Journal
ENVIRONMENTAL POLLUTION
Volume 121, Issue 2, Pages 169-180Publisher
ELSEVIER SCI LTD
DOI: 10.1016/S0269-7491(02)00229-4
Keywords
macrobenthos; sediments; metals; organic matter; Douro estuary; Portugal
Categories
Ask authors/readers for more resources
The relationship between macrobenthic community structure and natural characteristics of sediment and trace metal contamination were studied in the lower Douro estuary (Portugal, NW, Iberian Peninsula), using an innovative threefold approach (SQG, Sediment Quality Guidelines), metal normalization to Fe, and macrobenthic community structure. This study allowed detection of a clear signature of anthropogenic contamination, in terms of Zn, Cu, Pb, and Cr in the north bank of the estuary, which experiences high urban pressure. Using the SQG approach, metal concentrations above ERM (effects range-median) were observed only at one sampling station, but several stations had levels above ERL (effects range-low). The macrobenthic community had a low diversity, with only 19 species found in the entire estuarine area, dominated by opportunistic species. The granulometric distribution of the sediments (estimated from the combination of organic matter, Fe and Al) seemed to be the major structuring factor for the communities, establishing the natural macrobenthic distribution pattern. The metals (Zn, Cu, Pb, and Cr) seemed to act as a disturbing factor over the natural distribution, with deleterious consequences for the macrobenthic communities. (C) 2002 Elsevier Science Ltd. All rights reserved.
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