An ecologist’s view of the implications of the observed physiological and biochemical effects of petroleum compounds on marine organisms and ecosystems

1982 ◽  
Vol 297 (1087) ◽  
pp. 241-255 ◽  
Keyword(s):  
Oil Spills ◽  
Sublethal Effects ◽  
Oil Pollution ◽  
Physiological Stress ◽  
Benthic Communities ◽  
Field Studies ◽  
Marine Animals ◽  
Spatial Changes ◽  
Long Time

The quantity of hydrocarbons in some seas and sediments approaches the concentrations at which oil can be lethal or cause sublethal effects to marine animals in the laboratory. Field studies of the biological consequences of oil spills show good agreement with the experimental data: intertidal and subtidal benthic communities are affected and can take a long time to recover, undergoing slow and subtle changes. The temporal changes seen after oil spills are comparable with the spatial changes observed around chronic discharges, essentially a simplification of the ecosystem with dominance of a few species. These changes cannot be expressed as a single index of diversity or of physiological stress. To understand the long-term consequences of oil pollution it is necessary to monitor the community as a whole, but well defined methods and objectives are required.

The composition and functioning of benthic ecosystems in relation to the assessment of long-term effects of oil pollution

1982 ◽  
Vol 297 (1087) ◽  
pp. 257-267 ◽  
Keyword(s):  
Ecological Study ◽  
Sublethal Effects ◽  
Oil Pollution ◽  
Benthic Communities ◽  
Biological Interactions ◽  
Long Term Effects ◽  
Ecological Awareness ◽  
Different Types ◽  
Benthic Ecosystems

The assessment of long-term effects of oil pollution is ultimately a matter of field responses and ecological interpretation. Chronic conditions present much greater interpretative problems than the aftermath of a severe spill because the detection of subtle effects has to be made against the usually unknown scales of natural changes taking place. Examples from various coastal benthic communities illustrate types of biological interactions, different types and degrees of biological stability and the sometimes unpredictable timescales involved. Special attention is drawn to the significance of natural fluctuations in recruitment and to the geographical scales on which these may occur. Have such matters been taken into account in the past? For the future the extreme difficulty that may be involved in detecting subtle deterioration necessitates both a considerable increase in ecological awareness and the directing of work on sublethal effects to those species most am enable to ecological study.

scholarly journals Oil Pollution Affects the Central Metabolism of Keystone Vachellia (Acacia) Trees

2021 ◽  
Vol 13 (12) ◽  
pp. 6660
Author(s):  
Marco Ferrante ◽  
Anuma Dangol ◽  
Shoshana Didi-Cohen ◽  
Gidon Winters ◽  
Vered Tzin ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Oil Spills ◽  
Oil Pollution ◽  
Keystone Species ◽  
Desert Ecosystem ◽  
Arid Environments ◽  
Central Metabolism ◽  
Adult Trees ◽  
Metabolite Profiles ◽  
One Year

Vachellia (formerly Acacia) trees are native to arid environments in Africa and the Arabian Peninsula, where they often support the local animal and plant communities acting as keystone species. The aim of this study was to examine whether oil pollution affected the central metabolism of the native keystone trees Vachellia tortilis (Forssk.) and V. raddiana (Savi), as either adults or seedlings. The study was conducted in the Evrona Nature Reserve, a desert ecosystem in southern Israel where two major oil spills occurred in 1975 and in 2014. Leaf samples were collected to analyze the central metabolite profiles from oil-polluted and unpolluted adult trees and from Vachellia seedlings growing in oil-polluted and unpolluted soils in an outdoor setup. We found that oil pollution had a stronger effect on one-year-old seedlings than on adult trees, reducing the levels of amino acids, sugars, and organic acids. While adult trees are mildly affected by oil pollution, the effects on young seedlings can cause a long-term reduction in the population of these keystone desert trees, ultimately threatening this entire ecosystem.

scholarly journals Oil Spill Detection using Sentinel-1 Multitemporal Data in Offshore Karawang

2020 ◽  
Vol 43 (2) ◽  
pp. 69-79
Author(s):  
Godfried Junio Sebastian Matahelemual ◽  
Agung Budi Harto ◽  
Tri Muji Susantoro
Keyword(s):  
Oil Spill ◽  
Oil Spills ◽  
Northern Coast ◽  
Marine Animals ◽  
North West ◽  
Short And Long Term ◽  
Java Sea ◽  
Multitemporal Data ◽  
Thresholding Algorithm

