Hydrocarbons in the Antarctic marine environment
- 1 March 1991
- journal article
- review article
- Published by Cambridge University Press (CUP) in Antarctic Science
- Vol. 3 (3) , 233-250
- https://doi.org/10.1017/s0954102091000299
Abstract
The Antarctic marine ecosystem contains low concentrations of a range of hydrocarbons, overwhelmingly biogenic in origin. The low natural levels of hydrocarbons and the small amount of local human activity make the Antarctic marine ecosystem suitable as a yardstick against which future global pollution by hydrocarbons can be assessed. At present, contamination is very low and difficult to resolve against the background. Local pollution is restricted to a very few events. A systematic programme with a clear definition of the natural background is proposed to monitor both global and local pollution.Keywords
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