MALACCA STRAITS

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MALACCA STRAITS

• Name Poon Tsz Ha, Wendy
• Fu, Vivian
• TF Tse

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Presentation Outline

• Background of the project
• Methodology of the project
• Data Analysis
• Recommendations

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Purpose

• Demonstrate ERA risk management as a viable
  framework for managing land- sea-based sources
  of marine pollution in subregional sea areas
• Packaging the approach, methods experience for
  the similar environmental management in E Asian
  region

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MALACCA STRAITS

• Background Information

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Unique ecological system

• High productivity diversity
• Rich mix of fauna flora
• Intricate hydrodynamics
• Complex interactions within between water body
  land-based activities

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Geography

• Natural channel between Indian Pacific Ocean
• Bounded by 3 littoral States
• 2nd busiest shipping lane in the world (300
  vessels/day)

Source http//en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Strait_of_Mal
acca
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Geography

• Euryhaline condition
• Rich nutrient level
• Shelter from strong currents wave action
• High uniform temperature
• Adequate tidal flushing
• High biological productivity diversity
• Rich mix of fauna and flora from Indian Pacific
  Ocean

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Natural biological resources

• Mangrove 80 at Indonesian side
• Seagrass bed patchy and abundant
• Nursery grounds for many fish species
• Shows relationship between availability of
  habitats, fish stocks sustainable yield
• Corals patchy but not very abundant

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Natural biological resources

• Exploited along both coasts of the Strait
• Fisheries for demersal pelagic species NW half
  of the Strait
• Mangrove removal for timber aquaculture
  entire length
• Extensive aquaculture cause potential problem to
  environment through release of organic waste
  chemicals

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Population Employment

• Indonesia 11m predominant on agriculture
  fisheries, derivative industries based on natural
  resources
• Malaysia 10m mix of agriculture, fisheries,
  heavy light manufacturing industries
• Singapore 3m manufacturing commercial
  activities

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River system

• Similar numbers of river catchments on Indonesian
  Malaysian coasts
• Similar amount of rainfall
• ? Similar volume (90million m3)of outflows
  runoffs from both coasts (presumption)

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Sewage facilities Quality of inputs
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Impacts to the Strait

• Increase of total suspended solids in the water
  column sedimentation
• Mangrove removal (esp. NW half of Strait) ?
  increase erosion
• River load
• Agricultural runoff
• Aquaculture
• ? ? O2 depletion, light attenuation physical
  cover ? impacts on mangroves, seagrass beds
  corals

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Impacts to the Strait

• Volume 1012 m3
• Considerable dilution removal of contaminant
  loads by flushing
• Dominant surface movement SE to NW

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Temperature and its impacts

• Constant high temperature (26 30?C)
• Exposure side ? rate of biodegradation
• ? contaminants
• Effect side ? rate of contaminant
• High level of metabolism
• (Ecotoxicological effect)

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Rainfall and its impacts

• High intensity but Short duration
• Considerable contamination of dissolved and
  particulate materials from storm water runoff
• Reduce in salinity ? Osmotic stress in marine
  species ? ? contaminant exposure
• Reduce in salinity ? Alter bioavailability of
  many contaminant (e.g. ? Cd ? ? fraction of
  dissolved metal exits as free ions)

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MALACCA STRAITS

• Methodology

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Target

• Human health
• Fish / seafood consumption
• Contamination of fish / seafood by metals,
  pesticides hydrocarbon
• Habitat
• Mangroves, peat swamps, seagrass beds, coral
  reefs, soft-bottom habitats
• Species
• Commercial non-commercial marine species

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Addressing the questions

• Evidence for problems with human health, habitats
  species (incl. commercial fish stocks)
• Problems caused to human health, habitats
  species by conditions exist now or in the future

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Identify assessment measurement Endpoint

• Risk f(H)(E)
• Where H Potential harm
• E Likelihood of exposure to
  potential harm

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2 stages of risk assessment

• Initial risk assessment
• Refine risk assessment

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Initial risk assessment

• Screening mechanism identify priority
  environmental concern on a Strait-wide basis,
  related data gaps uncertainties
• Objective
• Utilize available information on sources,
  exposure effect of land- sea-based
  activities, and pollution derived therefrom on
  living non-living resources

