Pollution of the North Sea

Pollution of the North Sea PDF Author: Wim Salomons
Publisher: Springer Science & Business Media
ISBN: 3642737099
Category : Science
Languages : en
Pages : 753

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Book Description
This preface is being written at a time of exceptional public interest in the North Sea, following media head lines on toxic algal blooms, the mass mortality of common seals, and concern over pollution levels. These headlines may suggest that pollution of the North Sea is a recent event. This is not the case. Although no data are available (methods simply did not exist), it is safe to assume that emission (both into air and water) of heavy metals already started to increase in the 19th cen tury. The growth of cities and introduction of sewer sys tems led to the discharge of raw sewage and sewage sludge. The introduction of man-made (xenobiotic) organ ic chemicals and their subsequent emission into the North Sea commenced before the second world war. The shallower and coastal areas of the North Sea receive the highest concentrations of these pollutants. Not unexpectedly, these areas - some Norwegian fjords, the Dutch coast, the German Bight - show signs of ecosystem deterioration and eutrophication. A certain percentage of the pollutants does not remain in the North Sea but is "exported" to the Atlantic. The North Sea therefore con tributes to the global input of pollutants to the world's oceans. The major part of the pollutants accumulate in the North Sea and are incorporated in the bottom sediments. Although they are "out of sight", they should not be "out of mind".

Pollution of the North Sea

Pollution of the North Sea PDF Author: Wim Salomons
Publisher: Springer Science & Business Media
ISBN: 3642737099
Category : Science
Languages : en
Pages : 753

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Book Description
This preface is being written at a time of exceptional public interest in the North Sea, following media head lines on toxic algal blooms, the mass mortality of common seals, and concern over pollution levels. These headlines may suggest that pollution of the North Sea is a recent event. This is not the case. Although no data are available (methods simply did not exist), it is safe to assume that emission (both into air and water) of heavy metals already started to increase in the 19th cen tury. The growth of cities and introduction of sewer sys tems led to the discharge of raw sewage and sewage sludge. The introduction of man-made (xenobiotic) organ ic chemicals and their subsequent emission into the North Sea commenced before the second world war. The shallower and coastal areas of the North Sea receive the highest concentrations of these pollutants. Not unexpectedly, these areas - some Norwegian fjords, the Dutch coast, the German Bight - show signs of ecosystem deterioration and eutrophication. A certain percentage of the pollutants does not remain in the North Sea but is "exported" to the Atlantic. The North Sea therefore con tributes to the global input of pollutants to the world's oceans. The major part of the pollutants accumulate in the North Sea and are incorporated in the bottom sediments. Although they are "out of sight", they should not be "out of mind".

Understanding the North Sea System

Understanding the North Sea System PDF Author: H. Charnock
Publisher: Springer Science & Business Media
ISBN: 9401112363
Category : Science
Languages : en
Pages : 244

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Book Description
The continental shelf seas have an importance which is out of proportion to the rela tively small fraction of the area of the global ocean which they occupy. These shallow seas play an important role as the high energy boundary zones of the deep ocean where much of the ocean's tidal and wave energies are dissipated. They are highly productive biologically and are responsible for most of the world's fishery production. In many cases, they are also sources of economically important resources, notably hydrocarbons and they are frequently important as thorough fares for merchant shipping. Because they are the regions of the ocean closest to our centres of population and industrial activity, they have been the first to feel the impact of the increasing pressures imposed by large scale waste disposal into the ocean. The North Sea is an archetypal representative of such seas: we need to be able to understand its processes and predict them if we are to achieve a degree of rational management in the future, as the environmental threats increase. The understanding required extends through a wide range of processes that operate in the shelf seas from the fundamental physics to the chemistry and biology of the water column and the seabed sediments. These processes, and the interactions between them, cut across the traditional discipline boundaries within marine science and require a substantial inter disciplinary effort for their effective study.

