Hostname: page-component-745bb68f8f-b6zl4 Total loading time: 0 Render date: 2025-01-12T12:23:51.722Z Has data issue: false hasContentIssue false
  • English
  • Français

The intertidal benthos and sediments of particulate shores in the Firth of Forth, Scotland, with particular reference to waste water discharges

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  05 December 2011

Paul Read
Paul Read
Affiliation:
Department of Biological Sciences, Napier College, Colinton Road, Edinburgh EH 10 5DT, Scotland, U.K.
Get access

Synopsis

The paper summarises and briefly discusses published and unpublished data relating to the physicochemical characteristics of the sediments and the occurrence and distribution of the intertidal macrobenthos of paniculate shores in the Firth of Forth. In general, the shores described are poor faunistically and in some areas this results partly from the influence of waste water discharges. Detailed information is available for only a limited number of the numerous beaches in the Firth of Forth. In consequence, this paper focusses attention on the results of a long term study of four beaches along the south shore of the firth which was undertaken as part of an environmental impact assessment in relation to the introduction of improved sewage treatment and disposal for the City of Edinburgh. Edinburgh Sewage Scheme and the firth into which it discharges are briefly described and data pertaining to changes in the intertidal sediments and the intertidal macrobenthic communities, which occurred in the Seafield Bay area of the firth following pollution abatement, are presented and discussed.

Type
Research Article
Information
Proceedings of the Royal Society of Edinburgh, Section B: Biological Sciences , Volume 93 , Issue 3-4: The Natural Environment of the Estuary and Firth of Forth , 1987 , pp. 401 - 413
Copyright
Copyright © Royal Society of Edinburgh 1987

Access options

Get access to the full version of this content by using one of the access options below. (Log in options will check for institutional or personal access. Content may require purchase if you do not have access.)

