Integrated environmental characterization of the contaminated marine coastal area of Taranto, Ionian Sea (southern Italy)

Cardellicchio, Nicola; Covelli, Stefano; Cibic, Tamara

doi:10.1007/s11356-016-6836-5

Cited by 16 publications

(12 citation statements)

References 22 publications

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“…Several studies from coastal and estuarine areas have demonstrated that exposure to chemical contaminants negatively affects fish growth (Amara, Selleslagh, Billon, & Minier, ; Burke, Peters, & Hanson, ; Gilliers et al, ; Marchand, Tanguy, Laroche, Quiniou, & Moraga, ), and could cause premature mortality (Ansari & Ansari, ; Choudhary & Bhardwaj, ), leading to a shortened life cycle. Taranto Mar Piccolo is affected by a wide spectrum of chemical stressors, including polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs), polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs), and dioxins (Cardellicchio et al, ; Cardellicchio, Covelli, & Cibic, ; Petronio et al, ), which are endocrine disruptors capable of causing precocious sexual maturity (Helfman, Collete, Facey, & Bowen, ; Johnson et al, ). At least for H. guttulatus , it is possible that the individuals at this site experience precocious sexual maturity, as they were found to be sexually mature at lower lengths (approximately 70 mm) than the value of 125 mm reported in the literature (Curtis & Vincent, ).…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…According to Woodall (2009), it is possible that the observed variability in population demography is a result of inherent characteristics of each seahorse population, implying variations in body length and size at maturity. One possible explanation for the decreased size at maturity could be fishing (Gwahaba, 1973;Olin et al, 2017;Ricker, 1981 (Cardellicchio et al, 2007;Cardellicchio, Covelli, & Cibic, 2016;Petronio et al, 2012), which are endocrine disruptors capable of causing precocious sexual maturity (Helfman, Collete, Facey, & Bowen, 2009;Johnson et al, 1998). At least for H. guttulatus, it is possible that the individuals at this site experience precocious sexual maturity, as they were found to be sexually mature at lower lengths (approximately 70 mm) than the value of 125 mm reported in the literature (Curtis & Vincent, 2006).…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Distribution and habitat preferences of Hippocampus species along the Apulian coast

Lazic

Pierri

Gristina

et al. 2018

Aquatic Conservation

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The aim of this study was to provide further knowledge of the ecological, spatial, and temporal distribution and life‐cycle traits of the sympatric seahorse species Hippocampus hippocampus and Hippocampus guttulatus. From 2011 to 2014, data were collected from 20 sites along the Apulian coast (Southern Italy) in order to cover a wide range of coastal marine, open water, and lagoon sites, from the surface to a depth of 48 metres. Seahorses were found at seven of the 20 sites investigated. Both species displayed temporal persistence, patchy distribution, and a high spatial demographic heterogeneity. This study revealed a smaller maximum size and size at maturity of H. guttulatus than has been reported elsewhere. Although it is possible that environmental factors are influencing the size of these animals, there may be genetic explanations, especially for lagoon populations. Despite the fragmented distribution and often low abundance found along the Apulian coast, some seahorse populations appear to be locally persistent and stable over time, suggesting that there is a need for appropriate location‐specific conservation strategies. Not just maintaining but increasing the area of artificial substrates, which enhance habitat complexity and provide holdfasts, could represent a possible approach to help conserve marine littoral biodiversity and to protect endangered species in lagoons.

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Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Distribution and habitat preferences of Hippocampus species along the Apulian coast

Lazic

Pierri

Gristina

et al. 2018

Aquatic Conservation

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“…The chemical analyses [29] show that, in the top layer, Pb, Cu, Zn reach the concentration of 784.80, 76.30, and 327.0 ppm, respectively, and PCBs assume as high values as 2.3 ppm. Further analyses carried out by Cardellicchio [61] on the A3-M sample (0-1 m bsf) offered an even more serious picture of the contamination in the top layer, since the concentration of As, Hg, Zn, and Cu exceeded the law limit values [34] in Table 1. The chemical investigation of sediments carried out along A3CHEM borehole (Figure 1b) confirms the high content of organic matter in the shallow layer, since total organic carbon (TOC) [60], reduces from 8% in the first meter of sediments to 2.1% at depth [29].…”

