Bioturbation-Driven Release of Buried PCBs and PBDEs from Different Depths in Contaminated Sediments

Bioturbation can remobilize previously buried contaminants, leading to an increased exposure of aquatic biota. The remobilization of buried polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs) and polybrominated diphenyl ethers (PBDEs) from three different sediment depth layers (2.0−2.5 cm, 5.0−5.5 cm, and 10.0−10.5 cm...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Environmental science & technology 2010-10, Vol.44 (19), p.7456-7464
Main Authors: Josefsson, Sarah, Leonardsson, Kjell, Gunnarsson, Jonas S., Wiberg, Karin
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Amphipoda - chemistry
Animal, plant and microbial ecology
Animals
Applied ecology
Baltic Sea Sediments
Biological and medical sciences
Congener Distributions
Contaminated sediments
Crustaceans
Ecotoxicology, biological effects of pollution
Environmental Processes
Environmental science
Environmental Sciences related to Agriculture and Land-use
Fish and Aquacultural Science
Fisk- och akvakulturforskning
Fundamental and applied biological sciences. Psychology
Geologic Sediments - chemistry
Halogenated Diphenyl Ethers - analysis
Hydrophobic surfaces
Marenzelleria-Viridis Polychaeta
Marine-Sediments
Miljö- och naturvårdsvetenskap
Monoporeia-Affinis
NATURAL SCIENCES
NATURVETENSKAP
Organic-Matter
PCB
Polybrominated diphenyl ethers
Polychaeta - chemistry
Polychlorinated Biphenyl
Polychlorinated biphenyls
Polychlorinated Biphenyls - analysis
Quality Control
Sediments
Studies
Water Partition-Coefficients
Water Pollutants, Chemical - analysis
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Summary:Bioturbation can remobilize previously buried contaminants, leading to an increased exposure of aquatic biota. The remobilization of buried polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs) and polybrominated diphenyl ethers (PBDEs) from three different sediment depth layers (2.0−2.5 cm, 5.0−5.5 cm, and 10.0−10.5 cm) was studied in a laboratory experiment with two benthic macrofauna species, the amphipod Monoporeia affinis and the polychaete Marenzelleria spp. Remobilization of PCBs and PBDEs was significantly higher in the presence of Marenzelleria spp. than in M. affinis treatments and controls (without macrofauna). The highest remobilization occurred from the most shallow layers (2.0−2.5 cm > 5.0−5.5 cm > 10.0−10.5 cm), but contaminants were remobilized due to bioturbation from layers down to at least 10 cm. Congeners with lower hydrophobicity were remobilized to a higher extent than more hydrophobic congeners. The contaminant distribution between the particulate and the dissolved phase in the water column depended on hydrophobicity and burial depth of the contaminant, with congeners from deeper layers displaying an increased distribution to the particulate phase. Release fluxes and sediment-to-water mass transfer coefficients (MTCs) show that bioturbation by the polychaete Marenzelleria spp. can lead to a significant remobilization of buried contaminants from Baltic Sea sediments.
ISSN:0013-936X
1520-5851
1520-5851
DOI:10.1021/es100615g