title: Nutrient and metal pollution of the eastern Gulf of Finland coastline: Sediments, macroalgae, microbiota.
abstract: The anthropogenic pollution along the coastline of the eastern Gulf of Finland was studied through a range of methods, including analyses of metal contamination in water, surface sediments, accumulated algal biomass and its correlation with resistant microbiota. According to concentrations, the main pollutants in water were copper and manganese. Influence of Nuclear Power Plant was remarkable in adjacent areas and was expressed in high concentrations of molybdenum, nickel, copper and other elements in the water. Relatively high concentrations of copper, lead and zinc were found in sediments. Microbial tolerance appeared to be correlated with the concentration of the metals in sediments. Higher tolerance levels were found in sediment samples from more polluted stations. Macroalgae, which were massively developed in the coastal zone, had shown high level of metal bioaccumulation. Analyses of carbon, nitrogen and phosphorus content of algal tissues allowed the estimation of additional nutrient loading from accumulated decaying algal biomass on the coastal zone of the eastern Gulf of Finland. Mass development of algae in coastal area may contribute to accumulation of organic matter and associated metals. In our study the highest metal concentrations in sediments were found at the sites with dense and continuous layer of fresh and decaying macroalgal biomass, accompanied by hypoxic conditions. Also our study has shown that accumulated biomass may be a significant source of nutrients in the coastal ecosystem.
authors: Zoological Institute of the Russian Academy of Sciences, St. Petersburg, Russia. Electronic address: Gubelit@list.ru.
authors: Yulia
authors: Y
authors: Gubelit
authors: Scientific Research Center for Ecological Safety of the Russian Academy of Sciences, St. Petersburg, Russia.
authors: Yulia
authors: Y
authors: Polyak
authors: Maritime Institute in Gdansk, Department of Environmental Protection, Gdansk, Poland.
authors: Grazyna
authors: G
authors: Dembska
authors: Maritime Institute in Gdansk, Department of Environmental Protection, Gdansk, Poland.
authors: Grazyna
authors: G
authors: Pazikowska-Sapota
authors: Maritime Institute in Gdansk, Department of Environmental Protection, Gdansk, Poland.
authors: Lukasz
authors: L
authors: Zegarowski
authors: Research Institute of Hygiene, Occupational Pathology and Human Ecology (RIHOPHE), Federal Medical Biological Agency, St. Petersburg, Russia.
authors: Dmitry
authors: D
authors: Kochura
authors: Research Institute of Hygiene, Occupational Pathology and Human Ecology (RIHOPHE), Federal Medical Biological Agency, St. Petersburg, Russia.
authors: Denis
authors: D
authors: Krivorotov
authors: Research Institute of Hygiene, Occupational Pathology and Human Ecology (RIHOPHE), Federal Medical Biological Agency, St. Petersburg, Russia.
authors: Elena
authors: E
authors: Podgornaya
authors: Research Institute of Hygiene, Occupational Pathology and Human Ecology (RIHOPHE), Federal Medical Biological Agency, St. Petersburg, Russia.
authors: Olga
authors: O
authors: Burova
authors: Université Claude Bernard Lyon 1, Laboratoire d'Écologie des Hydrosystèmes Naturels et Anthropisés (LEHNA), Lyon, France.
authors: Chafik
authors: C
authors: Maazouzi
mesh_terms: D004784:Environmental Monitoring; D005387:Finland; D019015:Geologic Sediments / Q000737:chemistry*; D008670:Metals / Q000032:analysis*; D064307:Microbiota; D009584:Nitrogen / Q000032:analysis*; D010758:Phosphorus / Q000032:analysis*; D012623:Seawater; D012624:Seaweed / Q000737:chemistry; D014874:Water Pollutants, Chemical / Q000032:analysis*
chemical_list: D008670:Metals; D014874:Water Pollutants, Chemical; D010758:Phosphorus; D009584:Nitrogen
keywords: Baltic Sea; Bioaccumulation; Green macroalgae; Metal pollution; Sediments, elemental composition of algae