Produced for the Minch Project by G Fulton
February 1999
Prepared for the Web by Gavin Earons, IT Unit, Comhairle nan Eilean Siar
TABLE OF CONTENTS 2
EXECUTIVE SUMMARY 3
(1) INTRODUCTION 4
(1.1) What is Marine Pollution? 5
(1.1.1) Degradable wastes 6
(1.1.3) Dissipating Wastes 7
(1.1.4) Particulates 7
(1.1.5) Conservative Wastes 8
(1.1.6) Other Pollution Effects 9
(2) POLLUTANTS IN THE MINCH 9
(2.1) Aquaculture 10
(2.1.1) Sea lice treatment chemicals 11
(2.1.2) Antibiotics, Vitamins and Pigments 14
(2.1.3) Impact on Local Fisheries 15
(2.1.4) Nutrients and Organic Waste 17
(2.1.5) Deoxygenation 26
(2.1.6) Monitoring 27
(2.1.7) Pollution from shellfish culture 28
(2.1.8) Visual intrusion 28
(2.1.9) Legislative framework 29
(2.2) Marine Litter 30
(2.2.1) Sources 30
(2.2.2) Environmental Impacts 33
(2.2.3) Plastics 34
(2.3) Control of Pollution 34
(2.3.1) Prevention 35
(2.4) Tankers and Shipping 36
(2.4.1) Non accidental oil pollution 38
(2.4.2) Oil discharge from ballasting 39
(2.4.3) Potential oil pollution threats 40
(2.4.4) Accidental oil discharge 41
(2.4.5) MAREP 42
(2.4.6) Pollution from offshore installations 47
(2.4.7) Ecological impact of oil pollution 48
(2.4.8) Treatment of oil pollution 50
(2.4.9) Biological and chemical ballast pollutants 51
(2.5) TBT and anti-fouling paints 52
(2.6) Trace Metals and radiation 54
(2.7) SEPA - Monitoring, Consents and Discharges 55
(2.8) Proposed superquarry at Lingerbay, South Harris 58
(3) CONCLUSION 60
(4) REFERENCES 62
