PARENT SESSION
4H Ecological risk assessment for the marine environment
9:00 AM to 7:00 PM, Wednesday, 09 May 2001

(W/EH079) Content of organic pollutants (PAHs, PCBs, DDT) in mussels (Mytilus trossulus) from the Southern Baltic Sea.

Potrykus, Joanna¹, Albalat, A.², Pempkowiak, Janusz¹, Porte, Cinta², ^{1 2}

ABSTRACT- Baltic blue mussels, Mytilus trossulus, have been analysed for content of selected organic pollutants (polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons - PAHs, polychlorinated biphenyls - PCBs, pesticides like DDT). Tested organisms were collected along the Polish coast (Southern Baltic Sea), from the Pomeranian Bay and the Gdansk Bay, known as highly polluted areas, and from the reference point outside the bay. The analyses of PCBs and DDT have been performed by gas chromatography (GC, ECD detector). The analyses of PAHs have been performed by gas chromatography coupled to mass spectrometry (GC-MS). Mussels from both the Gdansk and the Pomeranian Bays appeared to contain much higher levels of analysed organic contaminants (PAHs, PCBs, DDT) comparing to the reference point. These results confirm the direct influence of anthropopression on the content of organic pollutants (PAHs, PCBs, and DDT) in the Southern Baltic Sea and the Gdansk Bay is the most threatened area.

Key words: organic pollutants (PAHs, PCBs, DDT), mussels, bioaccumulation, Southern Baltic Sea