Effects from maritime scrubber effluent on phytoplankton and bacterioplankton communities

The few ecotoxicological studies of the ships scrubber effluents on the marine environment suggest the induction of toxic effects. Phytoplankton and bacterioplankton, the most abundant organisms of pelagic ecosystems, are the first responders to the scrubber water discharge in seawater. Understanding the scrubber effluent effects on these communities could provide with insights to assess impacts of shipping on marine ecosystems. In the present project, mesocosm experiments were applied to examine these effects on phytoplankton and bacterioplankton communities sampled from coastal areas of the Eastern Mediterranean, from unpolluted and a polluted sites.