Polychlorinated biphenyls in marine sediments from the southern North Sea and Scheldt estuary: a ten-year study of concentrations, patterns and trends.

The paper reports the concentrations and patterns of CBs in sediments of the Belgian part of the southern North Sea and the Scheldt estuary for the period 1991-2001. The long-term analytical performance was well within the quality assurance boundaries set at the outset of the study and is consistent with the state of the art for this type of analysis. The CB concentrations (given as the median of the sum of IUPAC Nos 28, 52, 101, 118, 138, 153 and 180) vary between 0.