Speciation Studies of Trace Metals in the Gulf of Elefsis, Greece

A method for differentiating trace metal species on the basis of relative lability has been applied for Pb, Cd, Zn, in microenvironments of the Gulf of Elefsis. Species are classified as »very labile«, »moderately labile«, »slowly labile« and »inert« depending on the characteristic time scale of the measuring technique using differential pulse anodic stripping voltammetry (DPASV) and the retention on Chelex-100 resin in successive column and batch procedures. The results show that in two extremely different microenvironments (with S of about 17%c and ~45%o) the slowly labile and inert fractions prevail particularly at the surface layer, whereas in the main water body of the gulf the very labile fraction is the predominant one. However at the thermocline and below it the »inert« fraction increases considerably paralleling, broadly, the particulate metal distributions

Digital storytelling as an educational tool for scientific, environmental and sustainable development literacy on marine litter in informal education environments (Case study: Hellenic Center for Marine Research)

The modern era is characterized by the explosion of Information and Communication Technologies (ICT) and their multiple applications both in the school community and in the extracurricular activities. ICT enables the school community to be engaged in new educational storytelling approaches with educational and learning content, using multimedia applications. This article describes a study that took place at the headquarters of the Hellenic Center for Marine Research and involved a convenience sampling of 153 high school students (ages 13 to 15 years old). The study is aimed to investigate the use of digital storytelling in developing environmental and sustainability awareness and enhancing the scientific literacy of high school students when it is used as an instructional tool in informal learning, for marine litter, a serious environmental and sub-regional issue of our days. A didactic intervention was applied focusing on digital storytelling and experiential hands-on activities covering concepts of marine pollution, to establish the acquisition of new knowledge and the strengthening of optimal behavior towards the environment and sustainable development of attitudes towards the global problem of plastic marine pollution. The results of the study confirm the importance of digital storytelling for the cultivation of students' Scientific and Environmental Literacy for oceans

The potential impact of Saharan dust and polluted aerosols on microbial populations in the East Mediterranean Sea, an overview of a mesocosm experimental approach.

Recent estimates of nutrient budgets for the Eastern Mediterranean Sea (EMS) indicate that atmospheric aerosols play a significant role as suppliers of macro- and micro- nutrients to its Low Nutrient Low Chlorophyll water. Here we present the first mesocosm experimental study that examines the overall response of the oligotrophic EMS surface mixed layer (Cretan Sea, May 2012) to two different types of natural aerosol additions, “pure” Saharan dust (SD, 1.6 mg l-1) and mixed aerosols (A - polluted and desert origin, 1 mg l-1). We describe the rationale, the experimental set-up, the chemical characteristics of the ambient water and aerosols and the relative maximal biological impacts that resulted from the added aerosols. The two treatments, run in triplicates (3 m3 each), were compared to control-unamended runs. Leaching of approximately 2.1-2.8 and 2.2-3.7 nmol PO4 and 20-26 and 53-55 nmol NOx was measured per each milligram of SD and A, respectively, representing an addition of approximately 30% of the ambient phosphate concentrations. The nitrate/phosphate ratios added in the A treatment were twice than those added in the SD treatment. Both types of dry aerosols triggered a positive change (25-600% normalized per 1 mg l-1 addition) in most of the rate and state variables that were measured: bacterial abundance (BA), bacterial production (BP), Synechococcus (Syn) abundance, chlorophyll-a (chl-a), primary production (PP) and dinitrogen fixation (N2-fix), with relative changes among them following the sequence BP>PP≈N2-fix>chl-a≈BA≈Syn. Our results show that the ‘polluted’ aerosols triggered a relatively larger biological change compared to the SD amendments (per a similar amount of mass addition), especially regarding BP and PP. We speculate that despite the co-limitation of P and N in the EMS, the additional N released by the A treatment may have triggered the relatively larger response in most of the rate and state variables as compared to SD. An implication of our study is that a warmer atmosphere in the future may increase dust emissions and influence the intensity and length of the already well stratified water column in the EMS and hence the impact of the aerosols as a significant external source of new nutrients

Simulation of Coastal Processes affecting pH with Impacts on Carbon and Nutrient Biogeochemistry

