The dominant Ulva strain of the 2008 green algal bloom in the Yellow Sea was not detected in the coastal waters of Qingdao in the following winter

The region of Qingdao, China, experienced the world's largest green tide from May to July 2008. More than one million tons of fresh algal biomass of the green alga Ulva prolifera was harvested, while more was suspected to have sunk to the bottom. The original source of this seaweed was suspected to be from the south as revealed by satellite images. The floating biomass drifted with the water current northward and flourished in nearshore waters around Qingdao. However, direct biological evidence for "seed" source is lacking. It is still unclear whether this alga could survive the Qingdao local coastal environment and pose future danger of potential blooming. Systematic and seasonal sampling of waters in the intertidal zone at six collection sites along the Qingdao coast was conducted from December 2008 to April 2009. Forty-eight water samples were analyzed. From these, nine different morphotypes of Ulva were grown in the laboratory under standard temperature and light regimes. Growth of Ulva was observed in all water samples. However, molecular phylogenetic analyses revealed that the dominant U. prolifera strain of the 2008 bloom was absent in all the water-derived cultures during the sampling period. These results provide evidence that the dominant bloom-forming alga was unlikely able to survive the coastal waters (the minimal surface water temperature in February is 2A degrees C) in winter conditions in Qingdao, even though all the sampling locations were heavily covered by this alga in June 2008.

