Metals in molluscs and algae: a north-south Tyrrhenian Sea baseline.
We develop a 800 km long relative baseline of metal pollution for the Tyrrhenian Sea, from the north of Naples to south of Sicily (Italy), based on spatio-temporal (1997-2004) concentrations of trace metals in marine organisms and on the bioaccumulative properties of those organisms. The study concerns sites in the gulf of Gaeta-Formia, near Naples, and three islands north, west, and south of Sicily: Ustica, Favignana and Linosa. The five metals are: cadmium, chromium, copper, lead, and zinc; the species include: Monodonta turbinata (n=161), Patella caerulea (n=244) and the algae Padina pavonica (n=84). We use Johnson's (1949) [15] probabilistic method to determine the type of distribution that accounts for our data. It is a system of frequency curves that represents the transformation of the standard normal curves. We find an N-S pollution gradient in molluscs considered: the lowest metal pollution occurs around the Sicilian islands. Our method can accurately characterize marine pollution by contributing to: policy-making, coastal resources management, the assessments of environmental damages from marine accidents and other events. The method here presented is a useful tool for pollution comparisons purposes among ecosystems (i.e., risk monitoring) and it is an ideal starting point for its application on a global scale.
Conti
Marcelo Enrique
ME
Dipartimento Studi per lo Sviluppo (SPES), Sapienza, Università di Roma, Rome, Italy. marcelo.conti@uniroma1.it
Finoia
Maria Grazia
MG
D000818:Animals; D004784:Environmental Monitoring / Q000379:methods*; D056890:Eukaryota / Q000737:chemistry*; D007558:Italy; D008386:Marine Biology; D008670:Metals / Q000032:analysis*; D008974:Mollusca / Q000737:chemistry*; D012623:Seawater; D014876:Water Pollution / Q000032:analysis*
D008670:Metals