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Research article - Peer-reviewed, 2010

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

Josefsson, Sarah; Leonardsson, Kjell; Gunnarsson, Jonas; Wiberg, Karin

Abstract

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.

Keywords

Marenzelleria-viridis; POLYCHAETA; Water Partition-Coefficients; Baltic Sea Sediments; Monoporeia-affinis; Marine-Sediments; Organic-Matter; Polychlorinated Biphenyl; Congener Distributions; Pontoporeia-femorata; Population-Dynamics

Published in

Environmental Science and Technology
2010, Volume: 44, number: 19, pages: 7456-7464
Publisher: AMER CHEMICAL SOC

        SLU Authors

        Associated SLU-program

        Non-toxic environment

        Sustainable Development Goals

        SDG6 Clean water and sanitation

        UKÄ Subject classification

        Fish and Aquacultural Science
        Environmental Sciences related to Agriculture and Land-use

        Publication identifier

        DOI: https://doi.org/10.1021/es100615g

        Permanent link to this page (URI)

        https://res.slu.se/id/publ/61074