Increased maritime traffic in the Arctic: Implications for governance of Arctic sea routes

Boylan, Brandon M.

doi:10.1016/j.marpol.2021.104566

Cited by 37 publications

(18 citation statements)

References 44 publications

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“…However, petroleum hydrocarbons released into the marine environment also derive from anthropogenic activities such as the drilling, manufacturing, storing, and transporting of crude oil and its products [4]. In the Arctic marine environment, the risk of oil spills is increasing due to climate change that enables the prolonged and more frequent usage of Arctic sea routes [5,6].…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Assessment of Hydrocarbon Degradation Potential in Microbial Communities in Arctic Sea Ice

et al. 2022

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The anthropogenic release of oil hydrocarbons into the cold marine environment is an increasing concern due to the elevated usage of sea routes and the exploration of new oil drilling sites in Arctic areas. The aim of this study was to evaluate prokaryotic community structures and the genetic potential of hydrocarbon degradation in the metagenomes of seawater, sea ice, and crude oil encapsulating the sea ice of the Norwegian fjord, Ofotfjorden. Although the results indicated substantial differences between the structure of prokaryotic communities in seawater and sea ice, the crude oil encapsulating sea ice (SIO) showed increased abundances of many genera-containing hydrocarbon-degrading organisms, including Bermanella, Colwellia, and Glaciecola. Although the metagenome of seawater was rich in a variety of hydrocarbon degradation-related functional genes (HDGs) associated with the metabolism of n-alkanes, and mono- and polyaromatic hydrocarbons, most of the normalized gene counts were highest in the clean sea ice metagenome, whereas in SIO, these counts were the lowest. The long-chain alkane degradation gene almA was detected from all the studied metagenomes and its counts exceeded ladA and alkB counts in both sea ice metagenomes. In addition, almA was related to the most diverse group of prokaryotic genera. Almost all 18 good- and high-quality metagenome-assembled genomes (MAGs) had diverse HDGs profiles. The MAGs recovered from the SIO metagenome belonged to the abundant taxa, such as Glaciecola, Bermanella, and Rhodobacteracea, in this environment. The genera associated with HDGs were often previously known as hydrocarbon-degrading genera. However, a substantial number of new associations, either between already known hydrocarbon-degrading genera and new HDGs or between genera not known to contain hydrocarbon degraders and multiple HDGs, were found. The superimposition of the results of comparing HDG associations with taxonomy, the HDG profiles of MAGs, and the full genomes of organisms in the KEGG database suggest that the found relationships need further investigation and verification.

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Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Assessment of Hydrocarbon Degradation Potential in Microbial Communities in Arctic Sea Ice

et al. 2022

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“…Marine ecosystems are exposed to petroleum hydrocarbons through a variety of natural mechanisms, such as natural seeps, and anthropogenic activities, such as accidental oil spills during oil production and transport. Climate change has elevated the risk of crude oil spillage, especially in cold Arctic marine environments, where the severely reduced sea-ice-covered area has enabled the growth of oil exploration activity as well as prolonged and more frequent usage of Arctic shipping routes [1]. In Arctic regions, the complete clean-up of oil spills using traditional methods such as skimmers or beams is often challenging due to remote or poorly accessible locations and extreme weather conditions [2].…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Microbial Community Dynamics during Biodegradation of Crude Oil and Its Response to Biostimulation in Svalbard Seawater at Low Temperature

