Fish disease as a monitor for marine pollution: the case of the North Sea

1992 ◽  
Vol 2 (1) ◽  
pp. 1-32 ◽  
Author(s):  
A. D. Vethaak ◽  
T. ap Rheinallt
Keyword(s):  
North Sea ◽  
Marine Pollution ◽  
Fish Disease ◽  
The North ◽  
The North Sea

DNA damage as a biomarker of marine pollution: strand breaks in seastars (Asterias rubens) from the North Sea

1996 ◽  
Vol 34 (7-8) ◽  
pp. 157-162 ◽  
Author(s):  
J. M. Everaarts ◽  
A. Sarkar
Keyword(s):  
Dna Damage ◽  
North Sea ◽  
Marine Pollution ◽  
Polluted Area ◽  
Asterias Rubens ◽  
Strand Breaks ◽  
The North ◽  
The North Sea ◽  
Total Dna ◽  
Integrity Of Dna

The DNA damage in seastars (Asterias rubens) was studied by measuring the level of integrity of DNA isolated from pyloric caeca of the organisms in order to assess the state of pollution of the North Sea. The effect of various genotoxic chemicals on the integrity of DNA was determined by the level of double strandedness with respect to total DNA following time-dependent partial alkaline unwinding assay. On the basis of the level of integrity of DNA from seastars the study area was distinguished into three clusters: Cluster-I, the highly polluted area (coastal and estuarine zones) with low integrity of DNA (27-43% integrity), Cluster-II, the moderately polluted area (offshore region) with medium integrity of DNA (49-64% integrity) and Cluster-III, less polluted area (near Dogger bank region) with high integrity of DNA (70-87% integrity).

Summary and conclusions: environmental effects of North Sea oil and gas developments

1987 ◽  
Vol 316 (1181) ◽  
pp. 669-677 ◽  
Keyword(s):  
North Sea ◽  
Oil And Gas ◽  
Oil Pollution ◽  
Marine Pollution ◽  
Geographical Area ◽  
Benthic Fauna ◽  
Social Consequences ◽  
Offshore Platforms ◽  
The North ◽  
The North Sea

This Royal Society Discussion Meeting has examined the total environmental impact of a whole industry in a single geographical area. Land-based developments related to the exploitation of the North Sea oilfields and their social consequences have been substantial, although neither the worst fears nor the best hopes have been realized. An accommodation has been reached with the fishing industry in the affected area. Offshore platforms are a source of chronic pollution from production water, but in recent years there has been a marked increase in the use of oil-based drilling muds and it is estimated that 20 Mt per year of petroleum hydrocarbons are added to the sea in oil-contaminated drill cuttings. The effect of these additions has been studied in the laboratory, in mesocosms and in field surveys which, together, yield a consistent picture. Within a radius of a few hundred metres of a platform there is impoverishment of the benthic fauna. Close to the platform the production of anoxic conditions through smothering and the activity of sulphide-producing bacteria is probably more significant than the toxic effect of the oil-based muds. Outside this immediate zone of impact, the oil results in organic enrichment and enhanced populations of some of the fauna. The total area affected is, in the context of the North Sea, minuscule. There is no evidence that plankton is materially affected and the success of commercial fisheries dependent upon the plankton crop is more influenced by fishery practices than by any other factor. Seabird populations, about which there was formerly much concern, have not so far been affected by oil pollution in the North Sea. There is wide fluctuation in recruitment success, but populations of species thought most vulnerable to oil pollution are generally increasing. Although marine pollution research has yielded valuable insights into the responses of individuals, populations and communities to perturbation, natural as well as man-made, it is not likely that future problems associated with oil extraction from the sea will be as stimulating to fundamental research. Different problems relating to environmental pollution should now be addressed by marine scientists.

scholarly journals BONN Agreement – More Than 50 Years of Spill Response Cooperation

