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Environmental impact of extensive dredging in a coastal marine area |
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| Authors: | A M Bonvicini pagliai A M Cognetti Varriale R Crema M Curini Galletti R Vandini Zunarelli |
| Institution: | * Institute of Zoology, the University of Modena, 41100, Modena, Italy ? Institute of Marine Biology, the University of Pisa, 56100, Pisa, Italy |
| Abstract: | An area of the Thyrrenian Sea in the Gulf of Cagliari, Sardinia, Italy, was investigated before, during and after extensive dredging operations to create an access channel for oil tankers to reach a refinery. The observed abiotic parameters were not greatly affected, but the benthic macrofauna was completely eliminated from the dredged area. Recolonization of this area by the macro-benthos was very rapid. Six months after dredging, benthic communities had main structural parameters very similar to those of the predredging period and neighbouring non-dredged areas. However the 6-month post dredging communities still showed a noticeable qualitative dissimilarity with respect to the predredging period and neighbouring non-dredged areas. Communities in the neighbouring non-dredged zones were unaffected by the large scale dredging. These results are only in fact in agreement with those reported in previous investigations into the effects of dredging of the benthic biota. They suggest that the environmental impact of this human induced disturbance may be quite variable from case to case, also in dependence of the concomitant action of other pollutants. |
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