Heavy metal concentrations in seston and microplankton from an impacted temperate shallow estuary along the SW Atlantic Ocean

FERNANDEZ SEVERINI M; VILLAGRAN DIANA; BIANCALANA F; BERASATEGUI A.; SPETTER C.V.; TÁRTARA M; MENÉNDEZ MC; GUINDER V. A.; MARCOVECCHIO J. E.

JOURNAL OF COASTAL RESEARCH

COASTAL EDUCATION & RESEARCH FOUNDATION

Lugar: Florida; Año: 2017

0749-0208

Heavy metal concentrations(Cd, Cu, Cr, Fe, Mn, Ni, Pb and Zn) were studied in the Bahía Blanca Estuary(BBE), one of the most anthropogenically disturbed estuaries in thesouthwestern Atlantic Ocean. This study evaluated metal concentrations in themicroplankton and seston for the first time as well as their role in thetransport of contaminants in a disturbed coastal environment of the SW Atlantic. Spatial patterns of metals in suspended particulate matter (SPM, seston >0.45µm) and microplankton (20-200 µm) were analyzed at sampling sites located atsewage or industrial discharges, and also far from this area, during warm monthsin 2012 and 2013. Dissolved inorganic nutrients, particulate organic matter(POM) and chlorophyll a (Chl-a) were also analyzed. POM and Chl-a concentrationswere higher near to the sewage discharges. However, metals showed differentconcentrations between sampling site stations. Those located far from humandisturbances showed similar levels to the sites at the sewage or industrialdischarges in some cases. In general, the SPM had higher concentrations ofmetals than the microplankton. In particularCr presented important levels in this fraction, which was potentially associatedwith industrial discharges. On the other hand, a contrasting partitionwas found for Pb, Zn and Cu that exhibited higher levels in the microplankton-netmaterial. The high levels of Pb in the microplankton of the BBE may indicate ahigh availability of this metal in the environment and high uptake rates, with potentialhealth risks to humans and marine life due to its toxic effects.