Evaluating impact on quality of water in the coast

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Scope

Does it raise or lower the quality of waters in coastal and marine areas (e.g. through discharges of sewage, nutrients, oil, heavy metals, and other pollutants)?[1]

Definition

Oceans and seas get seriously affected by humane emissions of nutrients and toxic substances both from land and air. Shipping, as one of the pollution sources, is still expanding, ships are also increasing in size. A serious problem especially regarding oil transportation is the occurrence of substandard vessels, which, in combination with insufficient maintenance, substantially increases the risk of accidents. But the worst infestation and production of long-lasting effects on natural environment and balance in coastal and marine areas is caused through (almost always illegal) discharges of oil and heavy metals.[1]

Another source of anthropogenic introduced change in coastal and marine water quality is the entry of pharmaceuticals, which has risen drastically. Residues of these active substances are flushed out through the wastewater of households and hospitals and reach the sea via municipal treatment plants.

Human pollution is still the main reason in most cases of coastal water´s overbalance and eutrophying. There can be different reasons for water to get overbalanced, e.g. a considerable saltwater discharge into the ocean in connection with little or no return flow. Eutrophying on the other hand, is mainly caused by discharge of sewage and nutrients. Eutrophication causes great problems in coastal waters and leads to more extensive algae blooms out at sea and more plankton. Shallow sandy bottoms are becoming overgrown with fine-threaded algae and the thereby caused oxygen deficiency in deep waters is threatening the natural ecosystems and reproduction.[1]

Result

Indicators:

There are no Eurostat Structural Indicators directly related to this key question.

There are no Eurostat Sustainable Development Indicators directly related to this key question but since wastewater treatment influences coastal and marine waters if discharged into the sea, two Sustainable Development Indicators related to the question can be found:

Additional Links:

Eurostat Theme indicators: See Screenshot for level on which to find Eurostat theme indicators on water:[2]

See Screenshot for level on which to find indicato

Eurostat Theme indicators: See Screenshot for level on which to find Eurostat Theme indicators on regional water statistics:[3]

See Screenshot for level on which to find indicato[1]

See also

European Environment Agency Indicators

EEA Water Indicators

covers inter alia

References

  1. ↑ Jump up to: 1.0 1.1 1.2 1.3 1.4 JRC: IA TOOLS. Supporting inpact assessment in the European Commission. [1]

This text is for information only and is not designed to interpret or replace any reference documents.

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