Chiral Source Apportionment of Polychlorinated Biphenyls to the Hudson River Estuary Atmosphere and Food Web

• Published in: Environmental science & technology Vol. 41; no. 17; pp. 6163 - 6169
• Main Authors: Asher, Brian J, Wong, Charles S, Rodenburg, Lisa A
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Washington, DC American Chemical Society 01.09.2007
• Subjects: Animal, plant and microbial ecology; Applied ecology; Applied sciences; Atmosphere - analysis; Atmosphere - chemistry; Atmospheric pollution; Biological and medical sciences; Cities; Contamination; Earth sciences; Earth, ocean, space; Ecotoxicology, biological effects of pollution; Engineering and environment geology. Geothermics; Environmental Monitoring; Environmental science; Estuaries; Exact sciences and technology; Food Chain; Food chains; Fundamental and applied biological sciences. Psychology; Geologic Sediments - analysis; Geologic Sediments - chemistry; Hazardous materials; Marine and brackish environment; Natural water pollution; New York; PCB; Phytoplankton - chemistry; Plankton; Pollutants; Pollution; Pollution sources. Measurement results; Pollution, environment geology; Polychlorinated biphenyls; Polychlorinated Biphenyls - analysis; Rivers; Rivers - chemistry; Seawaters, estuaries; Water Pollutants, Chemical - analysis; Water treatment and pollution; New York; United States; North America; Hudson River; New Jersey; America; ANW, USA, New York; ANW, USA, New Jersey; USA, New Jersey, Hudson R; Brackish water environment; Pollution control; Estuaries; Identification; Sediments; Polychlorobiphenyl; Organic chlorine compounds; Persistent organic pollutant; Trophic chain; Suspended particle; Enrichment factor; Chirality; Enantiomer; Chlorocarbon; Environment impact; Trend analysis; Pollution source; Phytoplankton; Air pollution; Aromatic compound; Water pollution; Sampling; Organic compounds; Concentration distribution
• ISSN: 0013-936X; 1520-5851
• DOI: 10.1021/es070763n

The New York/New Jersey Harbor Estuary is subject to significant contamination of polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs) from numerous sources, including the historically contaminated Upper Hudson River, stormwater runoff and sewer overflows, and atmospheric deposition from PCBs originating from the surrounding urban area. However, the relative importance of these sources to the estuary's food web is not fully understood. Sources of PCBs to the estuary were apportioned using chiral signatures of PCBs in air, water, total suspended matter, phytoplankton, and sediment. PCBs 91, 95, 136, and 149 were racemic in the atmosphere of the estuary. However, the other phases contained nonracemic PCB 95 and to a lesser extent PCB 149. Thus, the predominant atmospheric source of these congeners is likely unweathered local pollution and not volatilization from the estuary. The similarity in chiral signatures in the other phases is consistent with dynamic contaminant exchange among them. Chiral signatures in the dissolved phase and total suspended matter were correlated with Upper Hudson discharge, suggesting that the delivery of nonracemic contaminated sediment from the Upper Hudson, not the atmosphere, controls phytoplankton uptake of some PCBs. Thus, measures to control PCB contamination in the Upper Hudson should be effective in reducing loadings to the estuary's aquatic ecosystem.