Brixham Environmental Laboratory Environmental Protection of European Marine Sites Prepared by: Ross...

Brixham Environmental Laboratory

EnvironmentalEnvironmental Protection of Protection of

European Marine SitesEuropean Marine Sites

Prepared by: Ross Brown


A chemical industry perspective?A chemical industry perspective?

Site operation Consent to discharge

Site development Planning consent

PPC

Planning regs

Environmental Impact

H1

PPG

Environmental baseline


Environmental quality statusEnvironmental quality status & ecosystem health?& ecosystem health?

Combined impact vs environmental susceptibility? and sustainability?

A stakeholder approach


SOLUTIONSSOLUTIONS

•Characterisation of river basin – •Review of activities impacting on water status•Sub-basin plans

River basin management plan (WFD)River basin management plan (WFD)

Ecosystem approachEcosystem approach

Biodiversity Action Plan Biodiversity Action Plan •Conservation management plans eg. SES, ASERA, MBMS•HAPs, SAPs

•Managing the activities & demands that humans make on the environment, not managing ecosystems themselves.


Monitoring in the Monitoring in the Severn estuarySevern estuary

NMMP site 615

Clients:CCW, EN, chemical & steel industries


Category Features SPA Ramsar pSAC

Birds Bewicks swan,

Migratory birds,

>20,000 wintering waterfowl

Fish Allis & Twaite shad

River & Sea lampreys

Migratory eels, trout & salmon

Estuary Large well mixed estuary

Unusual communities

Migratory birds and fish

Habitats Atlantic saltmeadow

Mudflats & sandflats

Reefs (Sabellaria)

Sandbanks

Severn estuary European Marine Site Severn estuary European Marine Site Major interest features Major interest features


Conservation value vs. status? Conservation value vs. status? Category Information sources Baseline Reference

or target

Birds BRERC, Avon Bird reports

WeBS

BTO

-

-

Fish GQA

UK BAP

English Nature CEMS

SEP

?

-

- +

-

?

Estuary +Invertebrates

OSPAR QSR

AZ surveys, barrage reports

NMMP report

Local BAP

?

+

?

X

- UK

? Solway

X

Habitats MNCR (more surveys in progress)

JNCC favourable condition tables

Saltmarsh HAP

Sabellaria reef HAP

?

?

?-


What about primary production? What about primary production?


Characterisation of SW European Characterisation of SW European Marine Sites reports Marine Sites reports

•Nutrients, BOD, Metals, PAHs, PCBs, pesticides•EQS, sediment guidelines, trends?

PollutantsPollutants

Activities Activities •Discharges : industrial, municipal, diffuse agricultural?

•Migratory fish, demersal fish, inverts & birds•Sediment dwellers, biomagnification?

Impacts (targets)Impacts (targets)


Conclusions – what is needed? Conclusions – what is needed?

A complete local BAP•Provide guidance on ecological / conservation statusie departure from reference or target conditions?•Consider all activities with a potential to impact

Involve stakeholders•Advertise ASERA (400 visitors since Feb 2003)

Distil exisiting information•Consider existing EIAs, IPPC and COMAH documents•Identify acute then chronic toxicity (DTA)•Combine & focus monitoring – spatial vs temporal

Update GQA for estuaries


Declining Cd concentrations in sediment Declining Cd concentrations in sediment

CADMIUM CONCENTRATION (parts per m illion)

1975

1980

1985

1990

1995

Colour key Bar height (parts per m illion)

0

2.2

G oldcliffR edw ick B lackrock

Sheperdine

N ew Passage

Severn BeachSevernside


Declining Cd concentrations in biota Declining Cd concentrations in biota

Carcinus maenasCADMIUM CONCENTRATION (parts per m illion)

1975

1980

1985

1990

1995

Colour key Bar height (parts per million)

0

50

G oldcliffR edw ick

B lackrock

Sheperdine

N ew Passage

Severn BeachSevernside

Fucus vesiculosus


Fauna diversity

0.0

2.0

4.0

6.0

8.0

10.0

12.0

14.0

16.0

1980 1985 1990 1995 2000 2002quadrat

2002cores

Mea

n n

o.

of

taxa

per

0.1

m2

Severnside

Background

Long-term trend in mudflat fauna Long-term trend in mudflat fauna


Mudflat fauna relative abundanceMudflat fauna relative abundance

50-1500 indivsor 1-30 gramsper 0.1 m2


0

2

4

6

8

10

12

14-8

50

-750

-650

-550

-450

-350

-250

-150 -50

50 150

250

350

450

550

650

750

850

950

105

0

115

0

Distance from outfall (m)

Nu

mb

er o

f ta

xa

Upstream (-) Downstream (+)

Outfall

Low water invertebrate fauna diversityLow water invertebrate fauna diversity


Saltmarsh NVC community typesSaltmarsh NVC community types

Pioneer SM6-8

Puccinellia SM13

Elymus SM24


Effluent dispersion: Neap LW +4hrsEffluent dispersion: Neap LW +4hrs


Effluent dispersion: Neap LW +10hrsEffluent dispersion: Neap LW +10hrs


Effluent dispersion: Neap LW +13.5hrsEffluent dispersion: Neap LW +13.5hrs


Effluent dispersion: Neap LW +19.5hrsEffluent dispersion: Neap LW +19.5hrs


AstraZeneca whole effluent testingAstraZeneca whole effluent testingEcotoxicity expressed as % of untreated 2004 effluent Ecotoxicity expressed as % of untreated 2004 effluent

Test organism

Parameter Sample 1 Sample 2 Sample 3 Sample 4

AlgaeSkeletonema

72h EC50

72h NOEC1.8 – 3.2

1.0

5.6 – 10

3.2

3.2 – 5.6

3.2

1.0 – 1.8

1.0

Zoo-

PlanktonTisbe

48h EC50

48h NOEC16

10

22

10

24

18

5.7

<3.2

FishTurbot

24h LC50

24h NOEC35

18

29

18

24

10

24

10


Direct Toxicity AssessmentDirect Toxicity Assessment

EA policy“elimination of acute toxicity from receiving waters”

EA target

EA manage 20 existing toxicity based consents.

Target is to achieve 85% reduction in no. of complex chemical effluents causing acute toxicity ie a further 25 discharges will be targeted


PPC : HI Guidance for DTA PPC : HI Guidance for DTA Tiered Risk-based ApproachTiered Risk-based Approach

• Tier 1. Require DTA screening data if direct discharge + estimate of worst-case dilution & dispersion - unless low impact installation or case made to show inappropriate

• Tier 2. Require full DTA characterisation • 3 trophic levels (algae, invert + fish)

+ dilution and dispersion modelling• Tier 3. Toxicity Tracking & Identification

Brixham Environmental Laboratory Environmental Protection of European Marine Sites Prepared by: Ross...

Documents

Transcript of Brixham Environmental Laboratory Environmental Protection of European Marine Sites Prepared by: Ross...