Citation

Lauenstein GG, Kimbrough KL. Mar. Pollut. Bull. 2007; 54(3): 284-294.

Affiliation

National Status and Trends Program, NOAA N/SCI1, Silver Spring, MD 20910, USA.

Copyright

(Copyright © 2007, Elsevier Publishing)

DOI

10.1016/j.marpolbul.2006.10.006

PMID

17113609

Abstract

The September 11, 2001 attack on the World Trade Center (WTC) resulted in a massive plume of dust and smoke that blanketed lower Manhattan and part of the Hudson-Raritan Estuary (HRE). The NOAA National Status and Trends Mussel Watch Program has long-term monitoring sites in the area and thus had an opportunity to assess the effect of the WTC attack on PAH and PCB contamination of the surrounding estuary. Seven additional sites were added in the Upper HRE to attain higher sampling resolution for comparison with regularly sampled Mussel Watch Project HRE sites. Elevated background levels of PCBs and PAHs in mussel tissue and sediments were high enough before the WTC attack that concentrations were not measurably changed by WTC derived contaminant input.

Language: en