Abstract
Rare earth elements (REE) have become a strategic commodity of
contemporary economies due to their various uses in the technological, smart, and
renewable energy industries. The boom of their uses resulted in an increased influx to
the marine environment either as a result of mining or industrial discharges, or from the
disposal of solid wastes, atmospheric fallout for military tests of smart weapons, and
remobilization from the sediments. Although sediments are the main reservoir of REE
in the marine environment, and their auspicious normalization patterns are useful
geochemical tracers, it has been found that anthropogenic contributions influence
REE’s natural occurrence. This indeed has raised concerns about the potential
ecological impacts of REE on the marine biota and in turn on human health. The
chapter gives some insights into the sources and potential ecological impacts of REE
while revealing the need for future research and the knowledge gap about the REE and
their ecological impacts as a group and as individual elements, as well as some
potential solutions to the increased anthropogenic influx of REE to the marine
environment. The potential ecological impacts of REE influx to the marine
environment constitute both their bioavailability and their toxicity. Predicted ecological
impacts on the marine biota may be similar to other trace metals, sharing analogous
chemical characteristics. Nevertheless, whether LREE or HREE are more toxic is
debatable, and their physiological and cytological effects on different organisms are
still under investigation. This prompts the need for a new understanding of REE’s
ecological impacts by focusing on influx rates, ecotoxicity, and mitigation of ecological
impacts.