Journal
MARINE POLLUTION BULLETIN
Volume 153, Issue -, Pages -Publisher
PERGAMON-ELSEVIER SCIENCE LTD
DOI: 10.1016/j.marpolbul.2020.110956
Keywords
Polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons; Polychlorinated biphenyls; Metals; Mussel Watch; Gulfwatch; National Coastal Condition Assessment
Funding
- Environment Canada's National Conservation Plan: Gulf of Maine Initiative
- United States Geological Survey
- United States Environmental Protection Agency
Ask authors/readers for more resources
The objective of this paper is to determine whether contaminant data on mussels and sediments can be used interchangeably, or not, when assessing the degree of anthropogenic contamination of a water body. To obtain adequate coverage of the entire Gulf of Maine, Bay of Fundy sediment samples were collected, analyzed and combined with similar data from four coastal monitoring programs. This required careful interpretation but provided robust results consistent with published literature. A strong correspondence was found between sediment and mussel concentrations for polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons, moderate to weak correspondence for polychlorinated biphenyls, and except for mercury and zinc, little to no correspondence was found for metals. We conclude that mussel contaminant data are likely sufficient for providing information on the spatial and temporal distribution of chemical contaminants, in coastal waters, under a broad range of environmental conditions and contaminant levels, and unlike sediments, provide direct information on contaminant bioavailability.
Authors
I am an author on this paper
Click your name to claim this paper and add it to your profile.
Reviews
Recommended
No Data Available