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Circulation and contaminant fluxes in the North Sea
Book reviews/Dynamics of Atmospheres and Oceans 21 (1994) 213-225
221
well and hope that it encourages more students to take an interest in marine science. D. MACKEY (Hobart, Tas., Australia)
Circulation and Contaminant Fluxes in the North Sea, J. Siindermann (Editor), Springer Verlag, Berlin, 1994, hardcover xiv-~ 654 pp., price DM 228, ISBN 3-540-56825-5. After the first international North Sea conference in Bremen in 1984, policy makers recognized the necesssity to take action against the pollution of the North Sea. Supported by the Bundesminister fiir Forschung und Technologie, the ZISCH project (Zlrkulation und SCHadstoffumsatz in der Nordsee) was formulated in Germany. The main objective was to quantify the fluxes of major contaminants in the North Sea. A comprehensive sampling programme was launched to cover 'griindlich', the whole North Sea. For the first time physical, chemical and biological oceanographers joined forces to understand the transport and fate of contaminants in the North Sea. The multidisciplinairy approach is clearly reflected in the five chapters in which 60 authors (nine foreigners) from seven German institutes present their results in 20 contributions. Modelling the North Sea is not the only way to tackle the problem and this is very well understood in the ZISCH project. Much effort is put into measurements in the field in order to understand and evaluate the whole system and local situations. The field results are extensively described following the Introduction. Up to now distribution maps of compounds and organisms in the whole North Sea were rare and the existing maps were composed from different results from different cruises. The significance of the ZISCH results is the complete overview of the distribution of compounds and organisms during a summer and winter cruise in the entire North Sea. The quasi-synoptic character of the results is critically discussed in the excellent contribution 'On the reliability of our North Sea Assessment'. Model experiments in Chapter 3 are the bridge to the interdisciplinary evaluation of the field and model data in Chapter 4. The physical aspects of the atmospheric deposition and water circulation models of the North Sea are extensively described and applicated for lead only. The modelling of phytoplankton in the central North Sea is interesting. However, the connection with ZISCH, eutrophication and the environmental problem, is difficult to make. In this model nearly no use is made of all the interesting field results gathered by others and by ZISCH. In general, from the different contributions it is dearly shown that the gap between the modellers and field researchers is not yet bridged. However, this problem is not exclusive to Germany.
222
Book reviews/Dynamics of Atmospheres and Oceans 21 (1994) 213-225
The last chapter describing the interdisciplinary evaluation of field and model data succeeds in some cases in bridging this gap. Comparison between the field results and remote sensing data give optimistic results for the application of these techniques in the near future. The interesting contribution on the influence of weather and climate on the North Sea is written as a lecture note which could be written before the ZISCH programme started. The variability and significant trends in sea level rise, temperature, wind and nutrient levels at Helgoland are presented separately from each other. Many interesting details are presented in the chapters bringing the nutrients and contaminants together and describing the abiotic processes governing fate of contaminants in the North Sea. A composite view and recommendations for future research close this book. General conclusions are formulated and the value of ZISCH is evaluated not only for scientists but also for policy makers. In general the book contains very useful, interesting new muttidisciplinary, although sometimes too detailed results on the distribution of compounds and organisms in the whole North Sea and parts thereof. Written as a reference book, the accessibility of the results is difficult, because no index is presented. An encouraging start is made by the ZISCH colleagues with the most difficult part: the interdisciplinairy interpretation, the holistic approach of the North Sea. This book as a result of the ZISCH project must be considered as a precursor and in connection with the results published by the English project of the North Sea (Charnock et al., 1994: Understanding the North Sea, Chapman and Hall). R. LAANE (Den Haag, Netherlands)
Global Changes in the Perspectives of the Past. Dahlem Workshops reports ES. 12, Wiley, Chichester, UK, 1993, hardcover, XV + 383 pp., price £80.00, ISBN 0-471-93603-0. Twelfth in the series of life and environmental science reports, the Dahlem Conference volumes are designed to provide coherent, effective, international and interdisciplinary discussion with the aim of identifying gaps in knowledge and research priorities. As the title indicates, this volume is devoted to global climatic changes, a topic where gaps in knowledge abound. The editors have done an excellent job in presenting four sections each with a group report which summarizes the work of the group and pointing the way to resolution of some of the problems. The four sections are: (a) The use of paleoclimatic data as analogs for the understanding of future climatic change; (b) Evaluating strategies for reconstructing past global changes - what and where are the gaps?; (c) How can we use paleoclimatic data to evaluate the internal
