title: A chronicle of the changes undergone by a maritime territory, the Bay of Toulon (Var Coast, France), and their consequences on PCB contamination.
abstract: This study evaluated the distribution of polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs) in 39 surface sediment samples and four cores collected in Toulon Bay, a semiclosed area submitted to various anthropogenic inputs. The concentration of PCBs in the superficial sediment samples ranged from 1.7 to 2530 ng g(-1) dry weight. The spatial distribution of these compounds suggested that the high concentrations of these contaminants are located in the small bay and are related to human activities. In the larger bay, the concentrations were in the same order of magnitude than those reported in others locations around the world. Comparison of the levels with target values from the French legislation shows that, except for four polluted sites with critical values (N2: values ≥1 mg kg(-1) dry weight) in the smaller bay, PCBs levels throughout the larger and the smaller bay are lower than the accepted values (N1: values <0.5 mg kg(-1) dry weight). The PCBs in the sediment cores ranged from 0.8 to 739 ng g(-1) dry weight dependent core. Vertical profiles indicated earlier usage of PCBs which coincided with the history of the Toulon Bay. In this study, using alkane, we could follow the PCBs pollution history over about 80 years and estimate a sedimentation rate of about 0.32 cm year in the small Bay of Toulon.
authors.affiliation: Laboratoire de Chimie Analytique, IMBE UMR 7263 CNRS, 237IRD/l'UMR 1062 INSERM/INRA 1260/AMU- NORT: Nutrition, Obésité et Risques Thrombotique et UMR 910 Génétique, Marseille, France ; Aix-Marseille-Université, Laboratoire de Chimie Analytique associé à l'UMR 1062 INSERM/INRA 1260/AMU-NORT: Nutrition, Obésité et Risques Thrombotique et UMR 910 Génétique, Marseille, France ; IMBE UMR CNRS 7263/IRD 237, Aix-Marseille-Université, Université d'Avignon, Avignon, France.
authors.forename: Emmanuel
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: Wafo
authors.affiliation: Aix-Marseille-Université, Laboratoire de Chimie Analytique associé à l'UMR 1062 INSERM/INRA 1260/AMU-NORT: Nutrition, Obésité et Risques Thrombotique et UMR 910 Génétique, Marseille, France.
authors.forename: Lydia
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Abou
authors.affiliation: Aix-Marseille-Université, Laboratoire de Chimie Analytique associé à l'UMR 1062 INSERM/INRA 1260/AMU-NORT: Nutrition, Obésité et Risques Thrombotique et UMR 910 Génétique, Marseille, France.
authors.forename: Alain
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Nicolay
authors.affiliation: Aix-Marseille-Université, Agence de l'Eau Rhône Méditerranée Corse, 62, La Canebière, Marseille, France.
authors.forename: Pierre
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Boissery
authors.affiliation: IMBE UMR CNRS 7263/IRD 237, Aix-Marseille-Université, Université d'Avignon, Avignon, France.
authors.forename: Thierry
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Perez
authors.affiliation: Laboratoire de Pharmacie Galénique et de Législation Pharmaceutique, Faculté de Médecine et des Sciences Biomédicales, Université de Yaoundé 1, Yaounde, Cameroon.
authors.forename: Rose
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Ngono Abondo
authors.affiliation: Laboratoire PROTEE, Université du Sud de Toulon, Toulon, France.
authors.forename: Cédric
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Garnier
authors.affiliation: FEAS, Alhosn University, Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates.
authors.forename: Mama
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Chacha
authors.affiliation: Aix-Marseille-Université, Laboratoire de Chimie Analytique associé à l'UMR 1062 INSERM/INRA 1260/AMU-NORT: Nutrition, Obésité et Risques Thrombotique et UMR 910 Génétique, Marseille, France.
authors.forename: Henri
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Portugal
keywords: Depth profile; Historicity; Polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs); Reference values; Sediment; Toulon Bay