Pollution is the introduction of harmful contaminants that are above threshold for a given ecosystem. Common man-made pollutants that reach the Seas include pesticides, herbicides, chemical fertilizers, oil, sewage and plastics. For instance, many of these pollutants are consumed by small marine organisms and introduced into the global food chain.

To respond to the overall goal of improving environmental risk assessment, HarmoNIA is getting one step closer to sharing harmonized data and information on marine contaminants in the Adriatic & Ionian Seas through the newly-implemented Data Access Portal. The database, built on the EMODnet (European Marine Data Network) scientific approach, includes a collection of over of 1129 datasets on contaminants based in the ADRION area providing information on legacy pollutants such as heavy metals and hydrocarbons as well as on antifoulants, pesticides and biocides, polychlorinated biphenyls  and fertilizers. Information is available for all environmental matrices (seawater, sediment and biota).

To know more and access the portal, please click on the following link.

THE PROJECT: HarmoNIA sets up a transnational network of institutions adopting a joint data management system for contaminants in the marine environment. This process will improve monitoring harmonization and the assessment related to the risk of contaminant dispersion from different pollution sources. Look at project website to learn more.