Isotopic tools for protecting the seas

Respect for and protection of the environment are investments in our common future. The seas and oceans that cover 80% of the Earth's surface are our greatest natural resource. They help to maintain the broad ecological balance and the climate of our planet, while ocean based activities such as fishing, coastal tourism and shipping generate more than US $900 billion per year. Coastal zones, supporting about 60% of the global population, require special attention because of their contribution to the world's food supply and their sensitivity to pollution. Pollution of the ocean is extensive, and in many cases, irreversible. Our greatest guarantee against global warming - the ocean's vast ability to act as a carbon sink - may be at risk. In addition, coral reefs around the world are suffering a rapid decline. For nearly 50 years, the IAEA's Marine Environment Laboratories (IAEA-MEL) in Monaco have been making radionuclides and stable isotopes available for the study of environmental processes, the fate of contaminants in ecosystems, atmosphere-ocean interactions, surface and groundwater systems and the response of atmospheric, hydrological and marine systems to climate change. This brochure summarizes activities at the Laboratories, which will turn 50 in 2011. We are grateful for the commitment of the Grimaldi family and the Monegasque Government, as well as of other IAEA Member States, which has made our work possible. As the interface between advanced applied research into the most challenging environmental scientific problems and the transfer and dissemination of knowledge to Member States laboratories, MEL works to strengthen scientific cooperation and coordination. It provides training, strategic advice, methodological harmonization and quality support for the monitoring and assessment of marine contaminants. The scientific advances of IAEA-MEL, together with those of other advanced organizations and laboratories, can lead the way in preserving our precious ecological inheritance. Together, we can help to ensure that we bequeath clean and healthy oceans to our children and grandchildren