title: Environmental assessment of dredged sediment in the major Latin American seaport (Santos, São Paulo-Brazil): an integrated approach.
abstract: This work offers an environmental assessment of a dredged sediment disposal area in Santos bay, situated on the central coast of the São Paulo State, Brazil. Sediment quality was evaluated through physicochemical analysis and toxicity tests of sediments collected in the disposal site and adjacent area. The physicochemical characterization of the sediments involved grain size distribution, concentrations of polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs), chlorinated and aromatic hydrocarbons, polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs), pesticides, phthalates, metals and nutrients. Acute and chronic toxicity tests were employed, using amphipods (Tiburonella viscana) and sea urchins (Lythechinus variegatus), respectively. Results revealed toxicity by all the methods applied here, suggesting that the area of disposal of dredged material is significantly altered with respect to sediment quality and probably capable of generating deleterious effects on the local biota. Aiming to elucidate the association between the distinct environmental variables and the biological effects measured in laboratory, Factor Analysis was performed. Results revealed that despite most contaminant concentrations were found below the limits established by Brazilian legislation, biological effects were related to metals (chronic toxicity) and organic compounds (acute toxicity). The application of multivariate analysis proved to be particularly useful to assess and interpret the results in an integrated way, particularly due to the large number of parameters analyzed in environmental assessments, and should be applied in future studies.
authors.affiliation: UNIFESP, Universidade Federal de São Paulo, Depto de Ciências do Mar, Santos, SP, Brazil. Electronic address: acesar@unifesp.br.
authors.forename: A
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Cesar
authors.affiliation: UNISANTA, Universidade Santa Cecília, Laboratório de Ecotoxicologia, Santos, SP, Brazil.
authors.forename: L R B
authors.initials: LRB
authors.lastname: Lia
authors.affiliation: UNIFESP, Universidade Federal de São Paulo, Depto de Ciências do Mar, Santos, SP, Brazil; UNISANTA, Universidade Santa Cecília, Laboratório de Ecotoxicologia, Santos, SP, Brazil.
authors.forename: C D S
authors.initials: CDS
authors.lastname: Pereira
authors.affiliation: UNISANTA, Universidade Santa Cecília, Laboratório de Ecotoxicologia, Santos, SP, Brazil.
authors.forename: A R
authors.initials: AR
authors.lastname: Santos
authors.affiliation: UNISANTA, Universidade Santa Cecília, Laboratório de Ecotoxicologia, Santos, SP, Brazil.
authors.forename: F S
authors.initials: FS
authors.lastname: Cortez
authors.affiliation: UNIFESP, Universidade Federal de São Paulo, Depto de Ciências do Mar, Santos, SP, Brazil.
authors.forename: R B
authors.initials: RB
authors.lastname: Choueri
authors.affiliation: UNIFESP, Universidade Federal de São Paulo, Depto de Ciências do Mar, Santos, SP, Brazil.
authors.forename: M R
authors.initials: MR
authors.lastname: De Orte
authors.affiliation: Fundação de Estudos e Pesquisas Aquáticas, São Paulo, SP, Brazil.
authors.forename: B R F
authors.initials: BRF
authors.lastname: Rachid
mesh_terms: D001938:Brazil; D004784:Environmental Monitoring / Q000379:methods*; D019015:Geologic Sediments / Q000737:chemistry*; D011078:Polychlorinated Biphenyls / Q000032:analysis; D011084:Polycyclic Aromatic Hydrocarbons / Q000032:analysis; D012767:Ships; D014874:Water Pollutants, Chemical / Q000032:analysis*
chemical_list: D011084:Polycyclic Aromatic Hydrocarbons; D014874:Water Pollutants, Chemical; D011078:Polychlorinated Biphenyls
keywords: Contamination; Dredged material; Environmental assessment; Multivariate analyses; Sediment; Toxicity tests