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The Mitsui & Co. Environment Fund

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Graduate School of Maritime Sciences, Kobe University Professor Hideo Okamura

Accumulations of chemical substances in enclosed coastal seas and their influence on marine life

Research grant

Project Description

The Inland Sea (Seto Naikai) is the largest enclosed coastal sea in Japan. Partly because of its shallowness, the sea could potentially provide an excellent ecosystem. On the other hand, it is situated such that its waters are not easily exchanged with those of the outer ocean, leading to an undesirable situation in which pollutants and other chemical substances flowing in from peripheral rivers accumulate within bottom sediment. In this research, we turn our attention to several substances (Irgarol, M1, Diuron, and Sea-Nine 211), which we survey as proxies for organotin compounds that have built up over years of painting hull (ship) bottoms. We reveal mechanisms for the buildup of chemical substances on seafloors. Also, for its relevance to impacts on marine organisms, we also examine toxicity on oyster larvae.

Fields
Marine resources/foodPreservation of biodiversity and ecosystem
Grant year
FY2007 Research Grants
Grant term
3 years
April 2008 - March 2011
Grant amount
7,664,000 yen
Activity region
Inland Sea centered on Hiroshima Bay
Testing sea bottom mud for toxicity

Overview of the Organization

Professor Hideo Okamura
Representative
Professor Hideo Okamura
Profile
Specialist fields
Marine environmental management, environmental toxicology
Affiliated academic societies
Japan Society on Water Environment; the Japanese Society of Environmental Toxicology; the Society of Sea Water Science, Japan; Japan Institute of Marine Engineering
Background
In 1992 was appointed assistant at the Institute of Plant Science and Resources, Okayama University. In 2002 became an Assistant Professor, at Kobe University of Mercantile Marine. In 2006 was appointed Associate Professor at the Faculty of Maritime Sciences, Kobe University. In 2007 became a Professor at the Graduate School of Maritime Sciences, Kobe University
WEB site
http://www.kobe-u.ac.jp
Collaborating researcher
Noritaka TSUNEMASA, Hiroshima City Institute of Public Health
Research record
  • (1) Okamura,H., et al. (2006) Toxicity reduction of metal pyrithiones by near ultraviolet irradiation. Environ. Toxicol.21: 305-309.
  • (2) Okamura,H. et al. (2003) Antifouling herbicides in the coastal waters of western Japan. Marine Pollut.Bull.47:59-67.
  • (3) Okamura,H., et al. (2000) Fate and ecotoxicity of the new antifouling compound Irgarol 1051 in the aquatic environment. Water Res. 34(14): 3523-3530.