et al. 2021

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The development of oil exploration activities and an increase in shipping in Arctic areas have increased the risk of oil spills in this cold marine environment. The objective of this experimental study was to assess the effect of biostimulation on microbial community abundance, structure, dynamics, and metabolic potential for oil hydrocarbon degradation in oil-contaminated Arctic seawater. The combination of amplicon-based and shotgun sequencing, together with the integration of genome-resolved metagenomics and omics data, was applied to assess microbial community structure and metabolic properties in naphthenic crude oil-amended microcosms. The comparison of estimates for oil-degrading microbial taxa obtained with different sequencing and taxonomic assignment methods showed substantial discrepancies between applied methods. Consequently, the data acquired with different methods was integrated for the analysis of microbial community structure, and amended with quantitative PCR, producing a more objective description of microbial community dynamics and evaluation of the effect of biostimulation on particular microbial taxa. Implementing biostimulation of the seawater microbial community with the addition of nutrients resulted in substantially elevated prokaryotic community abundance (103-fold), a distinctly different bacterial community structure from that in the initial seawater, 1.3-fold elevation in the normalized abundance of hydrocarbon degradation genes, and 12% enhancement of crude oil biodegradation. The bacterial communities in biostimulated microcosms after four months of incubation were dominated by Gammaproteobacterial genera Pseudomonas, Marinomonas, and Oleispira, which were succeeded by Cycloclasticus and Paraperlucidibaca after eight months of incubation. The majority of 195 compiled good-quality metagenome-assembled genomes (MAGs) exhibited diverse hydrocarbon degradation gene profiles. The results reveal that biostimulation with nutrients promotes naphthenic oil degradation in Arctic seawater, but this strategy alone might not be sufficient to effectively achieve bioremediation goals within a reasonable timeframe.

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“…The Arctic remains a strategically important region. Maritime traffic in the Arctic is governed by global, regional, and bilateral agreements and national policies, some of which contradict one another (Boylan, 2016). International shipping and national security interests, both military and commercial, coupled with decreased sea ice, are expected to allow increased vessel traffic across the Northern Sea Route (NSR) north of Russia, the Northwest Passage (NWP) north of the U.S., Canada, and Greenland, and across the North Pole in the decades to come (Stephenson et al, 2011;Smith and Stephenson, 2013).…”

Section: Conclusion and Recommendationsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Biologically important areas II for cetaceans in U.S. and adjacent waters - Arctic region

et al. 2023

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We delineated and scored Biologically Important Areas (BIAs) in the Arctic region. The Arctic region extends from the Bering Strait to the Chukchi Sea, Beaufort Sea, Amundsen Gulf, and Viscount Melville Sound. This NOAA-led effort uses structured elicitation principles to build upon the first version of NOAA BIAs (BIA I) for cetaceans. In addition to narratives, maps, and metadata tables, BIA II products incorporated a scoring and labeling system to improve their utility and interpretability. BIAs are compilations of the best available science and have no inherent regulatory authority. They have been used by NOAA, other federal agencies, and the public to support marine spatial planning and marine mammal impact assessments, and to inform the development of conservation measures for cetaceans. Supporting evidence for Arctic BIA II came from data derived from aerial-, land-, and vessel-based surveys; satellite telemetry; passive acoustic monitoring; Indigenous knowledge; photo-identification; aboriginal subsistence harvests, including catch and sighting locations and stomach contents; and prey studies. BIAs were identified for bowhead (Balaena mysticetus), gray (Eschrichtius robustus), humpback (Megaptera novaeangliae), fin (Balaenoptera physalus), and beluga (Delphinapterus leucas) whales. In total, 44 BIAs were delineated and scored for the Arctic, including 12 reproduction, 24 feeding, and 8 migration BIAs. BIAs were identified in all months except January-March. Fifteen candidate areas did not have sufficient information to delineate as BIAs and were added to a watch list for future consideration in the BIA process. Some BIAs were transboundary between the Arctic region and the Aleutian Islands-Bering Sea region. Several BIAs were transnational, extending into territorial waters of Russia (in the Chukchi Sea) and Canada (in the Beaufort Sea), and a few BIAs were delineated in international waters.

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Increased maritime traffic in the Arctic: Implications for governance of Arctic sea routes

Cited by 37 publications

References 44 publications

Assessment of Hydrocarbon Degradation Potential in Microbial Communities in Arctic Sea Ice

Assessment of Hydrocarbon Degradation Potential in Microbial Communities in Arctic Sea Ice

Microbial Community Dynamics during Biodegradation of Crude Oil and Its Response to Biostimulation in Svalbard Seawater at Low Temperature

Biologically important areas II for cetaceans in U.S. and adjacent waters - Arctic region

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