Distribution of Hydrocarbons and Microbial Populations Related to Sedimentation Processes in Lower Cook Inlet and Norton Sound, Alaska

Abstract

ABSTRACT. In spring and summer 1978 and spring 1979 an integrated study was carried out to examine the interrelationships of physical (sediment deposition), chemical (organic carbon and hydrocarbon concc~m), and bidogid (microbial popllations and activities) factors in the Cook Met and Norton Sound regions with respect to the probable sinks and fates of hydrocarbon cantaminants within these ecosystems. Most of the fine-graincd sediment entering Cook Inlet is transported out of the inlet into Shetikof Strait; however, significant sediment accumulatioll occurs within areas of Kamishalr and Kachemak bays. In Norton Sound, sediment from the Yukon River is transported counterclockwise around the-embayment and approximately 50% is deposited in the nearshore regions of the sound. In both regions, areas of high sediment accumulation are richer in organic carbon and hydrocarbon derived from land than are areas of low sediment accumulation. In general, areas with high sadiment accumulation rates for fine-grained particles are also areas of relatively high microbial activity. Results suggest that these elevated microbial activities reflect biodegradation of detrital carbon associated with these particles. Also, the Cook Inlet and Norton Sound region were found to be free from petroleum hydrocarbon contamination (with the exception of one ana in Cook Inla). No evidence was found of hydrocarbon accumulation resulting from a gas seepage in

Mercury Stable Isotopes in Seabird Eggs Reflect a Gradient from Terrestrial Geogenic to Oceanic Mercury Reservoirs

“…Delipidized murre eggs with δ 13 C values less than −20 ‰ were deemed to indicate freshwater/terrestrial inputs of C to murre diets. − This suggested that a terrestrial C source exists for murres from Norton Sound where [Hg] was the highest, and that the Yukon River and other smaller drainages on the south side of the Seward Peninsula are the source of this difference in water chemistry. The Yukon River alone contributes about 8% of the total freshwater entering the Arctic Ocean, and it is also the source of about 50% of Norton Sound’s sediments . The annual discharge from the Yukon River drainage also contains about 4400 kg of total Hg, making it the largest single source of Hg for the coastal marine environment in this region.…”

“…The Yukon River alone contributes about 8% of the total freshwater entering the Arctic Ocean, 43 and it is also the source of about 50% of Norton Sound's sediments. 44 The annual discharge from the Yukon River drainage also contains about 4400 kg of total Hg, 45 making it the largest single source of Hg for the coastal marine environment in this region. It should also be noted that there are natural lode and placer deposits of Hg-rich cinnabar near the Bluff colony in Norton Sound, 46 and nearshore sediments along this shoreline have enriched [Hg] relative to offshore sediments.…”

SEABIRD TISSUE ARCHIVAL AND MONITORING PROJECT: Egg Collections and Analytical Results for 2006-2009

“…These data helped confirm that the outflows from the Yukon River and some of the embayment's smaller drainages dominate its water chemistry. The Yukon River alone contributes about 8 % of the total freshwater entering the Arctic Ocean (Aagaard and Carmack 1989), and it is also the source of about 50 % of Norton Sound's sediments (Atlas et al 1983).…”