Automated monitoring of Ni, Cu and Zn in the Irish Sea

The distributions of Ni, Cu and Zn have been monitored in the Irish Sea using fully automated voltammetric instrumentation and collection of seawater by underway pumping. The continuous real-time measurements provided high resolution data with a minimum risk of sample contamination. The surveys showed that the River Mersey was a significant contributor of Ni, Cu and Zn to the eastern Irish Sea and that the trace metal distribution was consistent with an anti-clockwise residual water movement in the eastern Irish Sea. The automated instrumentation is very useful for monitoring requirements for environmental impact assessments and can provide high resolution trace metal data for marine modelling purposes.