ANCONA – It also stops in the Marche region international shipping Trec which studies coastal ecosystems throughout Europe, from Norway to the Mediterranean, ending in Greece, under the aegis of EMBL, the European molecular biology laboratory.
The expedition that brings together researchers from the world, it also involves the CNR Irbim team of Ancona. «This is a study based on a new approach that uses innovative techniques that analyze the DNA of microorganisms to study the impact on biodiversity» explains the professor Gian Marco Lunadirector of the CNR Irbim of Ancona.
The objective of the study is to evaluate the impact of pollutants, which from the soil reach the rivers and subsequently the sea, on ecosystems: a snapshot of the environmental state of these important ecosystems and on biodiversity whose data will be accessible not only to the community scientific, but also to the institutions.
The researchers are sampling the Tronto and Esino riversstarting from the land around the mouth, and then continuing with pre-established sampling points along the waterways and proceeding to the point where they flow into the sea, also studying the beach environment as well as the marine one.
In the Marche region, scientists aboard the EMBL mobile laboratories and the schooner Tara will collect samples of water, soil, sediment and aerosols at the sites of San Benedetto del Tronto and Falconara Marittimaidentified as sites of significant scientific interest to be studied at an international level.
A far-reaching study with advanced methods “never done before” and conducted with mobile laboratories and thanks also to the support of the French schooner Tara which studies the biodiversity of the sea and oceans. «Our researchers participate in sampling activities, provide scientific support and participate in data interpretation» explains Professor Luna.
What result do you expect? «The results will take time, but the photography will provide a picture of the state of the marine ecosystems with a detail never achieved until today. We certainly know that in the Marche the river mouths are very sensitive to the impact of man. Thanks to this study we will be able to better understand how pollutants are transported at sea and their impact.”
