The Saronikos Gulf is under a lot of anthropogenic pressure, such as the urban expansion of the metropolitan area of Athens, the port of Piraeus and marinas, industrial activities, and tourism. Heavy metal pollution has been a major environmental problem in the area for many decades. Sedimentary cores have proven to be an invaluable indicator of heavy metal pollution, as they can reveal not only the current metal inputs but also the evolution of pollution over time, and with the appropriate geochemical analyses, they can provide information on the potential toxicity of metals. In this study, the temporal evolution and the chemical speciation of eleven elements were examined in sediment cores from Elefsis Bay and the Inner Saronikos Gulf, with an emphasis on the emerging environmental hazards (V and Ag). The results showed extensive pollution of the sediments by Ni, Cr, Cu, Zn, As, Mo, Cd, and Pb from the 1910s and 1960s in Eastern and Western Elefsis Bay, respectively. A significant decrease of the sediment enrichment in V, Ni, Cr, Cu, Zn, As, Cd, Pb, and Ag since 2000 was observed in the part of the Inner Saronikos Gulf that is mainly influenced by the WWTP of Athens. However, a toxicity assessment using the metal contents of the surface sediments showed that most of the trace elements studied still pose a moderate to high risk of toxicity to benthic ecosystems. The present study highlighted the urgent need for focused research and the management of trace element inputs, particularly Ag in the Inner Saronikos Gulf, where severe sediment modification was evident.

A marine geoarcheological survey was conducted at the southwestern end of the Argosaronic gulf in Greece, an area of archaeological importance. The survey was initiated by the discovery of a Late Bronze Age (LBA) shipwreck off Modi Islet. The survey which employed echo-sounding, sub-bottom profiling, side scan sonar systems and sediment coring extended to the area between Poros Island, Modi Islet and Argolid peninsula, aiming to evaluate the changes of the coastal zone extent in the past. The evolution of the palaeo-shoreline over the last 20ka is proposed based on the interpretation of the acquired bathymetric and seismic records, the estimation of the thickness of the marine sediments and the examination of existing datasets of the relative sea level changes in the area.The produced scenarios suggest that major changes marked the extent of the coastal zone since the Paleolithics. During the Upper Paleolithic period, the coast was larger by at least 11km2 and Poros and Modi islands were connected to the Peloponnesus. The sea level rise during the Mesolithic period formed a well-protected bay between Poros Island and Peloponessus and disconnected the Modi Islet from Poros Island. The coastal zone reached the present configuration around Late Bronze Age. The detection and mapping of scarps on the seismic profiles imply that the sea level rise presented standstills at least from the Last Glacial maximum until the onset of Holocene. However, the submerged coasts could be potential areas of archaeological interest since the examined area is habited continuously from the Paleolithic period.The acoustic data sets produced high resolution geomorphological maps at the wreck site which constitute data base for the monitoring of the site. In addition, the examination of the seafloor texture at the wreck site suggests that the seafloor characteristics were unfavorable for the preservation of the shipwreck