Deposit‐feeding marine clams (Macoma nasuta) were exposed for 119 d to three sediment types that varied in total organic carbon (TOC) from 0.8 to 2.5%. Sediments were spiked with equal concentrations of 13 polychlorinated biphenyl congeners and hexachlorobenzene. Tissue residues were measured, and steady‐state bioaccumulation factors (BAFs), the corresponding lipid, and TOC‐normalized biota sediment accumulation factors (BSAFs) were determined. The BSAFs were less variable than were the BAFs with the exception of compounds with log Kow > 7. Many of the BSAFs exceeded 1.7, which is a calculated maximum value based on partitioning alone. Although BSAFs varied with sediment type and compound, the use of a BSAF of 4 as a screening level for neutral organic compounds in assessing dredge materials is supported by the present study.

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Abstract-A first-order model for predicting contaminant bioaccumulation from sediments into benthic invertebrates was validated using a marine deposit-feeding clam, Macoma nasuta, exposed to polychlorobiphenyl (PCB)-spiked and dichlorodiphenyltrichloroethane (DDT)-contaminated sediments. Contaminant uptake and depuration were analyzed following short-term and long-term sediment exposures. Uptake and depuration rates were used to predict steady-state bioaccumulation factors (BAFs) and exposure times needed to attain steady state. These predictions were compared to observed steady-state BAFs. Estimating elimination and uptake rates from depuration and short-term uptake experiments was an accurate means of predicting BAFs for some PCBs (log octanol-water partition coefficient, K ow , Ͻ7) but was not as accurate for predicting DDT BAFs. The exposure time need to attain steady state was poorly predicted by the model. The results demonstrated that a standard 28-d bioaccumulation test estimated steadystate tissue residues within two-fold and was a better predictor than the model for the BAFs of superlipophilic PCBs (log K ow Ͼ7). Differences in contaminant bioavailability were noted between field-contaminated (DDT) and laboratory-spiked (PCB) sediments.

Although mercury contamination of fish is a widespread phenomenon, its regional evaluation is hindered by the reluctance of permitting agencies to grant collection permits, problems in securing adequate freezer space, and time to process whole, large fish or filets. We evaluated mercury concentrations in 210 filet biopsies from 65 sites in 12 western states relative to whole-body mercury concentration in the same fish. We found a highly significant relationship (r(2) = 0.96) between biopsy and whole-fish mercury concentrations for 13 piscivorous and nonpiscivorous fish species. We concluded that relative to conventional fish-tissue sampling and analysis procedures for whole fish or filets, the biopsy procedure for mercury in fish tissue is nonlethal, less cumbersome, more likely to be permitted by fisheries agencies, and a precise and accurate means for determining both filet and whole-fish mercury concentrations.