Aquatic Ecosystem Risk Assessment Generated by Accidental Silver Nanoparticle Spills in Groundwater.

This paper aims to create a new model for assessing the ecosystem risk in rivers and wetlands that are linked to accidental spills of silver nanoparticles (AgNPs) in soil/groundwater. Due to the uncertainty of the modeling inputs, a combination of two well-known risk assessment methodologies (Monte Carlo and fuzzy logic) were used. To test the new model, two hypothetical, accidental AgNP soil spill case studies were evaluated; both of which were located at the end of the Llobregat River basin within the metropolitan area of Barcelona (NE Spain). In both cases, the soil spill reached groundwater. In the first case, it was discharged into a river, and in the second case, it recharged a wetland. Concerning the results, in the first case study, a medium-risk assessment was achieved for most cases (83%), with just 10% of them falling below the future legal threshold concentration value. In the second case study, a high-risk assessment was obtained for most cases (84%), and none of the cases complied with the threshold value. A sensitivity analysis was conducted for the concentration and risk. The developed tool was proven capable of assessing risk in aquatic ecosystems when dealing with uncertain and variable data, which is an improvement compared to other risk assessment methodologies.

Insights on the environmental management system of the European port sector.

This research focusses on assessing the environmental performance of European Ports based on a wide representation of EcoPorts members. The data is extracted from the Self-Diagnosis Method (SDM), a concise checklist against which port managers can self-assess the environmental management of their port in relation to the performance of the EcoPorts membership. A total number of 97 ports from 18 different European Maritime States contributed to this evaluation. They have answered questions related to the main components of internationally recognized Environmental Management System (EMS) standards. Similar periodic assessments have been carried out since 2013, allowing for the identification of benchmark performance. The geographical representation and characteristics of the participating ports are given along with the perceived ranking of priority environmental issues based on regular reviews. Air quality has been the top environmental priority for many years, followed by climate change, which has risen rapidly to the second position. Most of the ports have an environmental policy in place (96%) and a compilation of an inventory of significant environmental aspects (92%). Transparency is also very important to ports, with 91% of ports communicating their environmental policy to stakeholders, and 86% of ports making it publicly available on their website. Around 80% of ports have set up an environmental monitoring program, with port waste being the most monitored issue. With regard to services to shipping, more than half of the responding ports are offering on shore power supply (OPS), and one third of them have made LNG bunkering available. In parallel, an increasing number of ports compared with previous exercises (57%) provide differentiated dues for ships that go beyond regulatory standards, with air emissions, waste and climate change being the main target of these discounts. In general, trends over the years have shown a clear improvement of the environmental port performance.

Performance trends of environmental management in European ports.

This paper presents the current status and trends over time in the environmental situation of European ports, based on the results of a wide representation of EcoPorts members (90 ports). All the information presented in this research comes from the Self-Diagnosis Method (SDM), a concise checklist managed by European Sea Ports Organisation (ESPO), against which ports can self-assess their environmental management. The results provide data on a total number of 54 indicators, being the existence of an inventory of environmental legislation the indicator with the highest implementation (96,7%), followed by the existence of an environmental policy (95,7%). Waste is the environmental issue that is being more monitored by ports. Air quality continues as the top environmental priority, followed by energy consumption and noise. It is interesting to highlight the growing awareness of Climate change among ports as well as the increasing implementation of green initiatives in ports.

Review of Initiatives and Methodologies to Reduce CO2 Emissions and Climate Change Effects in Ports.

Ports are important infrastructures for economic growth and development. Among the most significant environmental aspects of ports that contribute to the issue of climate change are those due to carbon dioxide emissions generated by port activities. Given the importance of this topic, this paper gathers initiatives and methodologies that have been undertaken to calculate and reduce CO2 emissions and climate change effects in ports. After studying these methodologies, their strengths and opportunities for further enhancement have been analyzed. The results show that, in recent years, several ports have started to calculate their carbon footprint and report it. However, in some of the cases, not all the sources of GHG gases that are occurring actually in ports are taken into account, such as emissions from waste treatment operations and employees' commuting. On other occasions, scopes are not defined following standard guidelines. Furthermore, each authority or operator uses its own method to calculate CO2 emissions, which makes the comparison of results difficult. For these reasons, this paper suggests the need for creating a standardized tool to calculate carbon footprint in ports, which will make it possible to establish a benchmark and a potential comparison of results among ports.

Calculating the Carbon Footprint in ports by using a standardized tool.

One of the significant environmental threats in ports in recent years are carbon dioxide emissions generated by different activities carried out in these areas, which lead to Climate Change. In the maritime industry, this topic is getting more critical every day. The main cause of Climate Change is the emission of Greenhouse Gases (GHG). The total amount of GHG that are emitted both directly and indirectly by an activity are calculated by the following indicator: the Carbon Footprint. The review of different case studies shows while in recent years many ports calculate their Carbon Footprint and report it, each port uses its own method and there is not any unified and complete method to calculate Carbon Footprint. This makes comparing results among different ports a difficult task and proves the need for such a method. Therefore, it has been developed a standardized tool to calculate GHG emissions in ports. The tool has been developed by using Excel and Visual Basic software and it is based on the WPCI (World Ports Climate Initiative) and IPCC (Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change) guidelines and the GHG Protocol. Such tool is specifically designed so that port authorities can calculate their Carbon Footprint and report it accordingly. The tool has different steps taking into account the three scopes of emissions defined by the WPCI guideline for ports. Once developed, it was validated by a set of selected ports and environmental experts. The final aim is to distribute this tool to all ports and make it freely available.

Fuzzy model for risk assessment of persistent organic pollutants in aquatic ecosystems.

