title: Assessment of trace elements and legacy contaminant concentrations in California mussels (Mytilus spp.): relationship to land use and outfalls.
abstract: NOAA's Mussel Watch Program funded a regional pilot project in California that characterized contaminants associated with various land uses in conjunction with state, federal and private partners. Herein we assess the magnitude and distribution of trace elements and persistent organic contaminants in indigenous mussels with respect to land use, presence of outfalls and a subset of California Areas of Special Biological Significance (ASBS). We detected significant differences among the land use categories for the majority of trace elements and legacy contaminants measured. There was no significant difference between sites with and without outfalls. PCBs and PAHs were significantly lower in sites within ASBS boundary compared to other sites. The findings of this study will help fine tune future regional and national assessments as well as guide development of resource management and remediation activities and programs.
authors.affiliation: NOAA National Centers for Coastal Ocean Science, 1305 East West Highway, Silver Spring, MD 20910, USA.
authors.forename: M
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Edwards
authors.affiliation: Consolidated Safety Services, 10301 Democracy Lane, Suite 300, Fairfax, VA 22030, USA. Electronic address: Annie.Jacob@noaa.gov.
authors.forename: A P
authors.initials: AP
authors.lastname: Jacob
authors.affiliation: NOAA National Centers for Coastal Ocean Science, 1305 East West Highway, Silver Spring, MD 20910, USA.
authors.forename: K L
authors.initials: KL
authors.lastname: Kimbrough
authors.affiliation: NOAA National Centers for Coastal Ocean Science, 1305 East West Highway, Silver Spring, MD 20910, USA.
authors.forename: E
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: Davenport
authors.affiliation: NOAA National Centers for Coastal Ocean Science, 1305 East West Highway, Silver Spring, MD 20910, USA.
authors.forename: W E
authors.initials: WE
authors.lastname: Johnson
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D002140:California; D004784:Environmental Monitoring; D049878:Mytilus / Q000378:metabolism*; D011078:Polychlorinated Biphenyls / Q000032:analysis / Q000378:metabolism; D011084:Polycyclic Aromatic Hydrocarbons / Q000032:analysis / Q000378:metabolism; D012758:Shellfish / Q000706:statistics & numerical data; D014131:Trace Elements / Q000032:analysis / Q000378:metabolism*; D014874:Water Pollutants, Chemical / Q000032:analysis / Q000378:metabolism*; D014877:Water Pollution, Chemical / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*
chemical_list: D011084:Polycyclic Aromatic Hydrocarbons; D014131:Trace Elements; D014874:Water Pollutants, Chemical; D011078:Polychlorinated Biphenyls
keywords: California; Coastal ecosystems; Legacy contaminants; Mussel Watch; Mytilus; Trace elements