‘Blue’ carbon ecosystems are important carbon storage providers that are currently not protected by any international mechanism, such as REDD. This study aims to contribute to raising awareness in the political domain about the ‘blue’ carbon issue. This analysis also provides guidance in terms of how to value stock and flows of ecosystem services adding to the debate begun by the Costanza et al. (1997) paper in Nature. Through scenario analysis we assess how human welfare benefits will be affected by changes in the European coastal blue carbon stock provision. The current extent of European coastal blue carbon has an accounting stock value of about US$180million. If EU Environmental Protection Directives continue to be implemented and effectively enforced, society will gain an appreciating asset over time. However, a future policy reversal resulting in extensive ecosystem loss could mean economic value losses as high as US$1billion by 2060.

We studied the role of small, highly stratified, sulfate and nutrient enriched estuaries, as a source or sink of inorganic nitrogen species, using the Qishon estuary at the Mediterranean coast of Israel, as a case study. Measurements of nutrient concentrations, δ15N and δ18O of nitrate+nitrite, δ13CDIC and δ18OH2O were performed during 2008–2009 along the upper-fresh and lower-saline water masses, as well as sediment porewater depth-profiles. Such estuaries are characterized by relatively low removal flux of NO3- (via sedimentary denitrification) and enhanced (×3) upward flux of NH4+ (via sulfate reduction), attributed to the penetration of seawater of low NO3- and high dissolved oxygen and sulfate concentrations. The role of such small estuaries in releasing dissolved inorganic nitrogen, especially in sensitive oligotrophic areas as the Levantine basin and in the long-term, as a result of enhanced seawater penetration due to the expected sea level rise, has important environmental policy implications.

Risk zones that could be subject to the impacts of oil spills were identified at a national scale across the 23 coastal provinces of Thailand based on the average percentage risk of critical variables, including frequency of oil spill incidents, number of ports, number of local boats, number of foreign boats, and presence of important resources (i.e., protection area, conservation area, marine park, mangrove, aquaculture, coral reef, seagrass, seagull, seabird, sea turtle, dugong, dolphin, whale, guitar fish, and shark). Risks at the local scale were determined based on the frequency of simulated oil slicks hitting the coast and/or important resources. Four zones with varied risk magnitudes (low, moderate, high, and very high) were mapped to guide the preparation of effective plans to minimize oil spill incidents and impacts in coastal waters. Risk maps with sufficient information could be used to improve regulations related to shipping and vessel navigation in local and regional seas.

Size distribution of oil droplets formed in deep water oil and gas blowouts have strong impact on the fate of the oil in the environment. However, very limited data on droplet distributions from subsurface releases exist. The objective of this study has been to establish a laboratory facility to study droplet size versus release conditions (rates and nozzle diameters), oil properties and injection of dispersants (injection techniques and dispersant types). This paper presents this facility (6m high, 3m wide, containing 40m3 of sea water) and introductory data. Injection of dispersant lowers the interfacial tension between oil and water and cause a significant reduction in droplet size. Most of this data show a good fit to existing Weber scaling equations. Some interesting deviations due to dispersant treatment are further analyzed and used to develop modified algorithms for predicting droplet sizes in a second paper (Johansen et al., 2013).

The aim of this study was to develop an ecological quality index based on the seagrass Zostera noltii (ZoNI) according to the WFD requirements. Eleven Z. noltii meadows of SW Iberian Peninsula under contrasting levels of anthropogenic disturbance were considered: 5 sites in Ria Formosa (Portugal), and 6 sites in Spain (Huelva and Cadiz). Environmental quality was assessed through nutrients of the water column and seagrass variables from different organization levels; those variables were analyzed using PCA (47% of explained variance on the first component) to calculate the ecological quality ratio (that was significantly correlated to the environmental variables, R2=0.51, p<0.01) and the ecological quality status of the sites. As a result, 4 sites were classified as good, 6 sites as moderate and 3 sites as poor ecological status. The developed index ZoNI showed to be suitable to assess the ecological status of estuarine and coastal systems in SW Iberian Peninsula reflecting their water quality.

Plastic marine pollution in the open ocean of the southern hemisphere is largely undocumented. Here, we report the result of a (4489km) 2424 nautical mile transect through the South Pacific subtropical gyre, carried out in March–April 2011. Neuston samples were collected at 48 sites, averaging 50 nautical miles apart, using a manta trawl lined with a 333μm mesh. The transect bisected a predicted accumulation zone associated with the convergence of surface currents, driven by local winds. The results show an increase in surface abundance of plastic pollution as we neared the center and decrease as we moved away, verifying the presence of a garbage patch. The average abundance and mass was 26,898particles km−2 and 70.96gkm−2, respectively. 88.8% of the plastic pollution was found in the middle third of the samples with the highest value of 396,342particles km−2 occurring near the center of the predicted accumulation zone.

Anthropogenic activities have become an important source of heavy metals to the marine environments. Biological sentinels like seabirds’ chicks have been widely used to monitorize the levels of some heavy metals. Due to its mainly marine foraging habits, Audouin’s gull fits well for this purpose. Mercury and lead levels were measured in mantle feathers of Audouin’s gull chicks from two colonies in NE Iberian Peninsula: the Ebro Delta and the Llobregat Delta. Both are anthropized areas subject to differential pollutant inputs. Lead levels were significantly higher in the Llobregat Delta probably due to the use of leaded fuel in the nearby Barcelona airport. On the other side, mercury concentrations were higher in the Ebro Delta, in relation with the disposal of the toxic sediments at the Flix site carried down by the Ebro River. These mercury levels in the Ebro chicks reached values that have been described as toxic.

A simple and rapid method for the detection and extraction of oxolinic acid, flumequine, florfenicol and oxytetracycline from marine sediments was developed and validated. The analytes were extracted from the marine sediment using a solution of oxalic acid diluted in methanol with sonication before detection by HPLC using a diode-array detector (florfenicol and oxytetracycline) and fluorescence (oxolinic acid and flumequine). The quantification limits (QL) were 100ng/g for oxytetracycline and florfenicol and 5ng/g for oxolinic acid and flumequine. The coefficients of variation of the repeatability and intermediate precision were less than 10% in all of the analytes. The calibration curves were linear between 50 and 500ng/ml for oxytetracycline and florfenicol and 1 and 20ng/ml for oxolinic acid and flumequine. The recuperation rate for the analytes was above 86%.