Pollution Studies with Marine Plankton
1979; Elsevier BV; Linguagem: Inglês
10.1016/s0065-2881(08)60407-1
ISSN2162-5875
Autores Tópico(s)Oil Spill Detection and Mitigation
ResumoMarine organisms, including plankton, having been exposed to petroleum hydrocarbons released from submarine seeps throughout geological time, are likely to have evolved physiological and biochemical mechanisms allowing them to adapt to the presence of small quantities of these compounds in their natural environment. As studies with planktonic organisms have shown that certain groups of hydrocarbons and related compounds present in crude oil possess considerable toxicity, future analyses of petroleum compounds in sea water, both in the dissolved and particulate forms, and especially from areas affected by chronic oil spills, should be primarily concerned with identifying and measuring the levels of these more toxic components. Such levels should then be compared with those needed to produce measurable biological effects in short- and long-term toxicity studies. Recent toxicity studies with zooplankton have incorporated continuous-flow methods, or variations thereof, together with monitoring of hydrocarbon levels throughout the experiments. Such techniques, although time-consuming, should also be applied in future work concerned with sub-acute long-term effects.
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