Polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons in clams, sediments, and seawater from the Great Barrier Reef region, Australia

Conference · Thu Sep 01 04:00:00 EDT 1988 · Preprints of Papers Presented at National Meeting, Division of Water, Air and Waste Chemistry, American Chemical Society; (USA)

OSTI ID:7267026

Bagg, J; Smith, J D ^[1]

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1. Univ. of Melbourne, Parkville (Australia)

On the Great Barrier Reef actively growing organisms occur mainly in shallow water, between the low-water mark and about 5m depth. The effects of hydrocarbon pollution either from discharge into the sea or run-off from the shore might be expected to be most significantly at air/water or solid/water interfaces and so the earliest indications of contamination are likely to be found in species that live in this vulnerable zone. For this reason the clam Tridacna maxima which is found in the intertidal region was chosen to be analyzed for PAH content. This clam occurs in adequate numbers along the entire length of the Great Barrier Reef and yields enough tissue to permit detection of PAH at very low concentrations. In addition during collection their shells close so that the chance of significant contamination during transport is very small. Clams were taken from a number of sites including isolated reefs such as John Brewer Reef, the research stations, Heron and Lizard Islands, and a tourist resort, Green Island. At all these sites sediments were analyzed for PAH and at Green Island, in addition, seawater was analyzed.

• OSTI ID: 7267026
• Report Number(s): CONF-8909236--
• Conference Information: Journal Name: Preprints of Papers Presented at National Meeting, Division of Water, Air and Waste Chemistry, American Chemical Society; (USA) Journal Volume: 28:2
• Country of Publication: United States
• Language: English

Related Subjects

54 ENVIRONMENTAL SCIENCES
540320* -- Environment
Aquatic-- Chemicals Monitoring & Transport-- (1990-)
560300 -- Chemicals Metabolism & Toxicology
63 RADIATION, THERMAL, AND OTHER ENVIRON. POLLUTANT EFFECTS ON LIVING ORGS. AND BIOL. MAT.
ANIMALS
AQUATIC ORGANISMS
AROMATICS
AUSTRALASIA
AUSTRALIA
BIOLOGICAL INDICATORS
CHEMICAL COMPOSITION
CLAMS
CONTAMINATION
HYDROCARBONS
HYDROGEN COMPOUNDS
INVERTEBRATES
MOLLUSCS
ORGANIC COMPOUNDS
OXYGEN COMPOUNDS
POLLUTION
POLYCYCLIC AROMATIC HYDROCARBONS
SEAWATER
SEDIMENTS
TOXICITY
WATER
WATER POLLUTION