Naturally occurring microbial decomposition of organic matter (OM) in coastal marine environments cause increased acidity in deeper layers similar or even exceeding the future predictions for global ocean acidification (OA). Experimental studies in coastal areas characterized by increased inputs of OM and nutrients, coping with intermittent hypoxic/anoxic conditions, provide better understanding of the mechanisms affecting nutrients and carbon biogeochemistry under the emerging effects of coastal pH decrease. Laboratory CO2-manipulated microcosm experiments were conducted using seawater and surface sediment collected from the deepest part of Elefsis Bay (Saronikos Gulf, Eastern Mediterranean) focusing to study the co-evolution of processes affected by the decline of dissolved oxygen and pH induced by (a) OM remineralization and (b) the future anthropogenic increase of atmospheric CO2. Under more acidified conditions, a significant increase of total alkalinity was observed partially attributed to the sedimentary carbonate dissolution and the reactive nitrogen species shift towards ammonium. Νitrate and nitrite decline, in parallel with ammonium increase, demonstrated a deceleration of ammonium oxidation processes along with decrease in nitrate production. The decreased DIN:DIP ratio, the prevalence of organic nutrient species against the inorganic ones, the observations of constrained DON degradation and nitrate production decline and the higher DOC concentrations revealed the possible inhibition of OM decomposition under lower pH values. Finally, our results highlight the need for detailed studies of the carbonate system in coastal areas dominated by hypoxic/anoxic conditions, accompanied by other biogeochemical parameters and properly designed experiments to elucidate the processes sequence or alterations due to pH reduction

Marine Litter : Technical Recommendations for the Implementation of MSFD Requirements

As a follow up to the Commission Decision on criteria and methodological standards on good environmental status (GES) of marine waters (Commission Decision 2010/477/EU), the Marine Directors requested Directorate General Environment in 2010 to establish a technical subgroup under the Working Group on GES in relation to the Marine Strategy Framework Directive 2008/56/EC (WG GES) for further development of Descriptor 10 Marine Litter and Descriptor 11 Noise/Energy. This report compiles the recommendations regarding Descriptor 10, Marine Litter. The implementation of provisons under MSFD Descriptor 10 as described in the Commission Decision 2010/477/EU is in its first step depending on the availability of appropriate monitoring tools.The group has investigated the monitoring approaches for marine litter and provides a set of monitoring tools which can be employed for that purpose.There are gaps in the regional applicability and differences in the maturity of some tools. There is need for further harmonization and collaborative activities in order to allow EU MS the future reporting of environmental trends and thus the verification of measures against marine litter.JRC.H.5-Rural, water and ecosystem resource

Guidance on Monitoring of Marine Litter in European Seas

This publication is a Reference Report by the Joint Research Centre of the European Commission.The MSFD Technical Subgroup on Marine Litter was tasked to deliver guidance so that European Member States could initiate programmes for monitoring of Descriptor 10 of the MSFD. The present document provides the recommendations and information needed to commence the monitoring required for marine litter, including methodological protocols and categories of items to be used for the assessment of litter on the Beach, Water Column, Seafloor and Biota, including a special section on Microparticles

New insights into hydrothermal vent processes in the unique shallow-submarine arc-volcano, Kolumbo (Santorini), Greece

We report on integrated geomorphological, mineralogical, geochemical and biological investigations of the hydrothermal vent field located on the floor of the density-stratified acidic (pH , 5) crater of the Kolumbo shallow-submarine arc-volcano, near Santorini. Kolumbo features rare geodynamic setting at convergent boundaries, where arc-volcanism and seafloor hydrothermal activity are occurring in thinned continental crust. Special focus is given to unique enrichments of polymetallic spires in Sb and Tl (6Hg, As, Au, Ag, Zn) indicating a new hybrid seafloor analogue of epithermal-to-volcanic-hosted-massive-sulphide deposits. Iron microbial-mat analyses reveal dominating ferrihydrite-type phases, and high-proportion of microbial sequences akin to "Nitrosopumilus maritimus", a mesophilic Thaumarchaeota strain capable of chemoautotrophic growth on hydrothermal ammonia and CO2. Our findings highlight that acidic shallow-submarine hydrothermal vents nourish marine ecosystems in which nitrifying Archaea are important and suggest ferrihydrite-type Fe31-(hydrated)-oxyhydroxides in associated low-temperature iron mats are formed by anaerobic Fe21-oxidation, dependent on microbially produced nitrate