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Program outline for initial risk assessment

• Preparation of draft report
• Major polluting sources activities, and their
  effects on living non-living environment
• Delineation of the significant indicators of
  ecological, human health social risk from
  pollutive land- sea-based activities
• Spatial temporal scales of assessment

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Program outline for initial risk assessment

• 1. Preparation of draft report (cont)
• Interaction between land- sea-based activities
  and interactions with living non-living
  resources in along the Straits
• Combine effects of multiple diverse stress on
  ecology
• Systematic effect of a catastrophic event, e.g.
  oil / dangerous chemicals spillage by shipping
  accident

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Program outline for initial risk assessment

• 2. Identify data gaps uncertainties that need
  comprehensive risk characterization
• 3. Formulation of action plan for comprehensive
  risk assessment
• Utilize available expertise resources to
  develop risk management program for the subregion

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Refine risk assessment

• The Strait as a whole
• The Strait as a single compartment and estimate a
  single average exposure concentration for the
  entire Strait)
• Selected contaminants, risk to local areas within
  the Strait
• Local exposure concentration in the vicinity of
  specific human activities or natural resources

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Refine risk assessment

• Complete refined risk assessment of land-
  sea-based sources of pollution their effects on
  living non-living resources
• Using results of initial risk assessment
  updated information from the 3 littoral states to
  produce a comprehensive document on ERA

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Program outline for refined risk assessment

• 1. Review analyze available data provided,
  update and/or verify the methodologies,
  conclusions recommendation of initial risk
  assessment
• 2. Model development demonstration of series
  of scenarios. Analysis of scenarios
• 3. Test techniques for improving uncertainty
  analyses and report the results

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Others

• Uncertainty assessment
• Qualitative quantitative method
• Society risk
• Environmental degradation its impact to the
  economy
• Risk-benefit analysis
• Prioritize risk assessment in the society, as a
  key in risk management

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Consideration

• Relation between potential causes of problems for
  human health and the environment
• Consequences in the Strait
• Analysis of risk pathways high economic
  importance, incl. social, national, governmental
  commercial interests

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Consideration

• Sources of hazards related to economic
• Knock-on effects to economy by pollution
• Influence judgment about priorities for action ?
  Direct risk assessment ? Weigh benefits to human
  health and the environment with costs to economy?
  Influence management actions taken

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MALACCA STRAITS

• Risk Assessment

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Approaches of risk assessment

• Retrospective risk assessment
• Prospective risk assessment

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Retrospective risk assessment
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Key ingredients

• Identifying targets and endpoints precisely
• Identifying significant adverse changes
• Evidences to show the problems Identifying
  possible causes of the changes
• Identifying possible consequences of the changes
  for ecosystems and human welfare

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Key ingredients

• In this paper
• Evidences of decline on the Straits
• Habitats
• Biodiversity
• Attributed causes
• Based on expert judgment and weight of evidence
  rather than experimental sciences
• Possible consequences

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Habitat loss and consequences
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Habitats - Mangroves

• Evidences of decline
• Sumatra (Indonesia) loss 24 of mangrove
  coverage in 7 years (1987-1993)
• Malaysia loss 17 of mangrove coverage in 2
  decades (1965-1985)
• Singapore loss approximately 81 of mangrove
  coverage in the last 2 decades

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Habitats - Mangroves

• Attribute causes
• Clearance for brackish water ponds
• Over-exploitation for timber and charcoal
• Clearance for development
• Sedimentation and pollution
• Consequences
• Reduced protection from coastal erosion and
  natural disaster
• Reduced nursery grounds for commercial and
  non-commercial fish and invertebrates
• Loss of habitat for endangered species
• Economic loss for the timber industry

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Habitat Peat swamp forests

• Evidences of decline
• Sumatra (Indonesia) 7.3-9.3 million hectares to
  3.6 million hectares (50 reduction)
• West coast of Peninsular Malaysia 299,145
  hectares (77 of this area are indicated as
  disturbed and logged-over)

