Methods of Pollution Removal After Tanker “Erika” Accident

Marine accident of the Maltese tanker Erika is the biggest environmental disaster ever to hit France. 12th of December 1999, on the way from Dunkerque (France) to Livorno (Italy), Erika broke in two and sank near the French coast, spilling around 20.000 tons of heavy fuel oil into the sea. About 11.000 tons of dangerous cargo, trapped inside the sunken wreck, presented a danger to the environment. Severe weather conditions prevented any offshore clean-up operations. Oil trapped inside the wreckage was pumped out, while the on-shore clean-up operations lasted for another two years. This accident had a direct impact on the economy of affected regions and resulted in numerous lawsuits against the ship owners, charterers and classification societies. This paper aims to provide an overview of oil spill pollution clean-up methods and technologies after the accident of tanker Erika

Određivanje toksičnosti sedimenta povezane s policikličkim aromatskim ugljikovodicima – PAH duž istočne obale Jadranskog mora

Polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAH) were investigated in the sediments at 24 locations in the coastal area of Adriatic Sea. Total PAH concentrations ranged from 14,98 to 26145,62 µg kg-1, with the highest levels determined in the sediments of Šibenik Bay and the lowest in the sediment near Island of Pag. Unsubstituted PAH were prevailing PAH group in the sediments from the Šibenik Bay and in the Coastal area, while methyl-substituted PAH were dominant group in the sediments of the Kaštela Bay. In order to estimate the possible toxicological significance of PAH concentrations, Sediment Quality Assessment was done according to three different sets of sediment quality guidelines. A high environmental risk was calculated for each station in Šibenik Bay; for the station in vicinity of the Industrial port of Split and for the two stations in Coastal zone. Low environmental risk was determined in less urbanised areas such as Island of Pag. Sediment extracts were further analysed for acute toxicity by measurements of decrease in bioluminescence upon exposure to sediment extracts. Obtained results show disagreement between sediment toxicity predicted upon PAH levels in sediment and experimentally obtained sediment toxicity. Sediment extracts in which low PAH levels were measured showed high acute toxicity indicating that concentrations of PAH alone are a poor indicator of sediment toxicity. Correlation analysis between concentrations of specific PAH compounds and toxicity revealed the strongest association between acute sediment toxicity and sulphur-containing PAH suggesting the S-PAH should be considered in sediment toxicity assessment.Policiklički aromatski ugljikovodici - PAH istraživani su u sedimentu na 24 lokacije u priobalnom području Jadranskog mora. Ukupna koncentracija PAH-ova u sedimentu (T-PAH) iznosila je od 14,98 do 26415 µg kg-1. Najviša vrijednost masenog udjela T-PAH –ova izmjerena je u sedimentu Šibenskog zaljeva. Na većini postaja u Priobalnom području te na svim postajama u Šibenskom zaljevu, ne-supstituirani PAH-ovi bili su dominantni spojevi u sedimentu; dok je sediment na svim postajama u Kaštelanskom zaljevu bio obogaćen metil-supstituiranim PAH-ovima (Me-PAH). Kako bi se odredila toksičnost sedimenta te procijenila opasnost za zdravlje okoliša, kvaliteta sedimenta istražena je primjenom triju različitih smjernica za procjenu stanja sedimenta - SQG. Visok rizik za okoliš izračunat je za sve lokacije u Šibenskom zaljevu; za jednu postaju u Kaštelanskom zaljevu, smještenu u blizini industrijske luke Split; te za dvije postaje u priobalju. Nizak rizik za zdravlje okoliša utvrđen je na postajama udaljenim od urbanih područja kao što je otok Pag. Akutna toksičnost sedimenta dodatno je analizirana mjerenjem smanjenja intenziteta bakterijske bioluminiscencije nakon izlaganja ekstraktima uzoraka sedimenta. Dobiveni rezultati o akutnoj toksičnosti razlikuju se od rezultata dobivenih primjenom smjernica za procjenu kvalitete sedimenta. Ekstrakti uzoraka sedimenta u kojima su izmjerene niske vrijednosti masenih udjela PAH-ova uzrokovali su visoku akutnu toksičnost iz čega proizlazi da procjena toksičnosti sedimenta uzimanjem u obzir samo masenih udjela PAH-ova u sedimentu nije dobar pokazatelj stanja toksičnosti sedimenta. Analizom korelacije između masenih udjela specifičnih grupa PAH-ova u sedimentu i akutne toksičnosti ekstrakata sedimenta, utvrđena je jaka povezanost toksičnosti sa skupinom PAH-ova koji u svojoj strukturi sadrže atom sumpora (S-PAH), što upućuje da je prilikom procjene stanja sedimenta potrebno uzeti u obzir i S-PAH-ove

Methods of Pollution Removal after Tanker “Erika” Accident

Marine accident of the Maltese tanker Erika is the biggest environmental disaster ever to hit France. 12th of December 1999, on the way from Dunkerque (France) to Livorno (Italy), Erika broke in two and sank near the French coast, spilling around 20.000 tons of heavy fuel oil into the sea. About 11.000 tons of dangerous cargo, trapped inside the sunken wreck, presented a danger to the environment. Severe weather conditions prevented any offshore clean-up operations. Oil trapped inside the wreckage was pumped out, while the on-shore clean-up operations lasted for another two years. This accident had a direct impact on the economy of affected regions and resulted in numerous lawsuits against the ship owners, charterers and classification societies. This paper aims to provide an overview of oil spill pollution clean-up methods and technologies after the accident of tanker Erika

Application of Positive Matrix Factorization for Source Apportionment of Polycyclic Aromatic Hydrocarbons (PAH) in the Adriatic Sea, and the Evaluation of PAH-Related Carcinogenic Risks

Concentrations of polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAH) were studied in 36 sediment samples collected from 29 sites in the central Adriatic Sea. The total concentration of PAH showed high variability, ranging from 42.85 µg kg−1 in open sea sediments to 28,662 µg kg−1 in the sediments of Šibenik Bay. Unsubstituted, parent PAH were dominant PAH compounds in the entire area of Šibenik Bay and most of the stations in the coastal area. In Kaštela Bay, methyl PAH concentrations were higher than the concentrations of unsubstituted PAH, whereas in the sediments along the mid-Adriatic transect, similar concentrations of both PAH fractions were determined. PAH sources were investigated by applying the Positive Matrix Factorization software developed by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (USEPA). The results indicate the presence of four sources, two of which can be considered petrogenic and two pyrogenic. The contribution of the sources to the total concentration PAH at each station indicates the dominance of pyrogenic sources in Šibenik Bay and at most stations in the coastal area. In the sediments along the mid-Adriatic transversal, as well as in Kaštela Bay, PAHs originate mainly from petrogenic sources. The obtained results show that PMF can be a suitable tool for control of PAH pollution and thus, for the management of various activities in the Adriatic region. Seasonal differences between the contributions of sources in the Kaštela and Šibenik bays indicate that the contribution of traffic to the total concentration of PAH was higher during the tourist season. The carcinogenic risk of PAH determined by toxicity equivalent (TEQ) calculations showed an increased carcinogenic risk in the whole area of Šibenik Bay, regardless of the number of PAH compounds considered for the calculations. A low PAH-related carcinogenic risk was found for the rest of the study area