paths of bottom-water currents. Samples of water and suspended 

 materials collected from selected depths at these stations are analyzed 

 for approximately 40 physical and chemical features to determine the 

 stirring and reaction processes in the deep sea, the interchange of 

 material between deep and surface waters, and the exchange of water 

 and gases with the atmosphere. The data provide a baseline for measur- 

 ing amounts of pollutants, specifically nuclear and other waste products 

 that are introduced into the ocean. This work will be extended from the 

 Atlantic and Pacific Oceans to the Indian Ocean where the GEOSECS 

 survey of the major world's oceans will be completed. 



In NSF's Pollutant Transfer Program, initiated in 1972, the processes 

 by which pollutants are transferred from land sources to the oceans and 

 the movement and concentration of these pollutants in the ocean are 

 under investigation. The program's objectives are the following: Identify 

 important transfer pathways and mechanisms; evaluate major environ- 

 mental factors that influence transfer processes; and develop principles 

 governing the transfer of pollutants. Of special interest are the con- 

 centration and dispersal of pollutants at the air-sea interface, movement 

 of pollutants through estuaries to Continental Shelf waters, deposition 

 of pollutants in sediments, and the chemical form and degradation of 

 these pollutants in the marine environment. 



Initial study results show that the atmosphere is a major route for the 

 transfer of chlorinated and petroleum hydrocarbons and trace metals 

 into the ocean. Studies on atmospheric transfer of trace metals suggest 

 that, except for sea salts, most airborne trace metals over the open ocean 

 are the result of normal weathering of the Earth's crust. However, the 

 concentrations of several easily vaporized trace metals (antimony, cad- 

 mium, copper, lead, selenium, and zinc) are greater than those predicted 

 to be of crustal origin. 



Investigators in the Biological Effects Program are conducting 

 laboratory studies to evaluate the sublethal, low-level effects of trace 

 metals, petroleum, chlorinated hydrocarbons, and phtalates on the 

 behavior and biochemical processes of individual classes of organisms. 

 The objectives of this program are to determine which species, life cycle 

 stages and physiological processes are most effected by various types of 

 pollutants, and at what levels. In addition, biological indicators are being 

 sought to provide an early warning of pollutant-induced perturbations in 

 the open ocean. 



CEPEX is a cooperative field international research project. It in- 

 volves trapping natural marine communities in large plastic enclosures 

 (10-meters diameters by 23-meters deep) and assessing the effects of 

 selected pollutants on pelagic marine ecosystems. The project site is lo- 

 cated in Saanich Inlet, Vancouver Island, British Columbia. All the 

 pollutants introduced into the CEPEX experimental containers to date 



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