title: The occurrence of endocrine disrupting compounds in off-shore sediments from the southern Baltic Sea.
abstract: This paper presents the study on the occurrence and spatial distribution of polybrominated diphenyl ethers (PBDEs), butyltin compounds (BTCs), bisphenol A (BPA), and alkylphenols (APs) in sediments. The study focused mainly on off-shore surface sediments collected from the southern Baltic Sea. The pollutant concentrations were as follows: <LOQ-0.158 μg kg(-1) dw ∑9PBDEs, 0.02-1.06 μg kg(-1) dw BDE-209; <LOQ-20.13 μg Sn kg(-1) dw ∑BTCs and 2.7-1001 μg kg(-1) dw nonylphenols (NPs). The spatial distribution of the analyzed compounds was highly related to the organic matter content in the sediments. Only BDE-209 concentrations were the highest in sandy sediments collected near the point source of pollution. This suggests the fresh anthropogenic input of BDE-209 into the marine environment. The principal component analysis (PCA) confirms these observations-the distribution of ∑BTCs, NPs, and ∑9PBDEs was mainly determined by the physicochemical properties of the sediments, while the distribution of BDE-209 was also related to other factors, such as proximity to the pollution source. According to the environmental standards applied in this work, NPs, and to a lesser extent TBT, might pose a risk to aquatic life in the present study area as they occur in some sediments in concentrations higher than those that might cause adverse effects on biota.
authors.affiliation: National Marine Fisheries Research Institute, Kołłątaja 1, 81-332 Gdynia, Poland. wruczynska@mir.gdynia.pl.
authors.forename: Wiesława
authors.initials: W
authors.lastname: Ruczyńska
authors.forename: Joanna
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Szlinder-Richert
authors.forename: Aleksander
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Drgas
mesh_terms: D052244:Endocrine Disruptors / Q000032:analysis*; D004784:Environmental Monitoring; D019015:Geologic Sediments / Q000737:chemistry*; D055768:Halogenated Diphenyl Ethers / Q000032:analysis; D011044:Poland; D012623:Seawater / Q000737:chemistry; D014874:Water Pollutants, Chemical / Q000032:analysis*
chemical_list: D052244:Endocrine Disruptors; D055768:Halogenated Diphenyl Ethers; D014874:Water Pollutants, Chemical; C010902:decabromobiphenyl ether