Section: Physical Properties State and Chemical Compositionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Section: Physical Properties State and Chemical Compositionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Marine Sediments from a Contaminated Site: Geotechnical Properties and Chemo-Mechanical Coupling Processes

et al. 2019

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The city of Taranto in the south of Italy is one of the areas declared as "at high risk of environmental crisis" by the Italian government because it represents one of the most complex industrial sites in Europe, located near urban areas of high population density. The rich ecosystem of the Mar Piccolo basin, located at north of Taranto, started exhibiting unconfutable signs of environmental pollution, confirmed by the high concentrations of organic and inorganic contaminants. Among the different aspects involved in the environmental studies aiming at the basin remediation, this paper focuses on submarine sediments and reports some results of the geotechnical laboratory investigations which made also use of non-standard equipment and revised procedures for data interpretation in order to take account of the sediments' contamination and heterogeneities. The geotechnical laboratory tests show that, despite the Mar Piccolo recent Holocene sediments having similar origin and composition to those of the Sub-Apennine clay basic formation, their behavioral facets appear to be altered by the presence of contaminants of both natural and anthropogenic origin. Results of washing tests are also presented as a first attempt to quantify the effects of chemo-mechanical coupling processes on the plasticity properties of the shallow sediments.Geosciences 2019, 9, 333 2 of 20 of chemo-mechanical coupling processes on the index properties of kaolinite, smectite, and mixed clay samples, observed after mixing the clay with solutions of different chemical compositions were discussed by several authors [3][4][5][6][7][8]. The potential of chemical-mechanical coupling is greatest in fine-grained soils at low confinement and such coupling may prompt highly variable effects for different clay fabric conditions [9]. In this context, the research on Mar Piccolo (MP) sediments aims to add an original contribution on the behavior of fine-grained sediments affected by a real pattern of contamination.The MP basin in the South of Italy represents a natural site characterized by the presence of contaminants of different sources and composition. The basin is located just behind the coast of the city of Taranto (Figure 1a), one of the most important industrial sites in Europe and represents, at the same time, an unusual ecosystem from a naturalistic point of view, with several animal and plant protected species and wide areas for mussel cultivation and fishing activity. Due to these peculiar conditions, the MP basin has been declared 'at high risk of environmental crisis' [10] and included in the list of the Sites of National Interest (SIN; [11]), to be subjected to comprehensive investigation for a preliminary selection of sustainable strategies for both its remediation and management. The paper shows the environmental boundary conditions of the MP and focuses on the results of geotechnical characterisation of marine sediments, that has been carried out to derive a geotechnical model of the area up to depths of engineering interest. The data of so...

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“…(above ground resolution) for detecting and mapping the phytoplankton population and Chl a, within the Mar Piccolo of Taranto, characterized by shallow waters, likely case II (Borfecchia et al, 2018a). This confined sea is located in the Ionian Sea (southern Italy) coastal area of Taranto, which is densely populated and at a high risk of environmental crisis (Cardellicchio, Covelli, & Cibic, 2016), due to the concentration of different impact factors which mainly arise from local anthropogenic activities. Thus the information provided by OLI sensor have been exploited for phytoplankton and Chl a mapping, using some multispectral images taken in 2013 over the Mar Piccolo of Taranto and calibrated by means of near synchronous sea truth data, acquired within the framework of the project "RITMARE (la Ricerca ITaliana per il MARE -Italian Research for the sea).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Multispectral data by the new generation of high-resolution satellite sensors for mapping phytoplankton blooms in the Mar Piccolo of Taranto (Ionian Sea, southern Italy)

Borfecchia

Micheli

Cibic

et al. 2019

European Journal of Remote Sensing

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The HR (High-Resolution) EO (Earth Observation) satellite systems Landsat 8 OLI and Sentinel 2 were tested for mapping the frequent phytoplankton blooms and Chl a distributions in the sea basin of the Mar Piccolo of Taranto (Ionian Sea, southern Italy), using the sea truth calibration data acquired in 2013. The data were atmospherically corrected for accounting of the aerosol load on optically complexes waters (case II). Various blue-green and additional spectral indices ratios, were then satisfyingly tested for mapping the distribution of Chl a and differently sized phytoplankton populations through PLS (Partial Least Square regression) models, regressive statistical models and bio-optical algorithms. The PLS models demonstrated higher robustness for assessing the distribution of all the phytoplankton and Chl a except for those related to sub-surface micro-phytoplankton. The distributions obtained via a bio-optical approach (OC3 algorithm and full physically based inversion) showed a general agreement with the previous ones produced by statistical methods. The reflectance signals, captured by OLI and Sentinel 2 sensors in the visible and shorter wavelengths once atmospherically corrected, were found to be useful to map the coastal variability at detailed scale of Chl a and different phytoplankton populations, in the optically complexes waters of the Mar Piccolo.

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Integrated environmental characterization of the contaminated marine coastal area of Taranto, Ionian Sea (southern Italy)

Cited by 16 publications

References 22 publications

Distribution and habitat preferences of Hippocampus species along the Apulian coast

Distribution and habitat preferences of Hippocampus species along the Apulian coast

Marine Sediments from a Contaminated Site: Geotechnical Properties and Chemo-Mechanical Coupling Processes

Multispectral data by the new generation of high-resolution satellite sensors for mapping phytoplankton blooms in the Mar Piccolo of Taranto (Ionian Sea, southern Italy)

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