References

Anderson, K. J., & Read, P. A., 1974. Pollution studies in the Firth of Forth. Marine Pollution Bulletin 5, 121–125.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Buchanan, J. B., & Longbottom, M. R., 1970. The determination of organic matter in marine muds: the effects of the presence of coal and the routine determination of protein. Journal of Experimental Marine Biology and Ecology 5, 158–159.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Buchanan, J. B., & Kain, J. M., 1971. Measurement of the physical environment. In Methods for the study of the marine benthos, eds. Holme, N. A., & Mclntyre, A. D., pp. 30–58. Oxford: Blackwell.Google Scholar
Cleator, B., 1986. The environmental impact of an industrial discharge emitting cadmium and paniculate solids into the Firth of Forth (M.Sc., thesis, Napier College, Edinburgh).Google Scholar
Corlett, J., 1972. Firths of Forth and Tay: an appraisal of knowledge and present research programmes with suggestions for future research. Plymouth: Institute for Marine Environmental Research.Google Scholar
Covill, R. W., 1972. The quality of the Forth Estuary—2. Proceedings of the Royal Society of Edinburgh 71B, 143–170.Google Scholar
Covill, R. W., 1975. Bacteriological, biological and chemical parameters employed in the Forth Estuary. In Pollution criteria for estuaries, eds. Helliwell, P. R., & Bossanyi, J., 9.1–9.57. Woking: Unwin Brothers.Google Scholar
Covill, R. W., Davies, A. W., & Chandler, J. R., 1968. Parameters of marine pollution in the Forth Estuary. Public Works and Municipal Services Congress. Session under the auspices of the Institute of Water Pollution Control.Google Scholar
Crockett, A. S., & Dugdale, J., 1976. Development of Edinburgh's sewage disposal scheme. Proceedings of the Institution of Civil Engineers 60, 53–78.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Dugdale, J., 1975. Edinburgh's Sewage treatment and disposal scheme. Journal of Water Pollution Control 76, 611–624.Google Scholar
Dyke, P. G., 1987. Water circulation in the Firth of Forth, Scotland. Proceedings of the Roval Society of Edinburgh 93B, 273–284.Google Scholar
Forth River Purification Board 1981. Dunbar outfall survey: An investigation into possible sites for a sea outfall for sewage disposal. Port Edgar: Forth River Purification Board.Google Scholar
Forth River Purification Board 1983. Burntisland Survey: Report of the survey carried out off Burntisland during 1983 for Fife Regional Council in connection with a long sea outfall. ES1/83. Port Edgar: Forth River Purification Board.Google Scholar
Forth River Purification Board 1984. Inverkeithing Bay. A Paper Mill Effluent Discharge: An environmental assessment of its effects. ES3/84. Port Edgar: Forth River Purification Board.Google Scholar
Holme, N. A., & Mclntyre, A. D., (eds.) 1971. Methods for the study of the marine benthos. IBP Handbook 16. Oxford: Blackwell Scientific.Google Scholar
Institute of Offshore Engineering 1977. Shell–Esso Fife NGL Plant Braefoot Bay—Moss Morran Environmental Assessment. London: Shell Expro.Google Scholar
Johnston, C. S., 1972. Macroalgae and their environment. Proceedings of the Royal Society of Edinburgh 71B, 195–207.Google Scholar
Lorenzen, C. J., 1967. Determination of chlorophyll and phaeopigments: spectrophotometric equations. Limnology and Oceanography 12, 343–346.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Matthews, J. E., 1983. A study of the influence of changes in sewage discharges from the City of Edinburgh on the marine macrobenthos (Ph.D., Thesis, Napier College, Edinburgh).Google Scholar
Moore, D. C., & Davies, I. M., 1987. Monitoring the effects of the disposal at sea of Lothian Region Sewage Sludge. Proceedings of the Royal Society of Edinburgh 93B, 467–477.Google Scholar
Napier College 1977. An investigation of the effects of Edinburgh City Sewage Scheme on the ecology of the Firth of Forth: Report for the period prior to the introduction of the sewage scheme 1973–1977. Edinburgh: Lothian Regional Council.Google Scholar
Napier College 1981. An investigation of the effects of Edinburgh Sewage Scheme on the ecology of the Firth of Forth: Final Report 1973–1981. Edinburgh: Lothian Regional Council.Google Scholar
Read, P. A., 1977. An investigation of the influence of water quality on the intertidal macrobenthos of selected areas of the south shore of the outer Firth of Forth (Ph.D., Thesis, Napier College, Edinburgh).Google Scholar
Read, P. A., & Renshaw, T., 1977. Organism and environment on polluted beaches: a canonical correlation analysis. Journal of Applied Ecology 14, 31–42.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Read, P. A., & Renshaw, T., Jackes, A., Watson, P. G., & Anderson, K. J., 1977. Water quality in the Forth Estuary: A discriminant functional analysis. Environmental Pollution 14, 275–287.Google Scholar
Read, P. A., & Renshaw, T., 1982. Water quality improvement in the Firth of Forth: A discriminant functional analysis. Environmental Pollution (Series B) 4, 291–301.Google Scholar
Read, P. A., Anderson, K. J., Matthews, J. E., Watson, P. G., Halliday, M. S., & Shiells, G. M., 1982. Water quality in the Firth of Forth. Marine Pollution Bulletin 13, 421–425.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Read, P. A., Anderson, K. J., Matthews, J. E., Watson, P. G., Halliday, M. S., & Shiells, G. M., 1983. Effects of pollution on the benthos of the Firth of Forth. Marine Pollution Bulletin 14, 12–16.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Richards, L. K., & Smith, P. H., 1982. Edinburgh Sewage disposal scheme—further developments. Proceedings of the Institution of Civil Engineers 72, 307–331.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Stephen, A. C., 1929. Studies on the Scottish marina fauna: The fauna of the sandy and muddy areas of the tidal zone. Transactions of the Royal Society of Edinburgh 56, 291–306.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Smyth, J. C., 1968. The fauna of a polluted shore on the Firth of Forth. Helgolander wiss Meeresunters 17, 216–223.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Watson, J. D., & Watson, D. M., 1971. Forth hydrographic survey. Edinburgh: City and Royal Burgh of Edinburgh.Google Scholar