Relationship of parasites and pathologies to contaminant body burden in sentinel bivalves: NOAA Status and Trends 'Mussel Watch' Program.

The 1995-1998 database from NOAA's National Status and Trends 'Mussel Watch' Program was used to compare the distributional patterns of parasites and pathologies with contaminant body burdens. Principal components analysis (PCA) resolved five groups of contaminants in both mussels and oysters: one dominated by polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs), one dominated by pesticides, and three dominated by metals. Metals produced a much more complex picture of spatial trends in body burden than did either the pesticides or PAHs.

Chemical contaminants and their effects in fish and wildlife from the industrial zone of Sumgayit, Republic of Azerbaijan.

Sediment from a wetland adjacent to an industrial wastewater treatment plant in Sumgayit contained concentrations of total PAHs, total PCBs, aldrin, biphenyl, chlordane, DDT, mercury, beta-endosulfan, heptachlor, alpha-hexacyclohexane (alpha-HCH), gamma-HCH, and several individual PAH congeners that were elevated relative to published sediment quality guidelines. Chemical analyses of tissues from European pond turtles (Emys orbicularis) had increased levels of many of the same chemicals including aldrin, chlordane, heptachlor, alpha-HCH, total PCBs, total PAHs, and mercury, compared to reference turtles. In addition, turtle tissues contained elevated levels of DDD, hexachlorobenzene (HCB), and pentachlorobenzene that were not elevated in the sediment sample.

Preservation and determination of trace metal partitioning in river water by a two-column ion exchange method.

A one-step preconcentration method using two columns in series was used to partition trace metals in natural waters into several operationally defined fractions. The water passed through a Chelex-100 cation exchange column to collect dissolved labile trace metals and then through an AG MP-1 macroporous resin column to collect trace metals complexed with natural organic matter. A third fraction (inert) was obtained from the difference between total dissolved trace metal concentrations, determined after UV irradiation of a separate aliquot, and the sum of the fractions retained on the two columns.