumulation index values show that all the regions have been weakly polluted by Pb, Hg, As, and Cd with an exception of being moderately to strongly polluted by Hg in the river mouth and southern areas. The sources of Zn, Ni, Cd, Hg, and Cr were mainly from the river input and coastal discharge, whereas Cu, Pb, and As were mainly derived from vehicle emissions, coal and oil combustion.

We have assessed the redistribution of a secondary source of sedimentary anthropogenic mercury in the Haifa bay (HB) area (SE Levantine basin), which is the northern sink for Nile-driven sand. A long-term (30years) ~80% decrease of the total sedimentary mercury concentrations (THg) was recorded in the inner bay, while an up to 3-fold increase was recorded in the top sediments of the outer bay. Sedimentary THg depth profiles and their temporal variability were used to model the main re-distribution processes, mainly resuspension associated with winter storm-derived transport. This mechanism transforms a secondary, sandy and well-aerated sink into a tertiary, more silty and hypoxic source at adjacent peripheral areas, affecting mercury bioavailability. We revisited the concept of environmental relaxation, i.e. the rate of return of a polluted environment to an acceptable state, showing that sedimentary transport processes may affect the associated ecological risks, mainly at shallow-water coastal sites.

It is an open question whether adverse habitat conditions, characteristic for many anthropogenically impacted coastal habitats, can determine resistance to abiotic stress in populations of residing invertebrates. We tested experimentally for differences in stress tolerance between individuals of the Asian green mussel Perna viridis stemming from the heavily impacted Jakarta Bay and from two natural sites, Lada Bay and Pelabuhan Ratu, West Java. Mussel performance under hyposalinity and hypoxia was assessed in laboratory assays by measuring fitness-related response variables, e.g. body condition index, relative shell weight, byssus production, respiration rates and survival. We found stress-specific and population-specific differences in mussel resistance to adverse conditions: Individuals from the impacted Jakarta Bay performed better under hypoxia than their conspecifics from the natural sites, whereas the latter were more resistant to hyposalinity. We explain these differences by differential acclimation to environmental conditions in the respective habitats and by diverging degrees of food supply.

In the present research, the gamma-emitting radionuclides in beach sands along the coastal regions of the Ordu, Giresun and Trabzon provinces, Turkey have been determined. The natural and anthropogenic radionuclide concentrations of the samples have been measured employing a germanium (HPGe) detector with high resolution and purity. The activity for 238U, 232Th, 40K and 137Cs of the samples were found to vary in the range from below detection limit (BDL) to 65Bq·kg−1, from BDL to 28Bq·kg−1, from 9 to 1936Bq·kg−1 and from BDL to 22Bq·kg−1, respectively. The activity concentrations were compared with those in the literature. The associated radiological hazard indices were estimated, and were compared to the internationally recommended values. The radiological map of beach sand in the surveyed area was imaged. The data presented in the study are crucial since they constitute a baseline for the radiological mapping of the region in the future.

A study of benthic succession related with sewage pollution was conducted in a warm-temperate coastal area of Mar del Plata city, Argentina. The effect of nutrient enrichment and starting period of the succession was tested after cleared space in the intertidal rocky shore benthic community. The time of recovery after a disturbance in enriched sites was considerably lower (20–29weeks) than in non-enriched sites based on the diatom Berkeleya sp. and the polychaete Boccardia proboscidea developed in the early succession stage, and Brachidontes rodriguezii or B. proboscidea occurring with Polysiphonia sp., Petalonia fascia and Ulva spp. developed in the late succession stage of the enriched sites. The very low time at which the community recovered in the enriched environments turned out to be one of the assets of the present study and this parameter can be used as a quick indicator of sewage pollution in the area.