221
well and hope that it encourages more students to take an interest in marine science. D. MACKEY (Hobart, Tas., Australia)
Circulation and Contaminant Fluxes in the North Sea, J. Siindermann (Editor), Springer Verlag, Berlin, 1994, hardcover xiv-~ 654 pp., price DM 228, ISBN 3-540-56825-5. After the first international North Sea conference in Bremen in 1984, policy makers recognized the necesssity to take action against the pollution of the North Sea. Supported by the Bundesminister fiir Forschung und Technologie, the ZISCH project (Zlrkulation und SCHadstoffumsatz in der Nordsee) was formulated in Germany. The main objective was to quantify the fluxes of major contaminants in the North Sea. A comprehensive sampling programme was launched to cover 'griindlich', the whole North Sea. For the first time physical, chemical and biological oceanographers joined forces to understand the transport and fate of contaminants in the North Sea. The multidisciplinairy approach is clearly reflected in the five chapters in which 60 authors (nine foreigners) from seven German institutes present their results in 20 contributions. Modelling the North Sea is not the only way to tackle the problem and this is very well understood in the ZISCH project. Much effort is put into measurements in the field in order to understand and evaluate the whole system and local situations. The field results are extensively described following the Introduction. Up to now distribution maps of compounds and organisms in the whole North Sea were rare and the existing maps were composed from different results from different cruises. The significance of the ZISCH results is the complete overview of the distribution of compounds and organisms during a summer and winter cruise in the entire North Sea. The quasi-synoptic character of the results is critically discussed in the excellent contribution 'On the reliability of our North Sea Assessment'. Model experiments in Chapter 3 are the bridge to the interdisciplinary evaluation of the field and model data in Chapter 4. The physical aspects of the atmospheric deposition and water circulation models of the North Sea are extensively described and applicated for lead only. The modelling of phytoplankton in the central North Sea is interesting. However, the connection with ZISCH, eutrophication and the environmental problem, is difficult to make. In this model nearly no use is made of all the interesting field results gathered by others and by ZISCH. In general, from the different contributions it is dearly shown that the gap between the modellers and field researchers is not yet bridged. However, this problem is not exclusive to Germany.
222
Book reviews/Dynamics of Atmospheres and Oceans 21 (1994) 213-225
The last chapter describing the interdisciplinary evaluation of field and model data succeeds in some cases in bridging this gap. Comparison between the field results and remote sensing data give optimistic results for the application of these techniques in the near future. The interesting contribution on the influence of weather and climate on the North Sea is written as a lecture note which could be written before the ZISCH programme started. The variability and significant trends in sea level rise, temperature, wind and nutrient levels at Helgoland are presented separately from each other. Many interesting details are presented in the chapters bringing the nutrients and contaminants together and describing the abiotic processes governing fate of contaminants in the North Sea. A composite view and recommendations for future research close this book. General conclusions are formulated and the value of ZISCH is evaluated not only for scientists but also for policy makers. In general the book contains very useful, interesting new muttidisciplinary, although sometimes too detailed results on the distribution of compounds and organisms in the whole North Sea and parts thereof. Written as a reference book, the accessibility of the results is difficult, because no index is presented. An encouraging start is made by the ZISCH colleagues with the most difficult part: the interdisciplinairy interpretation, the holistic approach of the North Sea. This book as a result of the ZISCH project must be considered as a precursor and in connection with the results published by the English project of the North Sea (Charnock et al., 1994: Understanding the North Sea, Chapman and Hall). R. LAANE (Den Haag, Netherlands)
Global Changes in the Perspectives of the Past. Dahlem Workshops reports ES. 12, Wiley, Chichester, UK, 1993, hardcover, XV + 383 pp., price £80.00, ISBN 0-471-93603-0. Twelfth in the series of life and environmental science reports, the Dahlem Conference volumes are designed to provide coherent, effective, international and interdisciplinary discussion with the aim of identifying gaps in knowledge and research priorities. As the title indicates, this volume is devoted to global climatic changes, a topic where gaps in knowledge abound. The editors have done an excellent job in presenting four sections each with a group report which summarizes the work of the group and pointing the way to resolution of some of the problems. The four sections are: (a) The use of paleoclimatic data as analogs for the understanding of future climatic change; (b) Evaluating strategies for reconstructing past global changes - what and where are the gaps?; (c) How can we use paleoclimatic data to evaluate the internal