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Coastal saltmarshes provide globally important ecosystem services including 'blue carbon' sequestration, flood protection, pollutant remediation, habitat provision and cultural value. Large portions of marshes have been lost or fragmented as a result of land reclamation, embankment construction, and pollution. Sea level rise threatens marsh survival by blocking landward migration where coastlines have been developed. Research-informed saltmarsh conservation and restoration efforts are helping to prevent further loss, yet significant knowledge gaps remain. Using a mixed methods approach, this paper identifies ten research priorities through an online questionnaire and a residential workshop attended by an international, multi-disciplinary network of 35 saltmarsh experts spanning natural, physical and social sciences across research, policy, and practitioner sectors. Priorities have been grouped under four thematic areas of research: Saltmarsh Area Extent, Change and Restoration Potential (including past, present, global variation), Spatio-social contexts of Ecosystem Service delivery (e.g. influences of environmental context, climate change, and stakeholder groups on service provisioning), Patterns and Processes in saltmarsh functioning (global drivers of saltmarsh ecosystem structure/function) and Management and Policy Needs (how management varies contextually; challenges/opportunities for management). Although not intended to be exhaustive, the challenges, opportunities, and strategies for addressing each research priority examined here, providing a blueprint of the work that needs to be done to protect saltmarshes for future generations., Competing Interests: Declaration of competing interest The authors declare that they have no known competing financial interests or personal relationships that could have appeared to influence the work reported in this paper., (Copyright © 2023 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.)

To assess the exposure of beachgoers to viruses, a study on seawater, sand, and beach-stranded material was carried out, searching for human viruses, fecal indicator organisms, and total fungi. Moreover, for the first time, the genome persistence and infectivity of two model viruses was studied in laboratory-spiked sand and seawater samples during a one-week experiment. Viral genome was detected in 13.6 % of the environmental samples, but it was not infectious (Human Adenovirus - HAdV, and enterovirus). Norovirus and SARS-CoV-2 were not detected. The most contaminated samples were from sand and close to riverine discharges. In lab-scale experiments, the infectivity of HAdV5 decreased by ~1.5-Log 10 in a week, the one of Human Coronavirus-229E disappeared in <3 h in sand. The genome of both viruses persisted throughout the experiment. Our results confirm viral contamination of the beach and suggest HAdV as an index pathogen for beach monitoring and quantitative risk assessment., Competing Interests: Declaration of competing interest The authors declare that they have no known competing financial interests or personal relationships that could have appeared to influence the work reported in this paper., (Copyright © 2022 The Authors. Published by Elsevier Ltd.. All rights reserved.)

Beach litter can affect public health and economic activities worldwide forcing local authorities to expensive beach cleaning. Understanding the key mechanisms affecting the accumulation of this waste on beaches, such as sea state and proximity to entry points, is critical to plan effective management strategies. In this one-year study, we estimated the impact of storm events and waterways runoff on litter abundance and local economy using as a model a managed, peri-urban beach facing a north-western sector of the Mediterranean Sea. We also investigated the relationship between litter composition/density and beach proximity to major/closest harbors/rivers at regional scale by combining our data with those on litter density available in literature. Autumn/winter storms caused larger litter depositions than spring/summer ones in the peri-urban beach. No preferential accumulation occurred near to waterway mouths. Litter mainly consisted of plastic, and its composition in terms of micro-categories varied over seasons. In total, 367,070 items were deposited along 4.7 km of beach over one year, and the cost for the removal of this waste amounted to approximately 27,600 euros per km/year. At regional scale, beach litter density was positively correlated to the proximity of major harbors while its composition was related to the proximity to both major harbors and rivers. Results indicate that autumn/winter storms are important drivers of marine litter deposition. They also suggest that beaches in front of the convergence zone of littoral currents and close to major harbors can be particularly subjected to this kind of pollutant. To increase their effectiveness, litter mitigation/cleaning activities should be planned based on predictions of major storm events and performed at spatial scales encompassing at least coastal regional sectors., Competing Interests: Declaration of competing interest The authors declare no known competing financial interests or personal relationships that could have influenced the present work., (Copyright © 2022 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.)

Plastics are found in marine environments worldwide, and their effects on macrophytes (seagrasses and macroalgae) colonizing sandy bottoms are still poorly known. Seagrass meadows are valuable but declining ecosystems due to local and global-change related stressors, including sediment disturbance and introduced macroalgae. Understanding whether plastics pose a further threat to seagrasses is critically important. In two simultaneous additive experiments performed in an aquaculture tank, we examined the individual and combined effects of macroplastics (non-biodegradable high-density polyethylene and biodegradable starch-based) and sedimentation (no and repeated sedimentation) on the performance (in terms of biomass and architectural variables) of a native Mediterranean seagrass (Cymodocea nodosa) and an introduced macroalga (Caulerpa cylindracea), and on the intensity of their interactions. Macroplastics were still present in sediments after 18 months. Cymodocea nodosa produced a greater biomass and longer horizontal rhizome internodes forming clones with more spaced shoots probably to escape from plastics. Plastics prevented C. nodosa to react to sedimentation by increasing vertical rhizome growth. Under C. cylindracea invasion, C. nodosa allocated more biomass to roots, particularly to fine roots. In the presence of C. nodosa, C. cylindracea performance was reduced. High-density polyethylene (HDPE) plastic and sedimentation shifted species interactions from competitive to neutral. These results suggest that both HDPE and biodegradable starch-based macroplastics, if deposited on marine bottoms, could make seagrasses vulnerable to sedimentation and reduce plant cover within meadows. HDPE plastic and sedimentation could contribute to the decline of seagrass habitats by facilitating the spread of non-native macroalgae within meadows. Overall, the study highlights the urgent need to implement more effective post-marketing management actions to prevent a further entering of plastics in natural environments in the future, as well as to establish to conservation measures specifically tailored to protect seagrass habitats from plastic pollution., Competing Interests: Declaration of competing interest The authors declare that they have no known competing financial interests or personal relationships that could have appeared to influence the work reported in this paper., (Copyright © 2020 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.)