Toxic metal concentration and distributions in sediments along the Louisiana/Texas coast
- Georgia Southwestern Coll., Americus, GA (United States). Dept. of Geology
- Marshall Space Flight Center, Huntsville, AL (United States)
The shallow marine environment offshore of the central Louisiana coast is of major importance for the Northern Gulf of Mexico's commercial fishing and shrimping industry. Because of this, research has been initiated to delineate the concentration and distribution of toxic metals in bottom sediments in that area of the Gulf. Chemical analyses have been completed on sediment core samples collected along the Chenier Coast. ICP spectrometry shows 7 of the 9 elements analyzed to be at or above the maximum acceptable levels set by the EPA and various state environmental regulation agencies for toxic metals in marine sediments. Maximum concentrations occur in sediments towards the top of cores. Carbon-14 dating techniques were used to date sediments at the bottom of two cores in order to determine the age of the oldest and least contaminated sediment. This procedure allows for documentation of the build-up of toxic metals over a specific interval of time. Another area of research deals with monitoring the distribution of toxic metals in the Northern Gulf of Mexico. Previous research shows that sediments along the Chenier Coast originate from the Atchafalaya Delta system which is approximately 77 km to the east. This suspended sediment, which is undoubtedly carrying adsorbed/absorbed toxic metals, moves along the coast as turbidity plumes. The areal distribution of the plumes are being traced by remote sensing techniques. Computer processing/enhancement of imagery gathered by NASA high-altitude aircraft and NOAA satellites show that turbidity plumes generally move W/WSW and extend to Port Arthur, Texas. The next stage of this investigation will be to determine the amount of toxic metal uptake by bottom dwellers along the Chenier Coast.
- OSTI ID:
- 6824613
- Report Number(s):
- CONF-9404221-; CODEN: GAAPBC
- Journal Information:
- Geological Society of America, Abstracts with Programs; (United States), Vol. 26:4; Conference: 43. annual meeting of the Southeastern Section of the Geological Society of America, Blacksburg, VA (United States), 7-8 Apr 1994; ISSN 0016-7592
- Country of Publication:
- United States
- Language:
- English
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Related Subjects
CONTINENTAL SHELF
SEDIMENTS
LOUISIANA
CHEMICAL COMPOSITION
TEXAS
TOXIC MATERIALS
ECOLOGICAL CONCENTRATION
GEOCHEMISTRY
CHEMISTRY
CONTINENTAL MARGIN
DEVELOPED COUNTRIES
HAZARDOUS MATERIALS
MATERIALS
NORTH AMERICA
USA
540250* - Environment
Terrestrial- Site Resource & Use Studies- (1990-)
540350 - Environment
Aquatic- Site Resource & Use Studies- (1990-)