Abstract
In the United Kingdom, the use of TBT-based anti-fouling paints on small vessels was banned in 1987, and a biological study of the Crouch Estuary, a yachting centre on the south-eastern coast of the UK, was conducted in order to determine the ecological improvements resulting from this legislation. We present the changes in the macro-infaunal communities along the estuary in relation to declining TBT concentrations between 1987 and 2005. Although the major changes in response to the ban were observed within the first 3 years (primarily an increase in the number of crustacean taxa and a shift in community structure), with changes still apparent between three and 5 years, the temporal duration of this study allowed the rapidity of the response to be truly determined.
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Smith, R., Bolam, S.G., Rees, H.L. et al. Macrofaunal recovery following TBT ban. Environ Monit Assess 136, 245–256 (2008). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10661-007-9680-8
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10661-007-9680-8