1. Prof. Goffredo La Loggia
"MEDITERRANEAN MARITIME POLLUTION:
THE ROLE OF REMOTE SENSING TO MONITOR AND MITIGATE"
Prof. Goffredo La Loggia
Head of the Department of
Hydraulic Engineering and Environmental Applications
University of Palermo -
MEDILAB - Remote sensing and Geographical Information System Lab
Authors: Goffredo La Loggia, Fulvio Capodici, Giuseppe Ciraolo, Antonino Maltese
Palermo June 14, 2010
University of Palermo

2. The need of monitoring and mitigate maritime pollution
Human activities contaminate both coastal zone and open sea:
pollutants;
ecosystems;
recovery time.
Pollution monitoring and mitigation by integrating:
- remote sensing,
- hydrodynamic;
bio-optical modelling.
Coastal water pollution is strictly related to land activities:
≈ 60% of world’s population lives within 60 km from the coastline impacting water quality.
Pesticides and fertilizers over-application:
- coastal zone algae growth;
- natural food chain alteration;
coastal waters oxygen deprivation.
Offshore pollution is related to maritime oil transport:
a quarter of the global maritime traffic;
causing ≈7% of the world oil accidents during the last 25 years;
biological impacts firstly on open sea than on coastal zone habitats.

3. Water Bodies pollution monitoring and mitigation
Coast, lagoon and lakes
Offshore
Water quality
Toxic blooms
Submerged vegetation distribution and dynamic
Hydrodynamic and solute transport models
Water quality
Oil spill
The Planktothrix rubescens bloom (Oscillatoria rubescens) in some Sicilian lakes.
- The contamination of reservoirs used for civil and agricultural supply highlights human healthy risks
- Spectral reflectance R(l) [-] of a typical Sicilian lake water (dashed line) and that of a water characterized by a Planktothrix rubescens algal bloom (continuous line).

4. Water Bodies pollution monitoring and mitigation
Coast, lagoon and lakes
Offshore
Water quality
Toxic blooms
Submerged vegetation distribution and dynamic
Hydrodynamic and solute transport models
Water quality
Surface Clorophyll (Chl-a);
Total Sunspended Sediments (TSS)
Water Nephelometric Turbidity (NTU)
Oil spill
CALIBRATION SITE, CALIBRATION PARAMETERS AND NTU (WATER TURBIDITY) MAP
2D model (finite difference)
The Castellammare gulf
The Augusta gulf
The Gela gulf
NTU July 2008

5. Water Bodies pollution monitoring and mitigation
Coast, lagoon and lakes
Offshore
Water quality
Toxic blooms
Submerged vegetation distribution and dynamic
Hydrodynamic and solute transport models
Water quality
Oil spill
The note deepens on the Oil spill issue reporting the MAPRES research project
Marine pollution monitoring and detection by aerial surveillance and satellite images
Recent accidents in the Mediterranean sea

6. Effects of large spills\
Oil spill pollution
Effects of large spills\
Vegetation
Animals
Economic activities
nes

7. Principal oil spill events in Europe
1.Atlantic Empress
2.ABT Summer
3.Castillo de Bellver
4.Amoco Cadiz
5.Haven
6.Odyssey
7.Torrey Canyon
8.Urquiola
9.Hawaiian Patriot
10.Independenta
11.Jakob Maersk
12.Braer
13.Khark 5
14.Aegean Sea
15.Sea Empress
16.Katina P.
17.Assmi
18.Metula
19.Wafra
20.Exxon Valdez
DATA
LOCALITA'
NAVE
SVERSAMENTI (t)
Marzo 1967
Gran Bretagna 
Torrey Canion
Gennaio 1975
Portogallo
Jacob Maersk
84.000
Maggio 1976
Spagna
Urquiola
Marzo 1978
Francia
Amoco Cadiz
Dicembre 1978
Andros Patria
47.000
Aprile 1979
Gino
42.000
Novembre1979
Bosforo
Independenta
95.000
Febbraio 1980
Grecia
Irenes
Aprile 1991
Italia
Haven
Dicembre 1992
Aegeum Sea
80.000
Gennaio 1993
Gran Bretagna
Braer
85.000
Febbraio 1996
Sea Empress
60.000
Dicembre 1999
Erika
31.000
Dicembre 2002
Prestige
77.000
nes
Principal oil spill events in Europe