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Habitat Peat swamp forests

• Attribute causes
• Logging of commercially valuable tree species
• Land conversion to rice, palm and coconut
  plantations
• Consequences
• Loss of biodiversity
• Similar to the consequences of the loss of
  mangrove coverage

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Habitat Coral reefs

• Evidences of decline
• No data on the total area of coral reefs in the
  Straits and the loss of coral reef area
• Indonesia
• Poor condition 42 Fair condition 29 Good
  condition 24 Excellent condition 5
• Malaysia
• Most of the coral reefs are rated as fair
  condition
• Singapore
• Among the most stressed in Asia coral reef

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Habitat Coral reefs

• Attributed causes
• Fishing damage
• Pollution e.g. metals, oil spills and pesticides
• Massive land reclamation in Singapore
• Consequences
• Reduced in physical protection of shorelines
• Loss of biodiversity
• Reduced in fishery production
• Loss of tourist attraction

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Habitat Seagrass beds

• Evidences of decline
• No quantitative data on areal coverage or its
  loss
• Singapore Extensive seagrass beds ? Isolated
  patches
• 50 known seagrass species
• Indonesia12 species
• West coast of Peninsular Malaysia 9 species
• Singapore 9 species decline to 7 species(1990s)

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Habitat Seagrass beds

• Attributed causes
• Destruction due to the conversion to coastal
  aquaculture
• Natural disaster e.g. storm and disease
• Deposits of mining spoils and tailings
• Excessive sediments due to deforestation
  Pollution
• Consequences
• Loss of buffering zone from wave action
• Reduced stabilization of sediment
• Reduced in biodiversity
• Loss of harvestable invertebrates, macroalgae and
  grass
• loss of nursery grounds for fishes

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Habitat Soft-bottom habitats

• Evidences of decline
• Straits covered by sandy and muddy bottom
  extensively
• Quality in supporting species
• An examination of effects on female reproductive
  systems in gastropods in terms of percent female
  imposex
• Negative correlations between females with
  imposex and distance to the nearest shipping route

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Habitat Soft-bottom habitats

• Attributed causes
• Physical disruption by trawling
• Contamination of sediments from pollutants
• Consequences
• Loss of tourism attraction e.g. sandy beach
• Decline for fisheries production

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Biodiversity

• Assessment endpoint population density and
  species diversity

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Biodiversity

• Evidence of decline on on-commercial species
• Population density Two indigenous fish species
  (Alosa toil and Lactarius lacarius) are getting
  rare in Singapore
• Species diversity 52 species of fish, 13 species
  of coral and anemones, 12 specie of crustaceans
  extinct gt50 other species threatened in
  Singapore

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Biodiversity

• The increasing deterioration of environmental
  conditions in the Straits and increasing human
  activities result in changes of species
  composition (disappearance of other species and
  the increasing number of endangered species)

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Biodiversity

• Attributed causes
• Loss of major habitats
• Contamination
• Consequences
• Loss of tourist attraction
• Increase in instability of the ecosystem

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Biodiversity

• Evidences of decline on commercial species
• Indonesia Decline in catch-per-unit-effort
  (CPUE)
• Malaysia fall in total catch and catch rate

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Biodiversity

• Attribute causes
• Over-fishing
• Losses of nursery grounds
• Pollution
• Consequences
• Economic loss
• Reduction of fish species

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Prospective risk assessment
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Prospective risk assessment

• Identify the likely problems for harm to
  ecological
• Scientific and objective measurement
• Risk quotient
• Risk quotient
• Provide indices of risk for further detailed
  analyses

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Risk Quotient (RQ)

• Measurement
• RQ PEC / PNEC
• RQ MEC / STD
• Certain substances that occur naturally i.e.
  background concentrations
• BQ MEC / background concentration

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Uncertainty analysis

• Carried out for the prospective risk assessment
  to the varying levels of sophistication
• PNECs and STDs
• Depend on the reliability of the ecotoxicological
  and toxicological data
• MECs
• Depend on the reliability of sampling and
  analytical techniques
• PECs
• Depend on the assumptions of the models used in
  making predictions and the reliability of input
  data

