Integrative ecotoxicological assessment of sediment in Portmán Bay (southeast Spain).
Portmán Bay, southeast Spain, contains the most seriously metal-contaminated sediments of the Mediterranean Sea. From 1958 to 1991, approximately 50 million tons of mine tailings were dumped into the bay, completely filling up the bay and dispersing over an extensive area of the continental platform and continental slope. The objective of our study was to characterize the nature and extent of metal contamination and the responses of natural communities to it and to assess the toxicity of the sediment deposits 10 years after mining had ceased. We studied the physical and chemical characteristics of the sediments and toxicity (of the porewater and sediment-water interface) using two sea urchin species (Arbacia lixula and Paracentrotus lividus). Metal bioavailability and patterns of macroinvertebrate community composition along the contamination gradient were also studied. Univariate and multivariate analyses showed positive correlation between the sediment metal concentrations associated to the all biological effects (sea urchins toxicity tests and benthic indices). The effects of sediment contamination on the benthic community structure are visible among sampling stations.
Cesar
Augusto
A
Departamento de Ecotoxicologia, Universidade Santa Cecília, Rua Oswaldo Cruz 266, Santos, São Paulo 11045-907, Brazil. aucesar@unisanta.br
Marín
Arnaldo
A
Marin-Guirao
Lazaro
L
Vita
Rubén
R
Lloret
Javier
J
Del Valls
Tomás Angel
TA
D000818:Animals; D054750:Ecotoxicology / Q000379:methods*; D019015:Geologic Sediments / Q000032:analysis*; D008522:Mediterranean Sea; D019216:Metals, Heavy / Q000032:analysis / Q000633:toxicity*; D015999:Multivariate Analysis; D012617:Sea Urchins / Q000187:drug effects; D012623:Seawater / Q000737:chemistry*; D013030:Spain; D014874:Water Pollutants, Chemical / Q000032:analysis / Q000633:toxicity*
D019216:Metals, Heavy; D014874:Water Pollutants, Chemical