ATMOSPHERIC INPUTS TO THE NORTH-SEA AND COASTAL WATERS

The importance of the atmospheric pathway to the pollution of surface waters, and in particular the North Sea, has been confirmed by studies carried out during the last decacde. However, there are still large uncertainties associated, not only with the quantities of pollutants measured, but also with the methodologies followed to obtain estimates for large areas such as the North Sea. A large part of the uncertainties can be attributed to the lack of representative and reliable measurements at open sea. This paper discusses methodologies which have been used and gives an overview of results reported so far. Some model results on the deposition distribution over the North Sea of nitrogen and lead are presented, and the paper considers the research needs to improve the understanding of air-sea exchange processes and the research which is currently being carried out.