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Prospective risk assessment

• In this paper
• Estimate the likelihood of adverse effects from
  environmental conditions within the Straits
• By comparing measured environmental
  concentrations (MECs) and predicted environmental
  concentrations (PECs)

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Likely problems for harm to ecological

• Various heavy metals in the water and sediment
• Pesticides in the water and sediment
• Problems arising from suspended solids

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Concentration of heavy metals in water
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Concentration of heavy metals in water

• RQ analysis
• RQ gt 1 High risk
• Metals of Pb, Hg, Cd and Cu gt1
• Results of BQ is consistent with RQ

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Concentration of heavy metals in water

• Uncertainty analysis
• Variability among standards
• Purpose for use
• Variability in MECs
• Values above or below the critical value (Log RQ
  0)
• Data of RQ have to be transformed and presented
  as mean log value
• Log RQs for all metal gt 0

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Concentration of heavy metals in water
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Concentration of heavy metals in water

• Klang River
• Greatest density of manufacturing industry along
  the west coast of Peninsular Malaysia
• Heavy Metal contamination in coastal waters was
  limited to certain areas close to industrial
  sites and estuaries

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Concentration of heavy metals in sediments

• No general accepted sediment quality standards
• RQ estimation
• Based on water quality
• Csed (Cw X Ksw) / r
• Critical concentration of metal in sediment
  (concentration of metal in water X solids-water
  partition coefficient) / empirically derived
  concentration ratio between suspended matter

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Concentration of heavy metals in sediments
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Concentration of heavy metals in sediments

• Lack of concordance between water column and
  sediment data
• The water and sediment samples were taken from
  different sites
• Different metals were included in the 2 types of
  analysis
• Periodically dredged of sediment
• Dissolved and particle-bound form of sediments

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Heavy metals and human health

• RQ daily metal intake / tolerable daily intake
  (TDI)
• Daily metal intake daily intake X metal content
  of the intake
• Level of concern (Action level) Tolerable daily
  intake / Seafood consumption
• ? Likely problems for harm to ecology and human

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Heavy metals and human health

• Uncertainty analysis
• Uncertainty in tolerable daily intakes
• TDIs standard varies between countries
• Dermal exposure to metal e.g. bathing

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Conclusion

• Retrospective Risk Assessment
• Decline in mangroves, peat swamp forests, coral
  reefs, seagrass beds and soft bottom habitats
• Mainly caused by habitat destruction such as
  coral reef were affected by increased sediment
  loads
• Reduction in fish stocks due to overfishing
• Pollution was probably a contributory factor

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• Prospective Risk Assessment
• Various heavy metals were found in water column
  and sediment, pesticides
• TBT or nutrients were not identified
• Human Health Prospective Risk Assessment
• No indication that health problems might arise
  from oil and hydrocarbon exposure

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• Oil and Hydrocarbon Pollution
• Long term exposure
• land based industrial activities
• Short-term exposure
• accident was calculated on the basis of
  historical experience

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MALACCA STRAITS

• Recommendations

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Recommendations

• General Recommendations
• Standards used in future risk assessment should
  be agreed by all littoral States
• E.g. definition of ecological targets on both
  scientific and societal issues
• E.g. definition of thresholds (standards and
  PNECs)

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• General Recommendations
• Regional monitoring programs should be available
  for future risk assessments
• Exposure models should be developed for future
  risk assessment.
• Needs in human health risk assessment to reduce
  the uncertainties with both threshold effect
  values and exposure information

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Recommendations to Risk Management

• agreement on the approach between littoral States
  to mangrove clearance
• controlling fishing intensity
• food contamination monitoring from metals and
  pesticides should be considered

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Recommendations to Risk Management

• prevention of the exposure on the most
  contaminated beaches to avoid sewage infection
• Management strategies should be more proactive to
  reduce the potential for contact between high
  risk vessels and vulnerable habitats

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Risk Management Actions

• Retrospective Assessment
• The loss of mangroves, peat swamps and seagrass
  beds
• The declining fishing
• Protection of other species

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Risk Management Actions

• Prospective Analysis
• Immediate action on RQs greater than 1000
• Food contamination from metals and pesticides
  deserves serious attention