Monitoring a changing Arctic: Recent advancements in the study of sea ice microbial communities

Sea ice continues to decline across many regions of the Arctic, with remaining ice becoming increasingly younger and more dynamic. These changes alter the habitats of microbial life that live within the sea ice, which support healthy functioning of the marine ecosystem and provision of resources for human-consumption, in addition to influencing biogeochemical cycles (e.g. air–sea CO₂ exchange). With the susceptibility of sea ice ecosystems to climate change, there is a pressing need to fill knowledge gaps surrounding sea ice habitats and their microbial communities. Of fundamental importance to this goal is the development of new methodologies that permit effective study of them. Based on outcomes from the DiatomARCTIC project, this paper integrates existing knowledge with case studies to provide insight on how to best document sea ice microbial communities, which contributes to the sustainable use and protection of Arctic marine and coastal ecosystems in a time of environmental change.Supplementary InformationThe online version contains supplementary material available at 10.1007/s13280-021-01658-z.     

Levels of polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons in some agricultural, industrial and urban areas along Xiamen coastal waters, China

An intensive investigation was conducted to study the distribution of polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons （PAHs）, to show firstly the level of pollution in the agricultural areas and analyses specifically the status of soil polluted by these persistent pollutants in some locations of Xiamen region. Soil samples collected from Jiulong agricultural catchment have been analysed for 16 PAH compounds, using gas chromatography flame ionization detection in order to determine the level of selected PAH components and to identify the factors that may control their distribution and persistence in the area. The main PAHs found in soil samples were the low molecular weight. The total PAHs detected in soil samples ranged from 0.50 to 0.95 μg/g soil. The highest values of PAHs were significantly detected in the orange tree leaves, which range from 236.1 to 249.3 μg/g soil showing recent atmospheric inputs of these volatile pollutants. The distribution of PAHs in vegetable were monitored and indicating that the concentration were high and ranged from 8.24 to 58.87 μg/g. Other sediment samples were also collected and analysed from urban sewage （5.26 μg/g dw）, aquacultural （0.52 μg/g dw） and industrial areas （from 0.62 to 2.09 μg/g dw）, during this investigation. The contamination of Jiulong river estuary and Xiamen Western Sea by PAHs has been then widely justified by wastcwatcr discharges and soil runoffs from these areas. The results, therefore, provide important information on the current contamination status caused by the atmospheric transport and point to the need for urgent actions to stop the release of these hydrocarbons to the environment. The necessity of implementing systematic monitoring of PAHs is also emphasized.     

中国南中国海海岸湿地退化现状和保护对策

南中国海湿地包括广东省、香港特别行政区、澳门特别行政区、广西壮族自治区和海南省等五个行政区,总面积为15 393.75 km2。由于受人口增加和经济发展的巨大压力,中国南中国海湿地破坏严重,退化趋势明显。本文在对中国南中国海地区海岸湿地的现状、类型及湿地退化的主要原因进行分析的基础上,提出中国南中国海地区海岸湿地资源保护与管理的建议,以便切实保护中国南中国海沿海多样化的湿地类型,持续发挥其生态服务功能。     

城市黑臭水体的产生原因及治理对策

在我国经济发展势头如此迅猛的背景下,城市污染问题日益严重。城市黑臭水体对城市生态环境造成严重影响,如果不能及时进行治理,则会对原有水生态循环系统造成破坏,影响城市居民正常生活。本文首先对城市黑臭水体产生原因进行分析,然后提出有效的治理对策。     

Trace Metal Levels in Mussels (Mytilus Galloprovincialis L. 1758) from Turkish Aegean Sea Coast

Bio-monitoring of some heavy metal levels (Cd, Pb, Zn, Cu) in whole edible soft parts of Mytilus galloprovincialis (L. 1758) was conducted in Turkish Aegean Sea coast during the period of September 2002–August 2003 seasonally. Moreover, some physico-chemical environmental parameters, also have been analysed in the same region. The values of some physico-chemical environmental parameters in coastal waters of Turkish Aegean Sea were changed between; 9.0–27.0 ^∘C for temperature, 31.93–40.45 psu for salinity, 7.35–8.48 for pH and 4.05–9.50 mg/l for dissolved oxygen. The levels of trace elements in whole edible soft parts including interstitial fluids of Mediterranean mussels M. galloprovincialis (L. 1758), sampled from 6 different regions of Turkish Aegean Sea coast have ranged between; 0.04–0.52 μg Cd/g wet weight, 0.49–1.72 μg Pb/g w.w., 0.95–1.85 Cu/g w.w., 16.11–37.15 μg Zn/g w.w. The highest values for all trace metals (Cd, Pb, Zn, Cu) were measured in inner part of Izmir Bay (station 3) and lowest in Sigacik and Gulluk Bay (station 5, 6). Generally heavy metal levels are lower than the results in soft mussel tissues reported from Mediterranean regions.     

