Environmental Engineering Reference
In-Depth Information
activities (harbors and their vicinity, major shipping traffic), but also aqua-
culture areas. However, a survey of butyltin levels along the Japanese coastline
from 1997-1999 shows that no decrease was recorded since the regulation of
antifouling paints in 1990 [94]. Butyltins were detected in all samples of am-
phipods
Caprella
varying from 2.3-464 ng g
-1
(wet wt). It can be expected
that in developing countries contamination may increase with economic
growth due to increase in boating, shipping and aquaculture activities [89].
Residues in fresh and seawater organisms are very variable. In marine
biota, tissue TBT concentrations ranged from 0.2
gg
-1
in seaweed
Fucus
,to
µ
gg
-1
(dry wt) in the clam
Mya arenaria
[113]. Typical organotin levels
in low polluted areas in mussels are in the range of 50-200 and 20-100 ng g
-1
(dry wt). In Pacific oysters, residues in digestive gland and gills of up to 7.0
and 17.4
36.8
µ
gg
-1
, respectively, were recorded. Most oysters and mussels from
US coasts were contaminated with TBT between
<
0.005 to 1.56
µ
gg
-1
(as
Sn) [114]. Oysters used as monitors of TBT contamination of estuaries in Eng-
land showed bioconcentration factors (BCFs) of around 10 000 [115]. Mean
levels of TBT were higher in seed than adult oysters in the south of Eng-
land, and reached 3.1
µ
gg
-1
. Tissue concentrations in bay mussels (
Mytilus
edulis
)oftheUSPacificcoastwereintherangeof0.005-1.08
µ
gg
-1
(wet
wt), and were lower in spring than summer [110]. TBT was found in all oys-
ters
C. virginica
in the Chesapeake Bay, USA, in concentrations from
<
10
to 5600
µ
gkg
-1
on the Atlantic Coast of Virginia after restrictions in the use
of TBT-containing antifouling paints [60]. Butyltin concentrations in horse-
shoe crabs were high in the hepatopancreas, with TBT concentrations ranging
from 0.12-2.2
µ
gg
-1
(wet wt) in Japan [116]. Although the use of triphenyltin
was restricted in Japan in 1989, high TPT levels were found in horseshoe crab
hepatopancreas (1.1-12.0
µ
gg
-1
) and crab eggs [81].
Recent monitoring data obtained from mussel watch programmes still in-
dicate widespread organotin pollution in Canada [18], the USA [76], and
recently in Asian countries [84, 87, 111] in coastal environments. Global pol-
lution monitoring for open seas was performed using skipjack tuna [75],
squids [77] and mammals [74]. These data are particularly important not
only for assessing time trends [98], but also for direct comparison. Butyltins
were found in tuna, demonstrating contamination in offshore waters and
open seas on a rather global scale [75]. High concentrations were found in
tuna liver offshore Japan (up to 400 ng g
-1
wetwt),andcomparable,but
lower concentrations, around Asian developing countries (up to 270 ng g
-1
).
In green mussels, higher levels were found in Asian developed and industri-
alized areas than in developing countries. Table 1 summarizes selected recent
data for different biota and locations.
Significant butyltin levels have also been found in different marine mam-
mals including cetaceans and pinnipeds (dolphins, harbor porpoises, sea
otters, whales) in Asia [67, 69, 90], the Mediterranean and US coastal wa-
ters [68], along the Polish coast of the Baltic Sea [57], and other locations.
µ
