Abstract
The aim is to test the hypothesis that nutrient status will affect the sensitivity and resilience of shallow-water sediments at exposure to polyaromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs). Background: Coastal areas are exposed simultaneously to several anthropogenic impacts, such as nutrient loading and pollutants. As changing nutrient status have implications for the sensitivity of marine ecosystems, these multiple stressors must be considered simultaneously. Shallow-water, illuminated sediments are biologically very active areas, functioning as buffer zones between land and sea. Several key functional qualities (e.g. production and nutrient cycling) are governed by the dense communities of auto- and heterotrophic micro-organisms in the sediment. We still lack knowledge about how multiple stressors affect the sensitivity and resilience of these systems. Intact natural sediments will be studied in long-term outdoor outdoor experiments in flow-through mesocosms, applying theory and methods from community and systems ecology, ecotoxicology and molecular biology. Effect variables are evaluated by multivariate analysis to assess an integrated net effect on the natural system. Functional/structural mechanisms from the outdoor experiments will be verified by short-term laboratory experiments.
Sweden