KFUSAG

This project is a response to a request from the Environmental Protection Department (EPD) of Saudi Aramco, and it is carried out in a collaboration between the Research Institute of King Fahd University of Petroleum & Minerals (KFUPM) and AZTI.

Object: The main overall aim of the project is the development and application of a methodology for the integrative assessment of the quality status of the marine environment in the Saudi waters of the Arabian Gulf.

The specific objectives are:

• Compilation of the information available of the different ecosystem components of the study area.
• Execution of field surveys to obtain new data.
• Development and set up of capacities to perform ecotoxicological bioassays and studies on contaminants by passive samplers, at KFUPM.
• Development and application of a methodology for the integrative assessment of the quality status of the marine environment in the study area.
• Revision and proposal of environmental quality standards for the study area.

The project will improve the existing monitoring programs and the methods and tools to assess the quality of the marine environment in the study area.