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Oil & Petrochemical pollution
Volume 13/Number 1I/November 1982
Trace Metals Trace Metal Concentrations in Marine Organisms. R. Eisler. Pergamon Press, New York, 1981. 685 pp. Price £60, US$120. ISBN 0-08-025975-8. At a first glance this book is a worthy follow-up to A.P. Vinogradov's classic monograph on the chemical composition (mainly major elements) of marine organisms first pubfished some 30 years ago. In a short period of time data for the concentration of trace elements in marine organisms has grown to considerable proportions, but the mass of accumulated data seems disproportionate to its importance and possibly reflects the use in recent years of instrumentation capable of measuring the concentration of small quantities of the chemical elements. The real value of this book has to rest with the quality of the data which has been selected. In recent years there has been a certain amount of justifiable sceptism concerning the quality of data on marine materials, indeed many scientists are of the opinion that much of the data should be scrapped on the grounds of poor quality. It is therefore unfortunate that the author has not provided any information whereby it is possible to identify the criteria used in selecting data, but in the author's opinion that selected is the most accurate. All the data presented are accompanied with a source reference, and hence the reader can make his own judgements; I have not attempted this task. The text contains other grounds for exercising caution; the author states " . . . newer and more accurate instrumentation especially atomic absorption became available to marine scientists" which seems to indicate that the main stumbling block to progress rested with questions of adequate instrumentation. I do not believe this to be true and suggest that much of the poor data owes its origin to the use of atomic absorption instruments by the unskilled, especially use of the electrothermal devices. The author acknowledges the difficulties which are encountered in reaching valid conclusions from laboratory experiments with trace metals (and radiotracers), but fails to acknowledge the more severe problems when dealing with real samples and natural systems. It is not until page 169 of the text that the lack of adequate standardization of trace element measurements is acknowledged! However these observations should not be taken out of context, but rather to provide a need for some caution in the use of the data; if the author is correct in his assessment that the data will stand the test of time, at least for the next 25 years, then perhaps for many elements we do not need more general data and instead should pay more attention to the natural forms of the elements and their interactions with biological processes. The text considers 16 marine taxa and has four objectives, first to summarize world fiterature since 1953, second to consider existing information on the biomagnification potential of each element of the Periodic Table, third to summarize data obtained in laboratory studies, and fourth to provide information of biological and abiotic factors known to modify accumulation patterns of elements in marine organisms. Each taxon is treated separately providing data for the concentration of elements in whole
animals and plants, and where information is available for individual tissues. Information is also provided which discusses the significance of the elements in different organisms including the results of laboratory investigations. Table 1 provides a listing of the elements and could have been usefully accompanied with values for the concentrations of the elements in seawater and the lithosphere. Data for the concentration of the elements are given in terms of either wet, dry or ash weights and occasionally it is possible to convert one value to another; it would have been useful if the author could have presented a simple table of conversion factors. Often ranges in concentrations are given, sometimes they are small and hence the data are useful, but for many the values cover several orders of magnitude without any indication of the number of samples analysed or the geometric mean. Inevitably the text contains more information for a dozen or so elements which have received considerable attention during the last decade, but there is also much information for the rarer elements which usually means that they are not considered to be harmful to marine organisms. This book is a very valuable reference source for those interested in the concentration of elements in marine organisms, but I am concerned that until the manner in which the data were selected is identified poor data may be used in regional, global or biochemical models without checking their accuracy. The author is to be congratulated on successfully completing an arduous task and he has produced more than a listing of elements by highlighting gaps in our knowledge, not only for the abundance of elements but also for mechanisms controlling the incorporation of elements into marine organisms. I share the author's concern that too much attention is paid to total levels of elements; there is a considerable lack of information on the basic physiology, metabolism and behaviour of many marine organisms which have been studied for trace element abundances. Although data are urgently required for cellular, sub-cellular distributions of many elements, together with element-organ interactions and inter-element effects in relation to toxicology, the area of concern is with organic and not inorganic systems. E. I. H A M I L T O N
