Chemical status evaluation of the Romanian Black Sea marine environment based on benthic organisms’ contamination

Abstract

The use of living organisms to provide information on the quality of aquatic environments is now a widely accepted methodology for assessing contaminant bioavailability. Molluscs have developed tolerance mechanisms towards environmental stressors and can accumulate a large range of contaminants. The assessment of marine environment quality was based on heavy metals (HM), persistent organic pollutants (organochlorine pesticides – OCPs and polychlorinated biphenyls - PCBs) and polynuclear aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) analysis in Mytilus galloprovincialis, Rapana venosa, Anadara kagoshimensis species sampled during 2016 - 2020 along Romanian Black Sea coast. Toxic metals (cadmium, lead) had bioaccumulation levels below threshold values in most molluscs samples investigated. Cadmium registered few values (15%) surpassing maximum admissible levels, in all three species. Data evaluation demonstrated the maintenance of a high level of concentrations of persistent organic pollutants in the mollusc tissue, but also of the exceedances of the values that characterize the good ecological status of these compounds. Polynuclear aromatic hydrocarbons showed a declining trend and no exceeding of the maximum allowed limit for benzo[a]pyrene was recorded in the last years. In consequence, the overview assessment based on “OneOutAllOut” (OOAO) approach, considering all groups of substances, indicates a bad chemical status for this period.

Screening for Organic Pollutants in the Black Sea Turbot (Scophthalmus maeoticus)

“…There is a close connection between the pollutant values and the fish's food. This has also been highlighted in other studies through the bioaccumulation of pollutants in the mollusks and fish it feeds on [28,63,64]. In the present case, due to the large range of correlation significance between the environmental and fish data, we also turn our attention to the accumulation of pollutants in food.…”

“…There are few studies focused on how water or sediments contaminated with polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons influence the development of turbot [55,56]. The available studies carried out so far in the Black Sea aimed to determine PAHs, OCPs and PCBs either in water, sediments [57][58][59], or biota, especially mollusks [60][61][62][63]. According to available information, only one study that included turbot as a species for the determination of one persistent organic pollutants group-PCBs quantified in different fish species [64]-was carried out in the Black Sea region.…”

Environmental Assessment with Cage Exposure in the Neva Estuary, Baltic Sea: Metal Bioaccumulation and Physiologic Activity of Bivalve Molluscs

“…The concentrations of metals in mollusc tissues obtained in the Gulf of Finland were similar to the range of those levels obtained by other authors for coastal ecosystems of different seas. In mussel Mytilus galloprovincialis from the Black Sea, the values of bioaccumulation of heavy metals varied within the following ranges: Cu 1.13-5.11 µg/g wet weight (or about five times more for dry weight); Cd 0.14-2.02 µg/g ww; Pb < 0.1-0.18 µg/g ww [43,44]. Concentrations of heavy metals in the other molluscs species (Anadara, Mytilus, Rapana) from the Romanian marine waters varied within wide ranges, as follows: Cu 0.93-12.9 µg/g ww; Cd 0.14-2.92 µg/g ww; Pb 0.01-0.37 µg/g ww.…”

From Waters to Fish: A Multi-Faceted Analysis of Contaminants Pollution Sources, Distribution Patterns, Ecological and Human Health Consequences

“…Finally, the samples were concentrated using nitrogen flow on a water bath and analyzed by GC-ECD and GC-MS, respectively. Internal standard 2,4,5-Trichlorobiphenyl for POPs and 9,10-dihydroanthracene for PAHs were added to the samples for quantifying the overall recovery of the analytical procedures [25].…”

“…Chronic exposure to low levels of organic contaminants can disrupt the hormonal system in both animals and humans [4], polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) found in the environment may not directly cause cancer, they can become carcinogenic after entering an organism [18]. Among PAHs, benzo[a]pyrene is the one with the strongest link to cancer in humans [25] Also, among sixteen priority PAHs analyzed, benzo[a]pyrene stands out as the only one with a maximum permissible limit set by European Regulation 915/2023/EC [26]. Studying HMs, POPs and PAHs in fish and mollusks tissues from the Black Sea is important for human health concerns.…”