Circulation and Contaminant Fluxes in the North Sea

Circulation and Contaminant Fluxes in the North Sea PDF Author: Jürgen Sündermann
Publisher: Springer Science & Business Media
ISBN: 3642782949
Category : Science
Languages : en
Pages : 667

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Book Description
In this publication you will find a comprehensive data set of the North Sea ecosystem, including the distribution and the fate of contaminants, their transport paths and their analysis by means of numerical models. This book presents the results of the interdisciplinary German research project ZISCH ('Zirkulation und Schadstoffumsatz in der Nordsee') encompassing oceanographers, meteorologists, marine biologists and chemists.

Air Pollution Modeling and Its Application IX

Air Pollution Modeling and Its Application IX PDF Author: H. Van Dop
Publisher: Springer Science & Business Media
ISBN: 1461530520
Category : Science
Languages : en
Pages : 768

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Book Description
The interest in air pollution modelling has shown substantial growth over the last five years. This was particularly evident by the increasing number of participants attending the NATO/CCMS International Technical Meetings on Air Pollution modelling and its Application. At the last meeting 118 papers and posters were selected from an abundance of submitted abstracts divided over five modelling topics: (i) model assessment and verification, including policy applications, (ii) air pollution modelling in coastal areas with emphasis on the mediterranean region, (iii) accidental atmospheric releases, including warning systems and regulations, (iv) modelling of global and long-range transport and (v) new developments in turbulent diffusion. A round-table discussion chaired by John Irwin (USA) and Jan Kretzschmar (Belgium) on the harmonization of air pollution models was attended by more than 50 scientists and is reported in these proceedings. The opening paper addressed the main issue of this conference: modelling over complex terrain. Of particular interest were coastal areas where the surface inhomogeneities introduce small-scale circulation and varying atmospheric stability, often combined with a complex topography. As the conference was located on the beautiful island of Crete, problems faced by the host nation, particularly Athens and its environs were obvious examples for consideration. These together with other regions with similar geographical features were addressed. Heavily populated and industrialized as they often are, air quality is generally poor there and emission regulations are desired. Obviously, a major task of air pollution dispersion modelling is to assist policy makers in formulating sensible regulations.

Control and Fate of Atmospheric Trace Metals

Control and Fate of Atmospheric Trace Metals PDF Author: Jozef M. Pacyna
Publisher: Springer Science & Business Media
ISBN: 9400923155
Category : Science
Languages : en
Pages : 394

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Book Description
The increasing production of industrial goods, heat, and energy, as well as traffic, has led to the release of considerable amounts of toxic trace metals to the atmosphere. The result is elevated concentrations of toxic metals in local populations and eco systems. Recently the problem of atmospheric long-range transport of trace metals has also been recognized. Significant amounts of these pollutants are disposed and deposited both on regional and global scales. In the atmosphere they may influence the chemical reactions. Of particular interest is their catalytic effect on the oxidation prosesses taking place in water droplets or on the surface of wet particles (e. g. the oxidation of sulphur dioxide to sulphate), however, the main environmental impact starts when the atmospheric trace metals are deposited on ground and vegetation and subsequently brought into the water circulation. During the later years significant progress has been made in the development of equipment to reduce and control the atmospheric emissions of toxic trace metals. This particularly applies to electrostatic precipitators and wet scrubbers for the collection of fine particles. The main objective of the workshop was to survey present knowledge concerning the sources, atmospheric fluxes, sinks and chemical impact of the atmospheric trace metals, and to review the developments of emission control equipment and the perspectives to reduce the potential risks from toxic metals. During the first two days of the meeting, 15 invited review papers were presented.