2021 ◽  
Vol 2021 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Johan Marius Ly ◽  
Laura de la Torre ◽  
Ronny Schallier
Keyword(s):  
North Sea ◽  
Western Europe ◽  
Oil Spills ◽  
Marine Pollution ◽  
50Th Anniversary ◽  
The European Union ◽  
Aerial Surveillance ◽  
The North ◽  
The North Sea ◽  
Bonn Agreement

Abstract In 2019, the BONN Agreement celebrated 50 years of continuous cooperation in dealing with marine pollution in Europe. This makes the Bonn Agreement the oldest regional agreement in the world established by governments for jointly dealing with and responding to pollution incidents. The first “Agreement for Cooperation in Dealing with Pollution of the North Sea by Oil” was signed in 1969 by the eight states bordering the North Sea: Belgium, Denmark, Germany, France, the Netherlands, Norway, Sweden and the United Kingdom. This was shortly after the oil tanker “Torrey Canyon” broke up off Cornwall in 1967 spilling 117 000 tonnes of oil in the first major pollution disaster affecting Western Europe. In 1983 the agreement was expanded to include “other harmful substances” as well as oil and the European Union became a Contracting Party. In 1989 the agreement was amended to include aerial surveillance. In 2010, Ireland was included and in 2019, at the 50'th anniversary, a new enlargement of the geographical scope was approved by including the Bay of Biscay through Spain's accession and a new task related to the monitoring of air pollution from ships was incorporated. The area of the Bonn Agreement now covers the Greater North Sea and its approaches, comprising most of the heavy density traffic area and oil fields in Western Europe. During these 50 years, the cooperation has resulted in a number of achievements on different topics. Some of these are: - aerial surveillance and detection of marine pollution,- harmonized pollution reporting format,- common quantification of oil spills through the Bonn Agreement Oil Appearance Code,- systems for reimbursement of costs when rendering assistance as the Bonn Agreement provides for mutual assistance between Contracting Parties,- joint exercises,- information sharing on experiences and on research & development findings,- Bonn Agreement region-wide risk assessment through the BE-AWARE project. In October 2019, the agreement's 50th anniversary was celebrated and a ministerial meeting was held. This paper will give an overview of the history, the achievements and the future for the Bonn Agreement.

ADVANCED AERIAL SURVEILLANCE SYSTEM FOR DETECTION OF MARINE POLLUTION AND INTERNATIONAL AERIAL SURVEILLANCE COOPERATION IN THE NORTH AND BALTIC SEAS

1995 ◽  
Vol 1995 (1) ◽  
pp. 21-26
Author(s):  
Capt. Klaus Schroh
Keyword(s):  
Remote Sensing ◽  
Baltic Sea ◽  
North Sea ◽  
Oil Pollution ◽  
Marine Pollution ◽  
Aerial Surveillance ◽  
The North ◽  
The North Sea ◽  
Remote Sensing Techniques ◽  
The Baltic

ABSTRACT Marine pollution of the North and the Baltic Seas caused by accidental and illegal operational discharges has sharpened the awareness of states adjoining these waters. Consequently, the member states of the Bonn Agreement1 for the North Sea and the Helsinki Convention2 for the Baltic Sea have agreed to cooperate closely to develop remote-sensing techniques to improve the detection of oil pollution and the identification of polluters, and to develop reliable methods to estimate the total level of oil pollution at sea. In the ministerial declaration of the Third International Conference on the Protection of the North Sea (1990) and according to a recommendation of the Helsinki Commission, the member states are invited to develop and improve the existing remote-sensing techniques for effective evaluation of spills, even at night and under bad weather conditions. With the integration of a laser fluorosensor (LFS) and a microwave radiometer (MWR) in its existing sensor system (SLAR, IR/UV scanner, single frequency MWR), Germany has widened the detection and identification by enabling classification of discharged oil and the detection of released chemicals with fluorescent properties. Apart from this technical progress, the international cooperation between the North Sea and Baltic Sea states is a further step to deter potential polluters and to improve the prosecution of suspected offenders and to assist oil recovery operations at sea through permanent aerial guidance.

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