桑沟湾贝藻养殖区附着生物生态效应研究

附着生物又称污损生物，是附生在海洋设施和生物体表面的动物、植物和微生物等生物的总称（Azis et al., 2001）。附生在养殖器材和生物体表面的数量巨大的附着生物，对贝类养殖和海湾生态系统内的物质和营养盐循环等多个方面产生影响。本研究以北方重要的养殖海湾----桑沟湾为研究对象，对贝藻养殖区附着生物的群落演替及其生态效应进行了研究。主要研究结果如下： ① 2007年5月至2008年5月，采用挂网的方法对桑沟湾栉孔扇贝和海带混养区的附着生物的季节变化进行了研究。结果显示挂网上的附着生物具有显著的季节变化特征，网片上的附着生物湿重与水温的变化相一致，生物量为3~1210 g•m-2。2月份附着生物的生物量最低，8月份最高。2007年9月至11月，对栉孔扇贝养殖笼上和贝壳上的附着生物种类和数量进行了研究。结果显示9月份养殖笼上附着生物的湿重约为1.94 kg，10月份降至0.99 kg，11月份又稍有增加，为1.03 kg。扇贝壳上的附着生物变化趋势与养殖笼上的相同，9~11月份壳上附着生物的数量约0.49~2.09 g。扇贝养殖笼上可鉴定的大型附着生物约23种，包括藻类、海鞘类、苔藓虫类、环节动物、腔肠动物、软体动物、甲壳动物和海绵动物等。玻璃海鞘、柄海鞘、紫贻贝和苔藓虫等是附着生物群落中的优势种。 ② 通过在栉孔扇贝和虾夷扇贝上壳上添加不同重量的“模拟附着生物”（速凝水泥）的方法，研究了贝壳上附着生物的重量对这两种扇贝生长和存活的影响。结果显示水泥重量是上壳重0.5-3倍的各组实验组扇贝的生长和存活与对照组（未添加水泥的扇贝）之间没有显著差异。说明贝壳上附着生物重量为上壳的3倍重时，也不会显著影响扇贝生长存活。9-11月份贝壳上的自然附着生物的重量约为1.47-2.09 g，为上壳重的28.16 (±38.6)%—31.29 ± (31.63)%。因此，贝壳上附着的生物重量不太可能对扇贝的生长存活造成显著的负面影响。 ③ 在桑沟湾现场测定了玻璃海鞘和柄海鞘的生物沉积速率。9月份（水温约24℃）玻璃海鞘和柄海鞘的生物沉积速率分别为32.14和90.06 mg•ind-1•d-1或（858.99 和467.76 mg•gdw-1•d-1），据此计算，养殖笼上的两种海鞘的生物沉积速率约为84.29 mg•m-2•d-1。海区的自然沉积速率为41.49 mg•m-2•d-1；玻璃海鞘和柄海鞘沉积物中有机质含量分别为14.34%和13.77%，对照组海区自然的有机质含量为14.36%；以上三者有机碳的含量分别为24.72%，23.74%和24.76%；氮的含量分别为0.27%和0.25%，自然沉积物中的氮含量为0.30%。9月份扇贝养殖笼上附着的海鞘将产生2588.16吨的沉积物，即向底部沉积363.77吨的有机物、6.99吨的氮和1.79吨的磷。 ④ 通过测定扇贝养殖笼上优势种附着生物--玻璃海鞘、柄海鞘和贻贝的摄食、呼吸和排泄，研究了这些优势种类对贝类养殖和海湾环境的影响。9月份（水温约24.5℃）玻璃海鞘和柄海鞘对颗粒有机物（POM）的摄食率分别为14.30 和17.01 mg• h-1•ind-1。根据实验结果计算这两种海鞘摄取的颗粒有机物相当于312个扇贝的摄取量，大于笼内养殖的扇贝的摄取量；玻璃海鞘和柄海鞘的耗氧率分别约为0.32和0.18 mg•h-1•ind-1，养殖笼上的这两种海鞘消耗的溶解氧约等于75个扇贝消耗的溶解氧。栉孔扇贝、玻璃海鞘、柄海鞘和贻贝的排氨率分别为33.66 ±11.34，117.90±23.46，35.91±6.22，28.08±3.41 ug NH4-N•gdw-1•h-1。以此估算，9月份玻璃海鞘、柄海鞘和贻贝每天排泄的氨氮约为654.08 kg，相当于16467吨栉孔扇贝（鲜重）排泄的氨氮。海鞘和贻贝排泄的氨氮可提供浮游植物等所需的2.75%的氮，可以提供1204吨海带的生长所需的氮。 ⑤ 一个养殖笼内的栉孔扇贝和全部附着生物（Scallop Culture Unit, SCU）在夏季（6-9月）对颗粒有机物的摄食速率约为43.13-98.94 mg/h，平均74.05 mg/h，期间桑沟湾养殖的栉孔扇贝及附着生物摄取的POM约为1279.58吨；同期，SCU对氨氮和磷（PO4-P）的排泄速率分别为125.59-1432.23 μmol•h-1和76.2-252.89μmol•h-1，期间桑沟湾养殖扇贝及附着生物排泄的氮磷分别为211.09 吨和83.79 吨。一串牡蛎及吊绳和牡蛎壳上的附着生物（Oyster Culture Unit, OCU），夏季摄食率为5-41.43μmol•h-1，耗氧率为16.54-41.76μmol•h-1，对氨氮和磷（PO4-P）的排泄速率分别为35.56-489.34μmol•h-1 和9.92-16.68μmol•h-1。以此估算，夏季OCU可摄取POM535.68吨，消耗溶解氧955.58吨，排泄氮磷分别为62.37 吨和15.50 吨。

Environmental and health effects associated with Harmful Algal Bloom and marine algal toxins in China

The frequency and scale of Harmful Algal Bloom (HAB) and marine algal toxin incidents have been increasing and spreading in the past two decades, causing damages to the marine environment and threatening human life through contaminated seafood. To better understand the effect of HAB and marine algal toxins on marine environment and human health in China, this paper overviews HAB occurrence and marine algal toxin incidents, as well as their environmental and health effects in this country. HAB has been increasing rapidly along the Chinese coast since the 1970s, and at least 512 documented HAB events have occurred from 1952 to 2002 in the Chinese mainland. It has been found that PSP and DSP toxins are distributed widely along both the northern and southern Chinese coasts. The HAB and marine algal toxin events during the 1990s in China were summarized, showing that the HAB and algal toxins resulted in great damages to local fisheries, marine culture, quality of marine environment, and human health. Therefore, to protect the coastal environment and human health, attention to HAB and marine algal toxins is urgently needed from the environmental and epidemiological view.