Closing a Loop: Substance Flow Analysis of Nitrogen and Phosphorus in the Rainbow Trout Production and Domestic Consumption System in Finland

Ongoing eutrophication is changing the Baltic Sea ecosystem. Aquaculture causes relatively small-scale nutrient emissions, but local environmental impact may be considerable. We used substance flow analysis (SFA) to identify and quantify the most significant flows and stocks of nitrogen (N) and phosphorus (P) related to rainbow trout aquaculture in Finland. In 2004–2007, the input of nutrients to the system in the form of fish feed was 829 t N year⁻¹ and 115 t P year⁻¹. Around one-fifth of these nutrients ended up as food for human consumption. Of the primary input, 70% ended up in the Baltic Sea, directly from aquaculture and indirectly through waste management. The nutrient cycle could be closed partially by using local fish instead of imported fish in rainbow trout feed, thus reducing the net load of N and P to a fraction.     

Implications of high altitude desert dust transport from Western Sahara to Nile Delta during biomass burning season

The air over major cities and rural regions of the Nile Delta is highly polluted during autumn which is the biomass burning season, locally known as black cloud. Previous studies have attributed the increased pollution levels during the black cloud season to the biomass or open burning of agricultural waste, vehicular, industrial emissions, and secondary aerosols. However, new multi-sensor observations (column and vertical profiles) from satellites, dust transport models and associated meteorology present a different picture of the autumn pollution. Here we show, for the first time, the evidence of long range transport of dust at high altitude (2.5-6 km) from Western Sahara and its deposition over the Nile Delta region unlike current Models. The desert dust is found to be a major contributor to the local air quality which was previously considered to be due to pollution from biomass burning enhanced by the dominant northerly winds coming from Europe.     

Characterization of plutonium in deep-sea sediments of the Sulu and South China Seas

Anthropogenic Pu isotopes are important geochemical tracers for sediment studies. Their distributions and sources in the water columns as well as the sediments of the North Pacific have been intensively studied; however, information about Pu in the Southeast Asian seas is limited. To study the isotopic composition of Pu, and thus to identify its sources, we collected sediment core samples in the South China Sea and the Sulu Sea during the KH-96-5 Cruise of the R/V Hakuho Maru. We analysed the activities of ^239+240Pu and the atom ratios of ²⁴⁰Pu/²³⁹Pu using isotope dilution sector-field inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometry (SF-ICP-MS). The ²⁴⁰Pu/²³⁹Pu atom ratios in the sediments of both areas (inventory weighted mean: 0.251 for the South China Sea and 0.280 for the Sulu Sea) were higher than the global fallout value (0.178 ± 0.019), suggesting the existence of Pu from the Pacific Proving Grounds in the North Pacific. Low inventories of ^239+240Pu in sediments were observed in the South China Sea (3.75 Bq/m²) and the Sulu Sea (1.38 Bq/m²). Most of the Pu input is still present in the water column. Scavenging and benthic mixing processes were considered to be the main processes controlling the distribution of Pu in the deep-sea sediments of both study areas.     

Role of black carbon in the distribution of polychlorinated dibenzo-p-dioxins/dibenzofurans in aged field-contaminated soils

Floodplain soils containing elevated levels of polychlorinated dibenzo-p-dioxins/dibenzofurans (PCDD/Fs) were collected from several locations along the Tittabawassee River (Michigan, USA). The PCDD/F profiles of these soils exhibited distinct congener patterns consistent with byproducts from either chloralkali manufacturing or chlorophenols productions. Black carbon (BC) particles were isolated for the first time from floodplain soil impacted by PCDD/Fs. Petrographic analysis showed that BC particles, including coal, oxidized coal, metallurgical coke, depositional carbon, coal tar/pitch, cenosphere, and charcoal, comprised approximately 30% by volume of the organic fraction with size range of 250 μm-2000 μm from a typical floodplain soil. The BC particles with anthropogenic origin such as pitch and coke associated with the chloralkali production process served as both the source and subsequent transporter for the highly hydrophobic PCDD/Fs. These anthropogenic BC particles were enriched with high levels of PCDFs, containing approximately 1000-fold the concentration found in the bulk soil. The strong association of PCDD/Fs with anthropogenic BC directly impacts the physicochemical and biological availability thus the risk associated with these hydrophobic organochlorines in soils and sediments.