Oil spill is a serious problem that could lead to economic and ecological losses, both in the short and long term. On July 12, 2019, there occurred an oil leakage around YYA-1 oil platform of Pertamina Hulu Energi Offshore North West Java (PHE ONWJ), located off the northern coast of Karawang, Java Sea. This incident has caused the death of fishes and marine animals, damage to coral reefs, mangroves, and seagrass beds, and several health problems of coastal communities. Therefore, it is necessary to map and monitor oil spills, so that actions can be taken to prevent the spread of oil spills. This study aims to map the distribution of oil spills in Karawang sea using multitemporal Sentinel-1 data from July to September 2019. The detection is carried out using the adaptive thresholding algorithm combined with manual interpretation. The result shows that the oil spills spread around Karawang sea from YYA-1 platform to Sedari Village and there are oil spills spreading from the Central Plant F/S platform. The oil spills tend to shift westward from July to September 2019. This shifting is supposed to be influenced by current and wave factors that were dominant moving westward at that time. Based on data processing, it was found that the oil spill area from July to September was respectively 24.79 km2, 20.05 km2, and 27.12 km2.

Assessment of oil weathering and impact in mangrove ecosystem: PRISME Experiment.

2017 ◽  
Vol 2017 (1) ◽  
pp. 634-656 ◽  
Author(s):  
Ronan Jézéquel ◽  
Karine Duboscq ◽  
Léa Sylvi ◽  
Emma Michaud ◽  
Lise Millera Ferriz ◽  
...  
Keyword(s):  
Oil Spill ◽  
French Guiana ◽  
Oil Spills ◽  
Oil Pollution ◽  
Benthic Communities ◽  
Economic Value ◽  
Mangrove Ecosystem ◽  
Mangrove Sediment ◽  
In Situ Experiment

Abstract 2017-410 Mangroves are among the most sensitive marine ecosystems to oil pollution due both to the sensitivity of mangroves species and to the high persistence of hydrocarbons in these environments. Despite their ecological and socio-economic value, the potential effects of an oil spill on French Guiana mangroves remain so far unknown. Yet, there is an increasing transboundary risk of oil spill due to Brazilian offshore oil exploitation (in mid-April 2013, there were 122 offshore drilling rigs in Brazil, including 29 under construction – Brazilian Amapá region located in the French Guiana border area is thought to become an important world oil production area in the coming years). The aim of the PRISME project was to assess the natural degradation of oil in mangrove sediment as well as its impact on benthic communities (micro, meio and macrobenthos): a one-month in situ experiment was conducted in the young French Guianese mangrove (around 3 years old) at the mouth of the Sinnamary estuary. The experimental units consisted in eight plastic cores (Ø : 10 cm ; height: 30 cm) manually introduced within sediments. A thin layer of oiled sediment (2 cm, 20 000 ppm) was applied on four cores while the remaining four cores were considered as control (no oil addition). Three cores were additionally sampled at the beginning of the experiment as initial control sediments. After one month in situ, the eight cores were collected and sliced on site into different sedimentary layers aliquots for later analyses (hydrocarbons, bacterial, meio, macrofauna fauna diversity, bioturbation, biogeochemical parameters). Samples were sent to the different laboratories involved in this multidisciplinary project. Results and knowledge gained from this experimental work were used to develop an approach for assessing coastal vulnerability for oil spills preparedness in mangroves.

scholarly journals Seabirds in Conditions of Local Chronic Oil Pollution, Davis Sea, Antarctica

Birds ◽  
2021 ◽  
Vol 2 (3) ◽  
pp. 275-284
Author(s):  
Sergey Golubev
Keyword(s):  
Breeding Season ◽  
Oil Spills ◽  
Oil Pollution ◽  
Bird Species ◽  
East Antarctica ◽  
Pygoscelis Adeliae ◽  
Seabird Species ◽  
Eudyptes Chrysolophus ◽  
Adélie Penguins