We developed a model for evaluating the environmental risk of persistent organic pollutants (POPs) to aquatic organisms. The model is based on fuzzy theory and uses information provided by international experts through a questionnaire. It has been tested in two case studies for a particular type of POPs: brominated flame retardants (BFRs). The first case study is related to the EU-funded AQUATERRA project, with sampling campaigns carried out in two Ebro tributaries in Spain (the Cinca and Vero Rivers). The second one, named the BROMACUA project, assessed different aquatic ecosystems in Chile (San Vicente Bay) and Colombia (Santa Marta Marsh). In both projects, the BFRs under study were polybrominated diphenyl ethers (PBDEs) and hexabromocyclododecane (HBCD). However, the model can be extrapolated to other POPs and to different aquatic ecosystems to provide useful results for decision-makers.

Prioritization of chemicals in the aquatic environment based on risk assessment: analytical, modeling and regulatory perspective.

The extensive and intensive use of chemicals in our developed, highly technological society includes more than 100,000 chemical substances. Significant scientific evidence has lead to the recognition that their improper use and release may result in undesirable and harmful side-effects on both the human and ecosystem health. To cope with them, appropriate risk assessment processes and related prioritization schemes have been developed in order to provide the necessary scientific support for regulatory procedures. In the present paper, two of the elements that constitute the core of risk assessment, namely occurrence and hazard effects, have been discussed. Recent advances in analytical chemistry (sample pre-treatment and instrumental equipment, etc.) have allowed for more comprehensive monitoring of environmental pollution reaching limits of detection up to sub ng L(-1). Alternative to analytical measurements, occurrence models can provide risk managers with a very interesting approach for estimating environmental concentrations from real or hypothetical scenarios. The most representative prioritization schemes used for issuing lists of concerning chemicals have also been examined and put in the context of existing environmental policies for protection strategies and regulations. Finally, new challenges in the field of risk-assessment have been outlined, including those posed by new materials (i.e., nanomaterials), transformation products, multi-chemical exposure, or extension of the risk assessment process to the whole ecosystem.

Domino effect in chemical accidents: main features and accident sequences.

The main features of domino accidents in process/storage plants and in the transportation of hazardous materials were studied through an analysis of 225 accidents involving this effect. Data on these accidents, which occurred after 1961, were taken from several sources. Aspects analyzed included the accident scenario, the type of accident, the materials involved, the causes and consequences and the most common accident sequences. The analysis showed that the most frequent causes are external events (31%) and mechanical failure (29%). Storage areas (35%) and process plants (28%) are by far the most common settings for domino accidents. Eighty-nine per cent of the accidents involved flammable materials, the most frequent of which was LPG. The domino effect sequences were analyzed using relative probability event trees. The most frequent sequences were explosion→fire (27.6%), fire→explosion (27.5%) and fire→fire (17.8%).

Survey on environmental monitoring requirements of European ports.

A group of 26 European ports was interviewed to understand their requirements for environmental information and to establish how widespread the use of Earth Observation (EO) data was amongst them. Aspects covered by the research included port profile characterisation, environmental management activities, environmental needs and current monitoring practices. The study reflected the diversity amongst European ports and their environmental performances. Most of the ports were publicly owned and located in estuaries and rivers. General cargo was the most popular commodity handled. Practically all the ports had an environmental policy in place and half of them had been accredited by an external body. The main environmental parameters that ports required to be monitored were marine related issues (currents, waves and tide), water quality, meteorological parameters, turbidity and sediment processes. The principal driver for monitoring was maintaining key port operations, followed by legislation, and local responsibilities. Ports in general collected their own data in situ and only one-third had used remotely sensed data (data from Earth Observation satellites or from airplane mounted sensors) for environmental purposes. Half of them used computer modelling. This study was conducted within the framework of the European funded port environmental information collector project (PEARL).

A survey of accidents occurring during the transport of hazardous substances by road and rail.

A study of 1932 accidents that occurred during the transport of hazardous substances by road and rail from the beginning of the 20th century to July 2004 was carried out. The results obtained show an increase in the frequency of accidents over time. More than half of the accidents happened on roads (63%). The most frequent accidents were releases (78%), followed by fires (28%), explosions (14%) and gas clouds (6%). The various causes of the accidents, the type of substance involved and the consequences for the population (number of people killed, injured or evacuated) were also analysed. Among the diverse measures taken to improve this situation, the training of professional people involved in transportation seems to be of major importance.

A procedure for identifying significant environmental aspects in sea ports.

A new methodology has been designed to identify and rank the significant environmental aspects in sea ports. The main objective of the Strategic Overview of Significant Environmental Aspects (SOSEA) is to help port managers to identify significant environmental aspects and to reinforce the awareness about them in order to prioritise work in environmental management. Developed in close collaboration with port environmental managers and tested in a set of ports, it is a user-friendly tool that can be applied in approximately half a working day. It is based on ISO 14001 vocabulary and requirements and it can be considered as the base for the implementation of any Environmental Management System for port communities.

The Self Diagnosis Method. A new methodology to assess environmental management in sea ports.

A methodology has been designed to assess the performance of the environmental management in sea ports. The Self Diagnosis Method, developed by two research teams and about sixty sea ports, allows the comparison of the current environmental situation with that corresponding to previous years and the assessment of the opportunities for improvement. The main objective is to review the management activities and procedures that affect the environment and the way the port authority handles significant environmental aspects. It has been designed as a "first level" tool: it can be applied in approximately six hours by a non-expert user. It is based on the ISO 14001 vocabulary, requirements and structure, and it can be considered as a first step in the voluntary implementation of an environmental management system for port communities.