Contaminated Forests

Contaminated Forests PDF Author: Igor Linkov
Publisher: Springer Science & Business Media
ISBN: 9401146942
Category : Technology & Engineering
Languages : en
Pages : 417

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Book Description
Concentrations of pollutants in the atmosphere have increased dramatically over the last century and many of these changes are attributable to anthropogenic activities. The influence of acid rain has been well studied, but there has been no extensive exploration of other pollutants, such as toxic chemicals, heavy metals and radionuclides. Natural ecosystems, especially forests, tend to accumulate many of these pollutants which subsequently can affect ecosystem health. These contaminants may be very damaging to the environment in Eastern Europe, where the rapid disappearance of forest is the result not only of contamination but also of poor forest management practices. The current book is designed to reduce the uncertainty in our current knowledge of forest radioecology. The three topics it embraces are (a) Modelling, (b) Measurements and Data, and (c) Countermeasures and Risk Assessment.

The Fate of Persistent Organic Pollutants in the North Sea

The Fate of Persistent Organic Pollutants in the North Sea PDF Author: Tatjana P. Ilyina
Publisher: Springer Science & Business Media
ISBN: 3540681639
Category : Law
Languages : en
Pages : 140

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Book Description
This book provides a description of FANTOM, an ocean model, that has been developed to investigate the fate of selected POPs in the North Sea. The main focus of the model is on quantifying the distribution of persistent organic pollutants (POPs) and their aquatic pathways. The model was applied for the southern North Sea and tested by studying the behavior of g-HCH, a-HCH and PCB 153 in sea water.

Abstracts of Scientific Papers Presented at ... Statutory Meeting

Abstracts of Scientific Papers Presented at ... Statutory Meeting PDF Author: International Council for the Exploration of the Sea. Statutory Meeting
Publisher:
ISBN:
Category : Fisheries
Languages : en
Pages : 350

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Book Description


Air Pollution in the Ural Mountains

Air Pollution in the Ural Mountains PDF Author: Igor Linkov
Publisher: Springer Science & Business Media
ISBN: 940115208X
Category : Science
Languages : en
Pages : 443

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Book Description
Mankind has created pollution, and has suffered its consequences since time immemorial. This has intesified greatly since the industrial revolution. One of the main problems in society, and a major function of government is how to cope with this pollution. 80 years ago the maxim used to be "the solution to pollution is dilution"; to dilute any pollted water supply in a large river, or to build a tall chimney stack to dilute air pollutants into the air so that concentrations of pollutants are always low. Since 1950 western countries have gone further and made major attempts to reduce the emissions of the most important pollutants. The discussion of what is an important pollutant has changed. To S02 and heavy metals such as cadmium or arsenic we now add fine particles and even (when we discuss global climate change) C02. The experience and practice of the western countries was only partly followed in the USSR (although the switch from use of coal to natural gas in major cities around 1970 was very important). Since the collapse of the USSR it has become fashionable both in the west and inside Russia to blame all society's ills on pollution. The statistics do not bear out that conclusion, but pollution remains an important issue which can be reduced without significant detriment to other societal values.

Air Pollution Modeling and Its Application VIII

Air Pollution Modeling and Its Application VIII PDF Author: H. Van Dop
Publisher: Springer Science & Business Media
ISBN: 1461537207
Category : Science
Languages : en
Pages : 759

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Book Description
In 1949, when the North Atlantic Treaty was ratified, one of its articles explicitly noted '1hat member countries should contribute towards the further development of peaceful and friendly international relations." Specific problems related to the human environment were addressed by the Committee of Challenges of Modern Society (CCMS) of NATO, established in 1969. This provided a framework within which a series of International Technical Meetings (ITMs) on Air Pollution Modelling has been held. This volume documents the proceedings of the 18th meeting in this series. Science, like the arts and sports, provides an ideal vehicle for "developing peaceful and friendly international relations". National boundaries have never been barriers to the movement of air pollution, and fortunately this has also proved true of scientists studying the transport of air pollution. It is thus satisfying to record that since the mid-seventies it has been commonplace to find Eastern European scientists among attendees at the ITMs which have (in a very modest way) participated in a precursor to the process which has led to historical changes in Europe and which will undoubtedly lead to a tremendous increase in personal and intellectual exchange on a worldwide basis.