Oil spills are rare in Antarctica. They threaten flying birds and penguins. This is the first report on the interactions of seabirds with oil in the area of the Mirny Station (East Antarctica). The purpose of the study is to determine the total number of seabird species interacting with oil in and around the Mirny Station, to assess the extent of pollution and to identify the most important sites of interactions. Oil pollution is found on the ground, on the continental ice and, on the seawater surface, both directly in the Mirny and beyond. Five species of seabirds were in contact with oil. Oil pollution threats have been identified for breeding and molting Adélie Penguins (Pygoscelis adeliae) and vagrant Macaroni Penguins (Eudyptes chrysolophus). Less affected by oil pollution during the breeding season were tube-nosed bird species and skuas. The most important places of interaction of seabirds with oil are at Cape Mabus, on the islands of Zykov, Tokarev, and Stroiteley. Evidence of long-term oil pollution of the environment is indicative of the chronic nature of the impacts on the coastal ecosystem.

scholarly journals Measuring Progress in Oil Spill Preparedness

2021 ◽  
Vol 2021 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Emilie Canova ◽  
Julien Favier ◽  
Nai Ming Lee ◽  
Peter Taylor
Keyword(s):  
Oil Spill ◽  
Oil Spills ◽  
Oil Pollution ◽  
Global Risk ◽  
Evaluation Tool ◽  
International Convention ◽  
Implementation Processes ◽  
Joint Activities ◽  
Global Initiative

Abstract Governments and industry have been cooperating in the development of oil spill preparedness for more than 30 years. This has included support to the ratification and implementation of instruments such as the International Convention on Oil Pollution Preparedness, Response and Co-operation (OPRC 90), which provides the basis for collaborative efforts between governments and industry to prepare for and respond to marine oil pollutions. Joint activities implemented in this framework represent a major investment and it is important to measure and track the extent to which they have led to sustained improvements. This paper examines the challenges of measuring progress in oil spill preparedness that have emerged over time, leading to the development of different tools and systems to monitor long-term developments. It will first review the metrics and tools used to assess the key elements of preparedness, focused on regions where the International Maritime Organization (IMO) - industry Global Initiative has been active since 1996. The challenges of ascribing and assessing the indicators will be highlighted. Whilst a quantitative method, such as the IPIECA Global Risk Analysis, is useful regarding technical aspects and to compare progress in time and between different regions, it does have a number of caveats, including the verification of data and the need to ensure that preparedness frameworks described in national strategy are translated into credible response capability. There is thus a need for more refined metrics and a complementary qualitative approach. Moreover, the difficulty to catalyse lasting change without sustained efforts was recognized. This paper will discuss why the measures should apply both for evaluation and decision-making and explain why it is key to build more comprehensive (from legal basis to implementation processes and equipment) and sustainable national preparedness systems. The indicators cover a range of aspects of oil spill readiness and should enable a picture of both national and regional preparedness to be constructed, which inform decisions on future actions and activities. The benefits of a step based approach and the potential for tools such as the Readiness Evaluation Tool for Oil Spills (RETOSTM) to underpin broader evaluations will be highlighted. The need for an enhanced methodology to measure progress in preparedness and its consistency with the risk exposure is finally discussed.

Flood impact on water quality of small urban streams

2005 ◽  
Vol 52 (12) ◽  
pp. 267-274 ◽  
Author(s):  
J. Nábělková ◽  
G. Šťastná ◽  
D. Komínková
Keyword(s):  
Heavy Metals ◽  
Benthic Communities ◽  
Urban Streams ◽  
Sewer System ◽  
Small Stream ◽  
Water Ecosystem ◽  
Before And After ◽  
Long Time

Flood situation (August 2002) in small urban streams radically changed status of water ecosystem, which had been created naturally and anthropogenically for a long time. The aim of the after-flood research has been to record development of a creek recovery in positive as well as negative sense: recovery of benthic colonisation and reloading of contaminants (heavy metals) in bottom sediment. The Botic creek (its one section) was chosen as an experimental stream. This section of the creak is influenced by combine sewer system (two overflows – CSOs) as well as storm sewer system (one outlet – SSO). Heavy metals concentrations in water, sediment and body tissue of benthic organisms of the Botic creek and quality of benthic communities were monitored long term before flood. Comparison of results before and after flood can better assess impact of extreme water stage on a small stream.

