Sediment Quality and Impact Assessment of Pollutants

Damia Barcelo, Mira Petrovic

• Publisher: Elsevier Science
• Year: 2006
• ISBN:
  9780080466675
• Topic: Physical Sciences
• Subtopic: Analytic Chemistry

Volume 1 of the Sustainable Management of Sediment Resources mini-series is the first attempt to fill many of these gaps in knowledge and also in practice. The volume includes sections on:

• Sampling
• Characterization of contaminants in sediments being bioavailability the main issue
• Chemical analysis
• Biological analysis
• Effect directed analysis and toxicity
• Identification evaluation
• Benthos sediment quality assessment
• Modelling of pollutant fate and behaviour
• Sediment quality guidelines

This first volume is applicable to a wide audience, from students at the graduate level, to experienced researchers and laboratory personnel in academia, industry and government. This volume also available as part of a 4-volume set, ISBN 0444519599. Discount price for set purchase.

• A broad overview on sediment quality and impact assessment of pollutants
• Suitable for both newcomers to the field of sediment treatment and specialists alike
• Outlines practical examples of methods used in sediment quality analysis

Chemical Analysis of Contaminants in Sediments

M. Petrovic^a,b; E. Eljarrat^a; S. Diez^a; G. Kowalewska^c; D. Barcelo^{a a} Department of Environmental Chemistry, IIQAB-CSIC, c/ Jordi Girona 18-26, 08034 Barcelona, Spain
^b ICREA – Catalan Institution for Research and Advance Studies, Passeig Lluis Companys 23, 08010, Barcelona, Spain
^c Marine Pollution Laboratory, Institute of Oceanology, Polish Academy of Sciences, Sopot, Poland,

1 INTRODUCTION

Because of their high potential for accumulation of contaminants, sediments are particularly sensitive to anthropogenic impacts. Ignoring their special character as sink and source of contaminants can lead to wrong conclusions concerning the status already reached. The presence of contaminated sediments might be one of obstacles to achieving “good ecological status” for a waterbody. Therefore, sediment monitoring play an important part in the assessment of impacts on environmental quality and it is aimed to assess compliance with the no deterioration objective of the Water Framework Directive (WFD) and to assess the long term impacts of anthropogenic activity.

The selection of target compounds to be monitored in sediments is generally based on: (1) persistence; (2) bioaccumulation/adsorption; (3) relevance at the large scale (river basin); (4) high fluxes (tendency to increase concentrations/fluxes on the long term basis) and (5) ecotoxicity. The primary criterion for the selection of compounds to be monitored in sediments is their physico-chemical preference for the solid phase. The trigger for monitoring and deriving a sediment Environmental Quality Standards (EQS) is a sediment-water partition coefficient (log K_p) ≥ 3 for organic substances or metals. However, Kp values are rather difficult to generate empirically so log Kow (octanol-water coefficient), which is a good predictor of the partition coefficient of the contaminant in the organic fraction of the sediment (Koc) is likely to be a standard default for organic contaminants. As a rule of thumb, compounds with a log Kow > 5 should preferably be measured in sediments, while compounds with a log Kow < 3 should preferably be measured in water. For compounds with a log Kow of 3 to 5 the sediment matrix is optional and will depend on the degree of contamination. However, for metals there is no real analogue of Kow, so the simplest approach is to include the rather limited number of metals that will be of concern for toxicological reasons (e.g. cadmium, chromium, mercury, copper, nickel, lead, silver and zinc) [1].

Generally, environmental contaminants monitored in sediments and suspended matter fall broadly into two groups:

1. The first group includes contaminants listed in the list of priority compounds of the Water Framework Directive (WFD), which have long been recognized as posing risks to human health, due to their acute toxicity, carcinogenic, or mutagenic effects and their persistence in the environment (i.e. persistent organic pollutants, POPs). Some of the priority compounds are relatively new on regulatory lists and evidence regarding their unforeseen adverse health effects and occurrence in the environment are still emerging. There are currently 33 priority substances (2455/2001/EC) for which sediment EQS are required under the WFD. Additionally, 8 other hazardous substances are covered by the daughter directives of the Dangerous Substances Directive 86/280/EC and 76/464/EEC (i.e. DDT, aldrin, dieldrin, endrin, isodrin, trichlorethylene, perchlorethylene tetrachloroethylene and carbon tetrachloride) (Table 1).