Copper complexation by fulvic acid affects copper toxicity to the larvae of the polychaete Hydroides elegans

Copper toxicity is influenced by a variety of environmental factors including dissolved organic matter (DOM). We examined the complexation of copper by fulvic acid (FA), one of the major components of DOM, by measuring the decline in labile copper by anodic stripping voltammetrically (ASV). The data were described using a one-site ligand binding model, with a ligand concentration of 0.19 mu mol site mg(-1) C, and a logK' of 6.2. The model was used to predict labile copper concentration in a bioassay designed to quantify the extent to which Cu-FA complexation affected copper toxicity to the larvae of marine polychaete Hydroides elegans. The toxicity data, when expressed as labile copper concentration causing abnormal development, were independent of FA concentration and could be modeled as a logistic function, with a 48-h EC50 of 58.9 mu g 1(-1). However, when the data were expressed as a function of total copper concentration, the toxicity was dependent on FA concentration, with a 48-h EC50 ranging from 55.6 mu g 1(-1) in the no-FA control to 137.4 mu g 1(-1) in the 20 mg 1(-1) FA treatment. Thus, FA was protective against copper toxicity to the larvae, and such an effect was caused by the reduction in labile copper due to Cu-FA complexation. Our results demonstrate the potential of ASV as a useful tool for predicting metal toxicity to the larvae in coastal environment where DOM plays an important role in complexing metal ions. (c) 2007 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.

Industrial development and land use/cover change and their effects on local environment: a case study of Changshu in eastern coastal China

The interactions among industrial development, land use/cover change (LUCC), and environmental effects in Changshu in the eastern coastal China were analyzed using high-resolution Landsat TM data in 1990, 1995, 2000, and 2006, socio-economic data and water environmental quality monitoring data from research institutes and governmental departments. Three phases of industrial development in Changshu were examined (i.e., the three periods of 1990 to 1995, 1995 to 2000, and 2000 to 2006). Besides industrial development and rapid urbanization, land use/cover in Changshu had changed drastically from 1990 to 2006. This change was characterized by major replacements of farmland by urban and rural settlements, artificial ponds, forested and constructed land. Industrialization, urbanization, agricultural structure adjustment, and rural housing construction were the major socio-economic driving forces of LUCC in Changshu. In addition, the annual value of ecosystem services in Changshu decreased slightly during 1990-2000, but increased significantly during 2000-2006. Nevertheless, the local environmental quality in Changshu, especially in rural areas, has not yet been improved significantly. Thus, this paper suggests an increased attention to fully realize the role of land supply in adjustment of environment-friendly industrial structure and urban-rural spatial restructuring, and translating the land management and environmental protection policies into an optimized industrial distribution and land-use pattern.

Response of coastal marine eco-environment to river fluxes into the sea: A case study of the Huanghe (Yellow) River mouth and adjacent waters

The impact of the Huanghe (Yellow) River outflows on its estuary was investigated with river gauging and shipboard hydrographic observations. The river flux has been decreasing dramatically; the discharges of water and sediment in the 1990s dropped to 27.4% and 31.9% of those in the 1950s, respectively, resulting in frequent and lengthy events of downstream channel dry-up since the 1970s. There were accumulatively 897 zero-flow days during the 1990s in the river course below the Lijin Hydrological Station, 100 km upstream from the river mouth, which is 82.4% of that in 1972. As freshwater input decreases, river-borne nutrients to the estuarine increased significantly. Concentration of dissolved inorganic nitrogen (DIN) in the 1990s was four times of that in 1950s. Changes in amount and content of the riverine inputs have greatly affected the estuarine ecosystem. Over the past several decades, sea surface temperature and salinity in the estuary and its adjacent waters increased and their distribution pattern altered in response to the reduction of freshwater inflow. The distribution of and seasonal succession in nutrient concentrations in the surface layer have also changed with a shift of river outlet and the decrease in riverine nutrient loads. Furthermore, deterioration of estuarine ecosystem by less river input has decreased primary productivity in the deltaic region waters, and in turn depressed the fishery. (C) 2008 Published by Elsevier Ltd.

