Chlorobiphenyl contaminants at Pladda and Garroch Head in the Firth of Clyde following the cessation of sewage sludge dumping

Webster, Lynda; Campbell, L. A.

doi:10.1039/b109626p

Cited by 8 publications

(25 citation statements)

References 14 publications

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“…1). This activity ceased in 1998 (Webster and Campbell, 2002). In June 1988, benthic macrofaunal and foraminiferal assemblages were sampled at nine stations along two perpendicular sample transects centred around the disposal site.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Comparison of benthic foraminiferal and macrofaunal responses to organic pollution in the Firth of Clyde (Scotland)

Mojtahid¹,

Jorissen²,

Pearson³

2008

Marine Pollution Bulletin

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By comparing benthic foraminiferal and macrofaunal responses to sewage sludge disposal in the Firth of Clyde (Scotland), we wanted to investigate the possibility of using foraminifera as bio-indicators of marine environmental degradation. Both groups present a similar distributional pattern, with poor faunas composed of species tolerant to strong oxygen depletion near to the disposal site, surrounded by high density of opportunistic species. Farther away, faunal density decreases and equilibrium taxa gradually replace opportunistic species. No more environmental impact is perceptible beyond 3 km. Nevertheless, some differences exist: foraminifera appear to be more impacted at the disposal site, probably as a consequence of the low pH, a supplementary stress factor for organisms provided with a calcareous test. At 3 km west of the disposal site, macrofauna is comparable to the reference station, whereas foraminifera still indicate environmental degradation, suggesting their higher sensitivity to this type of pollution. It appears that benthic foraminifera may add valuable information to open marine environmental monitoring.

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Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Comparison of benthic foraminiferal and macrofaunal responses to organic pollution in the Firth of Clyde (Scotland)

Mojtahid¹,

Jorissen²,

Pearson³

2008

Marine Pollution Bulletin

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“…Published studies following the cessation of sewagesludge disposal are limited (see Moore, 2003), but include Rodger et al (1991), and Webster & Campbell (2002) for the Scottish west coast, Shelton (1971) for the outer Thames estuary, south-east England, Birchenough & Frid (in press) and Rees et al (2003) for the present study area o¡ the north-east English coast, and Reid et al (1995) and Hill et al (1996) for the New York Bight. However, given the nature of the activity, important parallels may be drawn with a much larger body of information on the e¡ects of organic enrichment at the seabed arising principally from the pipeline discharge of sewage e¥uent, but also from pulp mill e¥uent, a synthesis of which led to the evolution of the classical 'enrichment' model of Pearson & Rosenberg (1978) for the responses of benthic communities.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 86%

Benthic responses to organic enrichment and climatic events in the western North Sea

et al. 2006

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Macrofaunal assemblages inhabiting stable offshore muddy sand substrata responded predictably to the effects of mild organic enrichment arising from sewage-sludge disposal off the north-east coast of England (western North Sea). At the disposal site, densities were elevated up to two-fold, but classical ‘indicator’ species were only marginally enhanced and there was no evidence of a significant waste-induced change in assemblage structure. The response following cessation of disposal was equally predictable, with a decline in densities to ‘reference’ levels some three years later. However, physical manifestations of disposal, including tomato pips and non-biodegradable artefacts, were still evident after this time.Changes in diversity at selected monitoring stations tended to track each other over time and the employment of treatment/reference ratios and limit values for acceptable change provided a useful model for the simplified expression of trends. Predictions concerning the limited scale and intensity of the effects of sewage-sludge disposal appear to have been met, indicating that the management option of sea disposal was, at the time, an environmentally acceptable one.Temporal trends in the benthic fauna were also correlated with winter values of the North Atlantic Oscillation Index for the preceding year. The densities and variety of species tended to be lower in response to warmer winters characterized by westerly airflows which were commonly encountered in the 1990s. Finally, the increasing importance of extended time-series data for the investigation of man-made impacts on the marine environment is highlighted, along with the accompanying requirement for continuity and quality assurance of sampling programmes.

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“…In addition to the organic enrichment of the sediment, historically elevated levels of heavy metals and other organic compounds have been measured at the Garroch Head dump site. [1][2][3][4][5][6][7][8] The dumped sludge contained organic contaminants such as CBs and pesticides such as dichlorodiphenyltrichloroethane (DDT) and dieldrin. Concentrations of CBs in the sediment at Garroch Head were found to be higher than concentrations in the dumped sludge, due to the accumulative effects of dumping.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…1) in the Clyde but remote from the dump site. 5,6 Hydrophobic contaminants such as CBs will accumulate in lipid rich tissue such as the liver, therefore, fish liver samples have been collected annually at both sites for CB analysis since 1992. Commercial formulations of chlorobiphenyls (CBs), such as Aroclor mixtures, have been widely used in the past in transformers, capacitors, hydraulic fluids and as plasticisers in paints, plastics and sealants.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Organic contaminants in the Firth of Clyde following the cessation of sewage sludge dumping

et al. 2005

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To assess contaminant concentrations in the Firth of Clyde in relation to the former sewage sludge dump site at Garroch Head, and investigate any temporal changes, fish have been sampled annually since 1992 and sediment since 1999. In addition, a further four locations in the Clyde (Holy Loch, Hunterston, Skelmorlie and Irvine Bay) have been sampled for fish and sediment since 1999. Chlorobiphenyls (CBs) were measured in fish samples and polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) and CBs in sediment. Since sampling was initiated the concentration for the summation operatorICES7 CBs in fish liver has been consistently >500 microg kg(-1) lipid weight at Garroch Head and the other Clyde sites and lower at the reference sites (Pladda, Colonsay, Broad Bay). Although the lowest CB concentrations of the eleven year period in plaice liver from Garroch Head were found in 2002, CB concentrations were found not to have decreased significantly since sewage sludge dumping ceased in 1998. However, a change in CB profile was observed with fish liver collected between 1992 and 1998 from Garroch Head showing a lower proportion of the less chlorinated CBs compared to the 1999-2002 liver samples. Highest CB and PAH concentrations in sediment were found at Garroch Head and Holy Loch with concentrations at these sites being significantly higher than at all other sites.

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Chlorobiphenyl contaminants at Pladda and Garroch Head in the Firth of Clyde following the cessation of sewage sludge dumping

Cited by 8 publications

References 14 publications

Comparison of benthic foraminiferal and macrofaunal responses to organic pollution in the Firth of Clyde (Scotland)

Comparison of benthic foraminiferal and macrofaunal responses to organic pollution in the Firth of Clyde (Scotland)

Benthic responses to organic enrichment and climatic events in the western North Sea

Organic contaminants in the Firth of Clyde following the cessation of sewage sludge dumping

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