TY - JOUR
T1 - Trace organic contamination in biota collected from the Pearl River Estuary, China
T2 - A preliminary risk assessment
AU - Wei, S.
AU - Lau, R. K.F.
AU - Fung, C. N.
AU - Zheng, G. J.
AU - Lam, J. C.W.
AU - Connell, D. W.
AU - Fang, Z.
AU - Richardson, B. J.
AU - Lam, P. K.S.
N1 - Funding Information:
This study was supported by the Area of Excellence Scheme under the University Grants Committee of the Hong Kong Special Administration Region, China (Project No. AoE/P-04/2004), and the Hong Kong Research Grants Council (Project No. CityU 1401/05M).
PY - 2006/12
Y1 - 2006/12
N2 - The marine ecosystem of the Pearl River Delta, located on the southern coast of China, has been heavily exploited following the rapid economic growth that has occurred since the 1980s. This investigation aimed to elucidate trace organic contamination in marine biota inhabiting the Pearl River Delta area. Biota samples, including green-lipped mussels (Perna viridis), oysters (Crassostrea rivularis) and shrimp (Penaeus orientalis) were sampled from 16 stations fringing the Estuary. Elevated concentrations (on a dry weight basis) of polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (27.8-1041.0 ng/g), petroleum hydrocarbons (1.7-2345.4 μg/g), polychlorinated biphenyls (2.1-108.8 ng/g), DDTs (1.9-79.0 ng/g), and hexachlorocyclohexanes (n.d.-38.4 ng/g) were recorded. A human health risk assessment was conducted to estimate the risk to local residents associated with the consumption of biota collected from the Pearl River Estuary. The results indicated that PCBs were at levels that may cause deleterious health effects in populations that consume large amounts of seafood. However, it would be instructive to establish health criteria for trace organic contaminants that are specific to the local populations, in order to derive a more accurate and relevant health risk assessment.
AB - The marine ecosystem of the Pearl River Delta, located on the southern coast of China, has been heavily exploited following the rapid economic growth that has occurred since the 1980s. This investigation aimed to elucidate trace organic contamination in marine biota inhabiting the Pearl River Delta area. Biota samples, including green-lipped mussels (Perna viridis), oysters (Crassostrea rivularis) and shrimp (Penaeus orientalis) were sampled from 16 stations fringing the Estuary. Elevated concentrations (on a dry weight basis) of polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (27.8-1041.0 ng/g), petroleum hydrocarbons (1.7-2345.4 μg/g), polychlorinated biphenyls (2.1-108.8 ng/g), DDTs (1.9-79.0 ng/g), and hexachlorocyclohexanes (n.d.-38.4 ng/g) were recorded. A human health risk assessment was conducted to estimate the risk to local residents associated with the consumption of biota collected from the Pearl River Estuary. The results indicated that PCBs were at levels that may cause deleterious health effects in populations that consume large amounts of seafood. However, it would be instructive to establish health criteria for trace organic contaminants that are specific to the local populations, in order to derive a more accurate and relevant health risk assessment.
KW - Biota
KW - Health risks
KW - Pearl River Delta
KW - Seafood consumers
KW - Trace organic contamination
UR - http://www.scopus.com/inward/record.url?scp=33751309615&partnerID=8YFLogxK
U2 - 10.1016/j.marpolbul.2006.06.009
DO - 10.1016/j.marpolbul.2006.06.009
M3 - Article
C2 - 16908034
AN - SCOPUS:33751309615
SN - 0025-326X
VL - 52
SP - 1682
EP - 1694
JO - Marine Pollution Bulletin
JF - Marine Pollution Bulletin
IS - 12
ER -