8. Oil pollutions types SYSTEMATIC OPERATIVE ACCIDENTAL
Prestigie
SYSTEMATIC
OPERATIVE
ACCIDENTAL
Industrial discharges
Tank washing
Bilge waters discharges
Ballast water discharges
Oil tanker accident
Pipeline break
Oil platform accident
Oil terminal accident
nes

9. Oil transportation
nes

10. Spain 13th July 2007
Ship “Don Pedro” had been sailing from Ibiza to the eastern port city of Valencia when it hit rocks and sank Wednesday with 150 tons of fuel oil and 50 tons of gasoline on board
nes

11. Spain 13th July 2007 Three Ibiza beaches:
Talamanca, Ses Figueretes and Platja de Bossa
were closed while crews cleaned up the spill
nes

12. Il caso della “Prestige” (Novembre 2002)
Direzione del vento
Immagine ASAR (radar ad apertura sintetica) ENVISAT dell’ESA

13. Oil slicks individuate tramite SAR
Scarichi illeciti: numero di spills individuati nel 1999: per un totale di tn
UNA APPLICAZIONE NEL CANALE DI SICILIA E’ STATA REALIZZATA NELL’AMBITO DEL PROGETTO MAPRES

14. MAPRES rationale and general description

15. MAPRES rationale and general description
The project has been implemented in the following Countries:
Italy, Republic of Malta, United Kingdom
The starting date was: January 2007
The ending date was: December 2007
Duration: 12 months

16. MAPRES actors
National Interuniversity Consortium for Marine Sciences - CoNISMa: with two local research units:
- L.R.U. 1 Department of Hydraulic Engineering and Environmental Applications– University of Palermo - D.I.I.A.A. (ITA).
- L.R.U. 2 Department for the study of the territory and its resources - University of Genova - DIP.TE.RIS. (ITA).
Partnership:
Lattanzio e Associati (LEA) – Italy
University of Malta (UOM) - International Ocean Institute –Malta Operational Centre (MT)
The University of Edinburgh (UEDIN) - School of GeoSciences, Grant Institute (UK)
End users:
- Italian Coast Guard;
- Genova town district.

17. MAPRES rationale and general description
Remotely sensed data from:
Active and Passive sensors
OIL SPILL DETECTION
OIL SPILL propagation forecasting
Hydrodynamic Numerical Simulations
Impact on coastal environment and best practices for mitigation and damage recovery
OIL SPILL mitigations procedures
Using guidelines coming from preceding tasks
MAPRES exercise
Expected result: Operating Manual

18. Example of Airborne Based Multi-Sensors
ACTIVE SENSORS
Radar : The sensor mainly used is SLAR (Side Looking Airborne Radar). Works on the X-band (f=9375 MHz, l=3.2 cm)
Laser fluorosensors (for oil tickness), :
Based on the fact that Fluorescence is a strong indicator
of the presence of oil.
Works on the UV (300 to 355 nm) , VIS region
PASSIVE SENSORS
IR/UV system ,Thermal IR camera,
VIS camera…
Radar IR UV
nes

19. OIL SPILL PROPAGATION FORECASTING
CONISMA L.R.U. 1
“Dipartimento di Ingegneria Idraulica ed Applicazioni Ambientali (D.I.I.A.A.)” - University of Palermo (ITA)
Scientific Coordinator: Prof. Enrico Napoli
University of Malta (UOM) - International Ocean Institute –Malta Operational Centre (MT)
Scientific Coordinator: Dr. Aldo Drago