The mediterranean sea we want

open58siThis paper presents major gaps and challenges for implementing the UN Decade of Ocean Science for Sustainable Development (2021-2030) in the Mediterranean region. The authors make recommendations on the scientific knowledge needs and co-design actions identified during two consultations, part of the Decade preparatory-phase, framing them in the Mediterranean Sea’s unique environmental and socio-economic perspectives. According to the ‘Mediterranean State of the Environment and Development Report 2020’ by the United Nations Environment Programme Mediterranean Action Plan and despite notable progress, the Mediterranean region is not on track to achieve and fully implement the Sustainable Development Goals of Agenda 2030. Key factors are the cumulative effect of multiple human-induced pressures that threaten the ecosystem resources and services in the global change scenario. The basin, identified as a climate change vulnerability hotspot, is exposed to pollution and rising impacts of climate change. This affects mainly the coastal zones, at increasing risk of extreme events and their negative effects of unsustainable management of key economic assets. Transitioning to a sustainable blue economy is the key for the marine environment’s health and the nourishment of future generations. This challenging context, offering the opportunity of enhancing the knowledge to define science-based measures as well as narrowing the gaps between the Northen and Southern shores, calls for a joint (re)action. The paper reviews the state of the art of Mediterranean Sea science knowledge, sets of trends, capacity development needs, specific challenges, and recommendations for each Decade’s societal outcome. In the conclusions, the proposal for a Mediterranean regional programme in the framework of the Ocean Decade is addressed. The core objective relies on integrating and improving the existing ocean-knowledge, Ocean Literacy, and ocean observing capacities building on international cooperation to reach the “Mediterranean Sea that we want”.openCappelletto M.; Santoleri R.; Evangelista L.; Galgani F.; Garces E.; Giorgetti A.; Fava F.; Herut B.; Hilmi K.; Kholeif S.; Lorito S.; Sammari C.; Lianos M.C.; Celussi M.; D'alelio D.; Francocci F.; Giorgi G.; Canu D.M.; Organelli E.; Pomaro A.; Sannino G.; Segou M.; Simoncelli S.; Babeyko A.; Barbanti A.; Chang-Seng D.; Cardin V.; Casotti R.; Drago A.; Asmi S.E.; Eparkhina D.; Fichaut M.; Hema T.; Procaccini G.; Santoro F.; Scoullos M.; Solidoro C.; Trincardi F.; Tunesi L.; Umgiesser G.; Zingone A.; Ballerini T.; Chaffai A.; Coppini G.; Gruber S.; Knezevic J.; Leone G.; Penca J.; Pinardi N.; Petihakis G.; Rio M.-H.; Said M.; Siokouros Z.; Srour A.; Snoussi M.; Tintore J.; Vassilopoulou V.; Zavatarelli M.Cappelletto M.; Santoleri R.; Evangelista L.; Galgani F.; Garces E.; Giorgetti A.; Fava F.; Herut B.; Hilmi K.; Kholeif S.; Lorito S.; Sammari C.; Lianos M.C.; Celussi M.; D'alelio D.; Francocci F.; Giorgi G.; Canu D.M.; Organelli E.; Pomaro A.; Sannino G.; Segou M.; Simoncelli S.; Babeyko A.; Barbanti A.; Chang-Seng D.; Cardin V.; Casotti R.; Drago A.; Asmi S.E.; Eparkhina D.; Fichaut M.; Hema T.; Procaccini G.; Santoro F.; Scoullos M.; Solidoro C.; Trincardi F.; Tunesi L.; Umgiesser G.; Zingone A.; Ballerini T.; Chaffai A.; Coppini G.; Gruber S.; Knezevic J.; Leone G.; Penca J.; Pinardi N.; Petihakis G.; Rio M.-H.; Said M.; Siokouros Z.; Srour A.; Snoussi M.; Tintore J.; Vassilopoulou V.; Zavatarelli M