New Journal Oil & Petrochemical Pollution. Graham & Trotman, London, 1982. ISSN 0143 7127. Subscription: 1 yr £35, US$77, surface mail. The editorial to the first issue of this quarterly bravely asks: " W h y another new pollution journal?". Because, it says, important articles on particular aspects of these forms of pollution only appear scattered among a wide variety of specialist journals. In contrast, " T h e object of the Journal of Oil and PetrochemicaIPollution is to provide a platform in a wide range of disciplines so that the work can be read, and understood, by workers anywhere in the oil and petrochemical and allied industries". How far is this achieved in the first issue? A comma-splattered foreword by Lord Zuckerman would have us believe that oil pollution (as was already known by him in 1967) is little more than an occasional 401
Marine PollutionBulletin nuisance, which seems hardly to justify further research on its effects, prevention and control, let alone a new journal for the results. Jenifer M. Baker, formerly head of the Oil Pollution Research Unit at Orielton, opens with a review article on 'Mangrove Swamps and the Oil Industry' which summarizes well the effects of spills but admits to little experience on petrochemcial discharges. While she is careful to explain many of the technical terms, this must still be difficult reading for a non-specialist in her field. E. D. Brown follows with a detailed 12(2 page review of the legal obligations when 'decommissioning' offshore structures but this, to me, seems to have little to do with pollution (as defined by GESAMP) and even less with oil and petrochemicals. Gundlach, Domeracki and Thebeau contribute a paper on the massive persistence of M E T U L A oil 61/2 years after the spill and suggest that the predicted time-scale for recovery in similar coastal sites must be greatly lengthened. William J. Sheppard estimates 'The Cost of Environmental Regulations to the United States Petroleum Industry' in a relatively jargon-free paper which reaches some interesting conclusions. Carolina M. Savy then writes on ballast reception facilities in Venezuela, beginning: " T h e
402
second half of the twentieth century has, beyond doubt, been dominated by oil." And ending with a "Global Analysis" of operating statistics of Venezuelan terminals! To be fair, this paper gives an admirably simple description of separation plant and substantiates the surprising conclusion that, in Venezuela, reception facilities operate at a profit. Finally, there are reports on a Workshop, a Conference, the Report of the Royal Commission on Environmental Pollution and two book reviews, all by the Editor-in-Chief. I don't feel the first issue gives promise of living up to the aims of gathering papers and reviews of particular importance to those involved in oil and petrochemical pollution, nor of presenting the 'overview in a wider context' for which specialist journals are considered inadequate, nor of presenting them to a wider readership. The layout, typesetting and paper are good, the grammar and style generally unobtrusive, the cover refined and the Advisory Editorial Board heavily impressive. Its a good journal with a wide range of papers and some interesting and useful information- one I will continue to read in a professional capacity. But to me it is just another journal. R. A. A. B L A C K M A N
Trace Metals Trace Metal Concentrations in Marine Organisms. R. Eisler. Pergamon Press, New York, 1981. 685 pp. Price £60, US$120. ISBN 0-08-025975-8. At a first glance this book is a worthy follow-up to A.P. Vinogradov's classic monograph on the chemical composition (mainly major elements) of marine organisms first pubfished some 30 years ago. In a short period of time data for the concentration of trace elements in marine organisms has grown to considerable proportions, but the mass of accumulated data seems disproportionate to its importance and possibly reflects the use in recent years of instrumentation capable of measuring the concentration of small quantities of the chemical elements. The real value of this book has to rest with the quality of the data which has been selected. In recent years there has been a certain amount of justifiable sceptism concerning the quality of data on marine materials, indeed many scientists are of the opinion that much of the data should be scrapped on the grounds of poor quality. It is therefore unfortunate that the author has not provided any information whereby it is possible to identify the criteria used in selecting data, but in the author's opinion that selected is the most accurate. All the data presented are accompanied with a source reference, and hence the reader can make his own judgements; I have not attempted this task. The text contains other grounds for exercising caution; the author states " . . . newer and more accurate instrumentation especially atomic absorption became available to marine scientists" which seems to indicate that the main stumbling block to progress rested with questions of adequate instrumentation. I do not believe this to be true and suggest that much of the poor data owes its origin to the use of atomic absorption instruments by the unskilled, especially use of the electrothermal devices. The author acknowledges the difficulties which are encountered in reaching valid conclusions from laboratory experiments with trace metals (and radiotracers), but fails to acknowledge the more severe problems when dealing with real samples and natural systems. It is not until page 169 of the text that the lack of adequate standardization of trace element measurements is acknowledged! However these observations should not be taken out of context, but rather to provide a need for some caution in the use of the data; if the author is correct in his assessment that the data will stand the test of time, at least for the next 25 years, then perhaps for many elements we do not need more general data and instead should pay more attention to the natural forms of the elements and their interactions with biological processes. The text considers 16 marine taxa and has four objectives, first to summarize world fiterature since 1953, second to consider existing information on the biomagnification potential of each element of the Periodic Table, third to summarize data obtained in laboratory studies, and fourth to provide information of biological and abiotic factors known to modify accumulation patterns of elements in marine organisms. Each taxon is treated separately providing data for the concentration of elements in whole