Enhancing the power generation of Rhodopseudomonas palustris-based MFC

2020 ◽  
Vol 64 (1-4) ◽  
pp. 1261-1268
Author(s):  
Shu Otani ◽  
Dang-Trang Nguyen ◽  
Kozo Taguchi
Keyword(s):  
Activated Carbon ◽  
Rhodopseudomonas Palustris ◽  
Ozone Treatment ◽  
Maximum Power Density ◽  
On Demand ◽  
Long Time ◽  
Dry Conditions ◽  
Carbon Sheet ◽  
Uv Ozone

In this study, a portable and disposable paper-based microbial fuel cell (MFC) was fabricated. The MFC was powered by Rhodopseudomonas palustris bacteria (R. palustris). An activated carbon sheet-based anode pre-loaded organic matter (starch) and R. palustris was used. By using starch in the anode, R. palustris-loaded on the anode could be preserved for a long time in dry conditions. The MFC could generate electricity on-demand activated by adding water to the anode. The activated carbon sheet anode was treated by UV-ozone treatment to remove impurities and to improve its hydrophilicity before being loaded with R. palustris. The developed MFC could generate the maximum power density of 0.9 μW/cm2 and could be preserved for long-term usage with little performance degradation (10% after four weeks).

SELECTION WORK TO IMPROVE PRODUCTIVE AND BREWING QUALITIES OF SPRING BARLEY

1970 ◽  
pp. 38-40
Author(s):  
О. V. Levakova ◽  
L. М. Eroshenko ◽  
А. N. Eroshenko
Keyword(s):  
Protein Content ◽  
Spring Barley ◽  
Humus Content ◽  
Stability Index ◽  
Field Studies ◽  
Climatic Conditions ◽  
Extract Content ◽  
Labile Phosphorus ◽  
Loam Soil

The article presents and analyzes data of competitive varietal testing of promising varieties and lines of spring barley for yield and brewing qualities. Field studies were conducted in 2014–2017 on dark gray forest heavy loam soil. Agrochemical parameters are total nitrogen – 0.24%, humus content in a layer of 0-40 cm (according to Tyurin) – 5.19%, hydrolysis nitrogen – 123.5 mg / kg, salt extract pH – 4.92 mg-eq / 100g; labile phosphorus - 34.6 mg / 100g, labile potassium – 20.0 mg / 100g. The forerunner is winter wheat. Meteorological conditions in the years of research differed from each other and from the average long-term value. Barley samples were assessed by the protein content in the grain (GOST 10846-91), extract content (GOST 12130-77), weight 1000 grains (GOST 10842-89). Ecological plasticity was determined by the method proposed by E.D. Nettevich, A.I. Morgunov and M.I. Maksimenko, stability index (Ľ) by A. A. Gryaznov, indicator of stability level (Puss) by E. D. Nettevich and A. I. Morgunov. The main measure for assessing quality indicators is protein content. Many other biochemical and technological features of grain depend on its level. The experimental data convincingly testify to the significant influence of the soil and climatic conditions on the yield and, especially, on the brewing qualities of barley in the conditions of the Central Region of the Nonchernozem Zone. According to the studied traits, new valuable varieties Nadezhny, Sir, Noble and selection lines 141 / 1-09 h 746, 23 / 1-10 h 784, distinguished by high adaptability and resistance to adverse environmental factors, have been identified.

Charlemagne’s Health in ‘Old Age’: Did It Affect Carolingian Military Strategy?

Mediaevistik ◽  
2020 ◽  
Vol 32 (1) ◽  
pp. 11-53
Author(s):  
Bernard S. Bachrach
Keyword(s):  
Old Age ◽  
The Political ◽  
Military Strategy ◽  
The West ◽  
Long Time

During the first thirty-three years of his reign as king of the Franks, i.e., prior to his coronation as emperor on Christmas day 800, Charlemagne, scholars generally agree, pursued a successful long-term offensive and expansionist strategy. This strategy was aimed at conquering large swaths of erstwhile imperial territory in the west and bringing under Carolingian rule a wide variety of peoples, who either themselves or their regional predecessors previously had not been subject to Frankish regnum.1 For a very long time, scholars took the position that Charlemagne continued to pursue this expansionist strategy throughout the imperial years, i.e., from his coronation on Christmas Day 800 until his final illness in later January 814. For example, Louis Halphen observed: “comme empereur, Charles poursuit, sans plus, l’oeuvre entamée avant l’an 800.”2 F. L. Ganshof, who also wrote several studies treating Charlemagne’s army, was in lock step with Halphen and observed: “As emperor, Charlemagne pursued the political and military course he had been following before 25 December 800.”3

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