Table 1

List of 33 priority pollutants of the EU Water Framework Directive (2455/2001/EC) + 8 substances covered by the daughter directives 86/280/EC and 76/464/EEC

Priority substance	CAS number	Monitoring in sediments^a
Alachlor	15972-60-8	O- optional matrix
Anthracene	120-12-7	P- preferred matrix
Atrazine	1912-24-9	-
Benzene	71-43-2	-
Brominated diphenylethers^b	Not applicable	P
Cadmium and its compounds	7440-43-9	O
C10 ^−13^−chloroalkanes	85535-84-8	P
Chlorfenvinphos	470-90-6	O
Chlorpyrifos	2921-88-2	O
1,2-Dichloroethane	107-06-2	-
Dichloromethane	75-09-2	-
Di(2-ethylhexyl)phthalate (DEHP)	117-81-7	O
Diuron	330-54-1	-
Endosulfan (alpha-endosulfan)	115-29-7 (959-98-8)	O
Hexachlorobenzene	118-74-1	P
Hexachlorobutadiene	87-68-3	O
Hexachlorocyclohexane (gamma-isomer, Lindane)	608-73-1 (58-89-9)	O
Isoproturon	34123-59-6	O
Lead and its compounds	7439-92-1	O
Mercury and its compounds	7439-97-6	O
Naphthalene	91-20-3	O
Nickel and its compounds	7440-02-0	O
Nonylphenols (4-(para)-nonylphenol)	25154-52-3 (104-40-5)	O
Octylphenols (para-tert-octylphenol)	1806-26-4 (140-66-9)	O
Pentachlorobenzene	608-93-5	P
Pentachlorophenol	87-86-5	O
Polyaromatic hydrocarbons	Not applicable
(Benzo(a)pyrene)	50-32-8	P
(Benzo(b)fluoroanthene)	205-99-2	P
(Benzo(g,h,i)perylene)	191-24-2	P
(Benzo(k)fluoroanthene)	207-08-9	P
(Indeno(1,2,3-cd)pyrene)	193-39-5	P
Simazine	122-34-9	-
Tributyltin compounds (Tributyltin-cation)	688-73-3 (36643-28-4)	P^c
Trichlorobenzenes (1,2,4-Trichlorobenzene)	12002-48-1 (120-82-1)	-
Trichloromethane (Chloroform)	67-66-3	-
Trifluralin	1582-09-8	O
DDT (including DDE and DDD)	50-29-3	P
Aldrin	309-00-2	O
Dieldrin	60-57-1	O
Endrin	72-20-8	O
Isodrin	465-73-6	O
Trichloroethylene	79-01-6	-
Tetrachloromethylene	56-23-5	-
Tetrachloroethylene	127-18-4	-

^a according to the Expert Advisory Group on Analysis and Monitoring of Priority Substances (AMPS) of the DG Environment [2]

^b inclu...

Table of contents

• Cover image
• Title page
• Table of Contents
• Copyright page
• Preface
• Sampling of sediments and suspended matter
• Characterisation of contaminants in sediments – effects of bioavailability on impact
• Chemical Analysis of Contaminants in Sediments
• Biological analysis (Bioassays, Biomarkers, Biosensors)
• Effect Directed Analysis and Toxicity Identification Evaluation
• Benthos Sediment Quality Assessments
• Modelling of Pollutant Fate and Behaviour in Bed Sediments
• Sediment Quality Guidelines and Weight of Evidence Assessments
• Soil protection, sediment monitoring and key recommendations
• Glossary
• Index