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The Black Sea ecosystem is increasingly affected by anthropogenic pressures, including the accumulation of organic pollutants such as polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) and polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs). These contaminants,known for their persistence and toxicity, pose serious risks to marine biodiversity and food safety. The increasing presence of hydrocarbons in marine ecosystems poses a significant threat to biodiversity and sustainable fisheries. This study investigates the bioaccumulation of polycycli...

Coastal zones are among the most climate-vulnerable environments, exposed to extreme weather events, sea level rise, accelerating coastal erosion, biodiversity loss, and socio-economic vulnerability. As these pressures intensify, adaptation strategies have moved beyond engineered infrastructure toward nature-based solutions restoration interventions that work with ecosystems. One of most spread nature-based coastal restoration are seagrass and saltmarsh recovery, dune and wetland rebuilding, and integrated watersh...

Open data and informatics provide new opportunities for cost-effective environmental monitoring in data-scarce regions. This study applies a geospatial informatics approach to assess coastal microbial pollution patterns in Albania during 2023, using openly available datasets from the Albanian Institute of Statistics (INSTAT) and the European Environment Agency (EEA). Microbiological indicators of bathing water quality (intestinal enterococci, IE/100 ml) were combined with municipal solid waste statistics to explor...

This study examines the causes of maritime safety accidents in the fishing industry, focusing on situations where excessive onboard noise acts as a significant factor contributing to human error. Elevated noise levels, primarily generated by vessel engines, impair communication, mask alarms, and reduce attention, thereby increasing the likelihood of accidents. Prolonged exposure also leads to hearing loss and reduced well-being, further affecting safe work performance. Considering the specific working conditions o...

In recent years, significant effort has been dedicated to monitoring sea surface temperature (SST) trends at local scales. Previous studies using MODIS data reported an increasing SST trend of 0.05-C/yr for the Ionian Sea and 0.04-C/yr for the eastern Mediterranean. In this study, we use Copernicus Marine Service mean daily gap-free SST data to verify these satellite-derived trends and compare them with daily in-situ measurements from ten aquaculture sites to assess potential discrepancies. Both datasets cover a t...

Mollusca constitute a significant phylum within the Black Sea ecosystem. This study provides the first comprehensive checklist of the phylum Mollusca along the Black Sea Georgian coast. It is based on a collection and synthesis of data from various published sources and unpublished records. The checklist draws on material collected across diverse biotopes at depths ranging from 3 to 205 meters, over a period spanning from 1926 to 2023. These collections were conducted as part of various projects and national monit...

Aquaculture sector holds significant potential for ensuring food security, supporting economic growth, and contributing to the sustainable use of marine resources within the European Union (EU), aligning with the UN Sustainable Development Goal 14 Life Below Water . However, the potential of aquaculture is constrained by multilevel challenges, including environmental externalities, regulatory complexities, and social acceptance. These challenges are exacerbated by underlying tensions between goals for growing the ...