animals and plants, and where information is available for individual tissues. Information is also provided which discusses the significance of the elements in different organisms including the results of laboratory investigations. Table 1 provides a listing of the elements and could have been usefully accompanied with values for the concentrations of the elements in seawater and the lithosphere. Data for the concentration of the elements are given in terms of either wet, dry or ash weights and occasionally it is possible to convert one value to another; it would have been useful if the author could have presented a simple table of conversion factors. Often ranges in concentrations are given, sometimes they are small and hence the data are useful, but for many the values cover several orders of magnitude without any indication of the number of samples analysed or the geometric mean. Inevitably the text contains more information for a dozen or so elements which have received considerable attention during the last decade, but there is also much information for the rarer elements which usually means that they are not considered to be harmful to marine organisms. This book is a very valuable reference source for those interested in the concentration of elements in marine organisms, but I am concerned that until the manner in which the data were selected is identified poor data may be used in regional, global or biochemical models without checking their accuracy. The author is to be congratulated on successfully completing an arduous task and he has produced more than a listing of elements by highlighting gaps in our knowledge, not only for the abundance of elements but also for mechanisms controlling the incorporation of elements into marine organisms. I share the author's concern that too much attention is paid to total levels of elements; there is a considerable lack of information on the basic physiology, metabolism and behaviour of many marine organisms which have been studied for trace element abundances. Although data are urgently required for cellular, sub-cellular distributions of many elements, together with element-organ interactions and inter-element effects in relation to toxicology, the area of concern is with organic and not inorganic systems. E. I. H A M I L T O N
New Journal Oil & Petrochemical Pollution. Graham & Trotman, London, 1982. ISSN 0143 7127. Subscription: 1 yr £35, US$77, surface mail. The editorial to the first issue of this quarterly bravely asks: " W h y another new pollution journal?". Because, it says, important articles on particular aspects of these forms of pollution only appear scattered among a wide variety of specialist journals. In contrast, " T h e object of the Journal of Oil and PetrochemicaIPollution is to provide a platform in a wide range of disciplines so that the work can be read, and understood, by workers anywhere in the oil and petrochemical and allied industries". How far is this achieved in the first issue? A comma-splattered foreword by Lord Zuckerman would have us believe that oil pollution (as was already known by him in 1967) is little more than an occasional 401
Marine PollutionBulletin nuisance, which seems hardly to justify further research on its effects, prevention and control, let alone a new journal for the results. Jenifer M. Baker, formerly head of the Oil Pollution Research Unit at Orielton, opens with a review article on 'Mangrove Swamps and the Oil Industry' which summarizes well the effects of spills but admits to little experience on petrochemcial discharges. While she is careful to explain many of the technical terms, this must still be difficult reading for a non-specialist in her field. E. D. Brown follows with a detailed 12(2 page review of the legal obligations when 'decommissioning' offshore structures but this, to me, seems to have little to do with pollution (as defined by GESAMP) and even less with oil and petrochemicals. Gundlach, Domeracki and Thebeau contribute a paper on the massive persistence of M E T U L A oil 61/2 years after the spill and suggest that the predicted time-scale for recovery in similar coastal sites must be greatly lengthened. William J. Sheppard estimates 'The Cost of Environmental Regulations to the United States Petroleum Industry' in a relatively jargon-free paper which reaches some interesting conclusions. Carolina M. Savy then writes on ballast reception facilities in Venezuela, beginning: " T h e
402
second half of the twentieth century has, beyond doubt, been dominated by oil." And ending with a "Global Analysis" of operating statistics of Venezuelan terminals! To be fair, this paper gives an admirably simple description of separation plant and substantiates the surprising conclusion that, in Venezuela, reception facilities operate at a profit. Finally, there are reports on a Workshop, a Conference, the Report of the Royal Commission on Environmental Pollution and two book reviews, all by the Editor-in-Chief. I don't feel the first issue gives promise of living up to the aims of gathering papers and reviews of particular importance to those involved in oil and petrochemical pollution, nor of presenting the 'overview in a wider context' for which specialist journals are considered inadequate, nor of presenting them to a wider readership. The layout, typesetting and paper are good, the grammar and style generally unobtrusive, the cover refined and the Advisory Editorial Board heavily impressive. Its a good journal with a wide range of papers and some interesting and useful information- one I will continue to read in a professional capacity. But to me it is just another journal. R. A. A. B L A C K M A N