Response to stress of mussels (Mytilus edulis) exposed in Dutch tidal waters.

1. Mussels were exposed in the Dutch coastal zone and the Western Scheldt estuary. After six weeks of exposure, trace metals, PCBs and PAHs were measured in the soft tissue. 2. Tissue concentrations of contaminants are high in the Western Scheldt and intermediate near the Rhine outflow, except for the lower PCB congeners. 3. Results show that the survival in air is significantly lower at higher tissue concentrations, in particular of the lower PCB congeners. 4. The clearance rate is reduced at the highest tissue concentrations.