Marine Pollution and Ecotoxicological Health Risk Evaluation: From Benthic Invertebrates to Fish Communities

Semi-enclosed, coastal, and stratified marine basins are highly vulnerable to land-based pollution due to restricted hydrological connectivity and intense human activities. Globally, major river systems and coastal discharges introduce escalating nutrient and chemical loads into these environments, accelerating eutrophication, triggering hypoxia, and altering ecological dynamics.

Concurrently, heavy metals and emerging synthetic pollutants systematically accumulate in marine sediments, benthic invertebrates, and fish species. While benthic organisms serve as reliable long-term indicators of localized pollution, mobile fish communities highlight broader trophic transfer risks. Understanding the pathways of these pollutants and their accumulation rates across the marine food web is critical to assessing the ecotoxicological health of our oceans and ensuring the safety of seafood resources for human consumption.

The primary objective of this Research Topic is to address the multifaceted ecotoxicological pressures facing vulnerable marine environments, with a particular focus on semi-enclosed, coastal, and stratified systems worldwide. Anthropogenic stressors, including industrial discharges, agricultural runoff, and domestic effluents, introduce massive quantities of contaminants and nutrients into marine food webs. This collection aims to bridge the gap between localized physiological stress responses in marine organisms and broader environmental consequences. Specifically, we seek to explore how persistent pollutants, such as heavy metals, microplastics, and organic chemicals, bioaccumulate across complex trophic levels, moving from benthic invertebrates to commercially vital fish communities.

Ultimately, this Research Topic intends to gather cutting-edge research that translates ecotoxicological data into predictive human health risk assessment models. By linking coastal habitat degradation, changes in marine community structures, and toxicological indices, this collection will provide decision-makers with robust, scientifically validated tools to manage and restore marine ecosystems globally.

We invite original research, systematic reviews, and perspective papers that address the ecological health, pollution pathways, and socio-economic implications of marine pollution across global coastal and marine systems. We welcome interdisciplinary manuscripts focusing on:

- Bioaccumulation, biomagnification, and trophic transfer of heavy metals, microplastics, and organic pollutants from benthic invertebrates to pelagic/demersal fish.
- Ecotoxicological and biomonitoring assessments using marine organisms as bioindicators of environmental stress.
- Quantitative human health risk assessment models (e.g., Target Hazard Quotients, Estimated Daily Intake) derived from seafood consumption.
- Impacts of chemical pollution, eutrophication, and physical habitat degradation on marine biodiversity and community structures.
- Modernized mitigation strategies, pollution management policies, and innovative ecological risk assessment frameworks.