Modelling pollution dispersion, the ecosystem and water quality in coastal waters: a review

Abstract This review is intended as a comprehensive but concise summary of present capabilities in coastal pollutant, ecosystem and water quality modelling. It reflects the recent rapid developments in multidisciplinary modelling in shelf seas. The behaviour of conservative pollutants that act as passive tracers is contrasted with those that have more complex behaviours, including oil spills. The importance of sediment modelling is emphasised, since contaminants commonly exist in both a dissolved and a particulate state, or adhere to sediments. Recently developed ecological models can have great complexity, reflecting the complexity of the real ecosystem. These models are now being linked to physical models of coastal waters and run with the same resolution. This has become possible only recently because of increases in computer power, particularly the availability of parallel systems at reasonable cost. The main advances in physical modelling are likely to come through greater understanding of turbulence and other sub-grid-scale processes as well as increased resolution. In the coastal seas there is often a lack of oceanographic data, which is even greater for the many biological and chemical variables than it is for physical variables. This is probably the single most important factor limiting the progress of operational water quality models.

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