Will climate change enforce uptake and effects of pollutants in polar marine ecosystems?

Researchers and students affiliated with the International Polar Year (IPY) project COPOL (Contaminants in Polar Regions) have been busy in Kongsfjorden through the year 2008.

The main objective of COPOL is to understand the range of man-made contaminants in marine ecosystems of Polar Regions, in order to better predict how possible future climatic change imposed alterations of the marine food webs will be reflected in levels and effects at higher trophic levels.

This aim will be addressed by 4 integrated work packages (WPs) covering the scopes of:
1) food web contaminant exposure and flux,
2) transfer to higher trophic levels and potential effects,
3) chemical analyses and screening,
4) synthesis and integration.

The COPOL project is an initiative from the Polar Environmental Centre (POMI) and Oslo Multidisciplinary Centre of Environmental and social Science (CIENS). Institutions involved are the Norwegian Polar Institute, the Norwegian Institute for water research (NIVA), Akvaplan-niva, the Norwegian Institute for Air Research (NILU), the Norwegian University of Science and Technology (NTNU) and the Norwegian Institute for Nature Research (NINA). The COPOL project is coupled to the NRC-funded (NORKLIMA) project MariClim, which focuses on marine ecosystem consequences of climate induced changes in the water masses of West-Spitsbergen. Joint efforts between researchers from COPOL and MariClim resulted in successful cruises, thus many samples and much data were collected. Furthermore, COPOL is also linked to a project funded by Conoco-Phillips, in which the focus will be on pelagic component of the food webs. A PhD-student is affiliated with this project.

In 2008, three field campaigns have been carried out to collect samples to be analysed for anthropogenic contaminants. The cruises were conducted in May, July and October. The COPOL project focuses on the Arctic region, and the main effort is concentrated in Kongsfjorden. This fjord has been identified as particularly suitable as a study site of contaminants processes, due to the remoteness of sources, and for influences of climatic changes, due to the documented relation between Atlantic water influx and the climatic index North Atlantic Oscillation (NAO). Variable Atlantic water influx will not only influence abiotic contaminant exposure, but also food web structure, food quality and energy pathways, as different water masses carry different phyto- and zooplankton assemblages. This may affect the flux of contaminants through the food web to high trophic level predators such as seabirds and seals, due to altered food quality and energy pathways.
The COPOL field work was very diverse (collection of many organisms from planktonic and benthic invertebrates, to fish and sea birds), thus many of the facilities in Ny-Ålesund were appreciated. Besides working from RV Lance and RV Jan Mayen, COPOL personnel made use of inter alia Kings Bay’s new vessel “Teisten” and the Ny-Ålesund Marine Laboratory. New field campaigns are scheduled in July 2008 and 2009.