Sedimentary records of water environment in lake Chaohu in the Yangtze delta region, China

Three lacustrine core samples were collected from Chaohu lake in December 2002 in the Yangtze delta region. The grain sizes were analyzed using a Laser Analyzer to obtain grain-size parameters. Sediment geochronology was determined in radioisotopes Cs-137 and the average sedimentary rates are 0.29cm.a(-1), 0.35 cm.a(-1) and 0.24cm-a(-1) in Cores C 1, C2 and C3, respectively. The grain-size parameters of the deposits vary regularly with the fluctuation of hydrodynamics. From 1950s to the beginning of 20th century, coarse-grained sediment was deposited, suggesting strong hydraulic conditions and high water-level periods with much precipitation; from the start of 20(th) century to latter half of 18(th) century, fine-grained sediment was deposited, indicating that weak hydraulic conditions and low water-level periods with less precipitation; before the first half of 18(th) century, coarse-grained sediment was deposited, suggesting great velocity of flow and high water-level periods of more precipitation.

Sustainable development of coastal and marine areas in small island developing states: A basis for integrated coastal management

Agenda 21, the 40-chapter action plan, agreed to by all nations participating in the 1992 Earth Summit represents an ambitious effort to provide policy guidance across the entire spectrum of environment, development, and social issues confronting mankind. In the area of oceans and coasts (Chapter 17 of Agenda 21), the Earth Summit underscored that the management of oceans and coasts should be ‘integrated in content and anticipatory in ambit.’ To assist those responsible for implementing the Earth Summit guidelines on ocean and coastal management, this article first reviews the fundamental shift in paradigm reflected in the Earth Summit agreements as well as the specific recommendations contained in Chapter 17. Next, the article examines the central concept of ‘integrated management,’ noting both its importance and its limits. A general or ‘synthesis’ model of ‘integrated coastal management’ is then presented, addressing such questions as management goals, what is being managed, where, how, and by whom. In a concluding section, methods are proposed whereby the general or ‘synthesis model’ can be tailored to diverse national contexts, involving varying physical, socio-economic, and political conditions.

A conceptual approach to integrated coastal management

This paper focuses on the concept of Integrated Coastal Management (ICM) putting the theoretical basis of Chapter 17, Agenda 21 (UN Conference on Environment and Development, UNCED), in relation to the theoretical backgrounds on which the development of coastal area programmes have been founded. Reasoning leads us to think that the general system theory is the proper conceptual basis to stimulate ICM and that, in this theoretical context, integration is to be pursued between (i) the claiming of national maritime jurisdictional belts and the protection of the coastal ecosystem, (ii) the coastal system and its external environment, (iii) the decision making systems acting at all levels (international, regional, national and local). Integration, therefore, should be thought of as a political process.

Integration' in the US coastal zone management program

The purpose of this paper is to examine the extent to which the existing US Coastal Zone Management (CZM) program represents Integrated Coastal Management (ICM). The actions taken at Rio de Janeiro in June 1992 as part of the United Nations Conference on Environment and Development (UNCED) could eventually impact the policies of the US in such a way as to encourage better integration of US coastal and ocean management efforts.

Particle-attached and free-living bacterial communities in a contrasting marine environment: Victoria Harbor, Hong Kong

Diversity of particle-attached and free-living marine bacteria in Victoria Harbor, Hong Kong, and its adjacent coastal and estuarial environments was investigated using DNA fingerprinting and clone library analysis. Denaturing gradient gel electrophoresis (DGGE) analysis of 16S rRNA genes showed that bacterial communities in three stations of Victoria Harbor were similar, but differed from those in adjacent coastal and estuarine stations. Particle-attached and free-living bacterial community composition differed in the Victoria Harbor area. DNA sequencing of 28 bands from DGGE gel showed Alphaproteobacteria was the most abundant group, followed by the Bacteroidetes, and other Proteobacteria. Bacterial species richness (number of DGGE bands) differed among stations and populations (particle-attached and free-living; bottom and surface). BIOENV analysis indicated that the concentrations of suspended solids were the major contributing parameter for the spatial variation of total bacterial community structure. Samples from representative stations were selected for clone library (548 clones) construction and their phylogenetic distributions were similar to those of sequences from DGGE. Approximately 80% of clones were affiliated to Proteobacteria, Bacteroidetes and Cyanobacteria. The possible influences of dynamic pollution and hydrological conditions in the Victoria Harbor area on the particle-attached and free-living bacterial community structures were discussed.