20. OIL SPILL PROPAGATION FORECASTING
THE NEED
Use an operational system for predicting the fate and transportation of an oil spill in the Malta Channel
Develop coastal models to detail the areas around the Maltese Islands and Pozzallo
In case of emergency, oil spill models help to determine ...
where will the oil slick move to
when will it get there
what will be its state when it arrives

21. OIL SPILL PROPAGATION FORECASTING
Ocean satellite
& in situ observations
Oil spill characteristcs and conditions
Data Assimilation
Operational ocean model
Operational oil spill model
Regional/shelf/
coastal models
nesting and downscaling
Elaboration
of fields
Operational atmospheric forecasts
Response
MEDSLIK model
The models solves the free-surface Reynolds and continuity equations in 3D

22. OIL SPILL PROPAGATION FORECASTING NESTING
1st level: coarse grid, the Ocean General Circulation Model, operating on the whole Mediterranean Sea (resolution 1/8 degrees)
nes

23. OIL SPILL PROPAGATION FORECASTING NESTING
2nd level: the regional scale Circulation Model, operating on the Sicilian channel
(resolution 1/32 degrees)
nes

24. OIL SPILL PROPAGATION FORECASTING NESTING
3rd level: the Rosario Shelf Model, operating on the Maltese channel (resolution 1/64 degrees)
nes

25. OIL SPILL PROPAGATION FORECASTING NESTING
A novel level: the Coastal Model, operating with a 1/512 degrees resolution
Malta Coastal Model
Pozzallo Coastal Model
nes

26. The Malta Coastal Model The total number of cells is 1.926.400
Spatial resolution
1/512° x 1/512°
344 cells:
E-W direction
280 cells:
N-S direction
19 cells: depth
The total number of cells is

27. OIL SPILL PROPAGATION FORECASTING examples
61 hr simulation restarted at 25 hrs using Malta Shelf Model
and the higher resolution Malta Coastal Model
61 hr simulation using the Malta Shelf Model

28. OIL SPILL PROPAGATION FORECASTING examples
Coastal Oil Distribution
No Boom
Coastal Oil Distribution
With Boom

29. THE VEGA 2007 EXERCISE THE MAPRES EXERCISE
COMANDO GENERALE DEL CORPO DELLE CAPITANERIE DI PORTO
Pozzallo and Catania sections
THE VEGA 2007 EXERCISE
C.V.(CP) Paolo Cafaro e del C.F. (CP) Marco Mancini

30. SIMULATED SPILL: 10 tons od petrol (2 ton of “Rice Hull”)
THE MAPRES EXERCISE
DATE : 28 E 29 NOVEMER 2007
PLACE: POZZALLO – PIATTAFORMA VEGA;
ACTORS:
- Coast Guard ships: CP 316 – CP 2113
- Coast Guard airplanes: ATR42 MP- “Manta 10-02”, Piaggio P166dl3-SEM “Orca 8-01”;
Supply vessels: Ecol Roma and Kerob Express.
SIMULATED SPILL: 10 tons od petrol (2 ton of “Rice Hull”)
In Catania Coast Guard aerial base researchers analyzed the hydrodynamic simulation forecast and compared the results vs the acquired data.
The position of the husk rice retrieved by means of remotely sensed data were compared to the simulations of the hydrodynamic forecast model.

31. THE MAPRES EXERCISE
ATR42

32. MEDILAB Water Activities
Pozzallo SIMULATION 29th November 2007

33. THE MAPRES EXERCISE

34. Thanks for your attention
"MEDITERRANEAN MARITIME POLLUTION:
THE ROLE OF REMOTE SENSING TO MONITOR AND MITIGATE"
Prof. Goffredo La Loggia
Head of the Department of
Hydraulic Engineering and Environmental Applications
University of Palermo -
MEDILAB - Remote sensing and Geographical Information System Lab
Thanks for your attention
Authors: Goffredo La Loggia, Fulvio Capodici, Giuseppe Ciraolo, Antonino Maltese
Palermo June 14, 2010
University of Palermo