A guide to the assessment of heavy metal contamination in estuaries using biological indicators. Occasional Publication of the Marine Biological Association 4

The rationale behind the use of analyses of estuarine organisms to assess levels of heavy-metal contamination is described and compared with alternative methods such as the analysis of waters or sediments. Based on field observations in United Kingdom estuaries and on evidence from the literature, an assessment is made of the suitability of 17 species as the indicators of metals and metalloids including Ag, As, Cd, Co, Cr, Cu, Hg, Ni, Se, Sn, Pb and Zn.

The use of biological indicators of heavy metal contamination in estuaries. Occasional Publication of the Marine Biological Association 1

The use of the deposit-feeding molluscs Scrobicularia plana and Macoma balthica and the burrowing polychaete Nereis diversicolor as indicators of the biological availability of heavy metals in sediments has been evaluated. Concentrations of Ag, As, Cd, Co, Cr, Cu, Fe, Hg, Mn, Ni, Pb, Sn and Zn have been measured in organisms and sediments from more than 30 estuaries in south west England and South Wales and indicate that the biological availability of most metals varies by order of magnitude between uncontaminated and contaminated sites. The results have been compared with those obtained with the use of other species of indicator organisms in estuaries.

Heavy metals in the Fal estuary, Cornwall: A study of long term contamination by mining waste and its effects on estuarine organisms. Occasional Publication of the Marine Biological Association 2

The Fal Estuary System in West Cornwall has, over many centuries, received inputs of heavy metals from various mining activities. In this context its most important tributary is the Carnon River. Analyses of organisms from the Fal Estuary have shown that some species contain abnormally high concentrations of Cu, Zn and As, especially those living in Restronguet Creek.