Marine quality monitoring project to begin 2nd phase tomorrow

Muscat: In order to ascertain the extent of the impact of coastal facilities on the marine environment and to measure the concentration of heavy metals and hydrocarbons in marine components, the Environment Authority will implement the second phase of the marine environment quality monitoring project on Sunday.

The authority said: "The project aims to preserve the health of aquatic ecosystems, manage their components and elements, and ascertain the extent of the impact of any coastal facilities on the marine environment."

The authority, represented by the General Directorate of Nature Conservation, seeks to identify the quality of the marine environment, by taking samples of benthic sediments (sea water and samples of rocky oysters) and to identify the concentration of heavy metals and hydrocarbons.

The project also includes an assessment of the quality of the marine environment at the selected sites, and an inventory of the factors that lead to the rise of heavy metals and hydrocarbons.