Dioxins associated with suspended particulate matter- in the Grenlandsfjords (Norway)

Abstract

Polychlorinated dibenzo-p-dioxins and furans (PCDD/Fs), hexachlorobenzene (HCB) and octachlorostyrene (OCS) concentrations were measured in suspended particulate matter (SPM) samples collected at three sites across the Grenlandsfjord area. The three sites included Frierfjorden, Eidangerfjorden and Kalven, representing three distinct areas of the fjord system. Samples were collected using a submersed high volume water sampler close to the water surface (~ 5 m below the surface) and closer to the seabed (~ 7 m above the seabed). For the surface water, SPM associated PCDD/Fs were similar in all samples, but HCB and OCS was higher in the Frierfjord than in the outer fjords. The deep water in the outer fjords were 4-9 times more contaminated than the surface water and PCA analyses showed that the PCDD/F pattern was similar to the pattern in sediment samples collected in the same area. The data are relevant for contaminant uptake in organisms exposed in the fjord water and may be used to improve models predicting contaminant fate and transport in the Grenlandfjords.