Instituto Antártico Argentino, 25 de Mayo 1143, San Martín B1650HMK, Provincia de Buenos Aires, Argentina.
Institut des Sciences de la Mer de Rimouski (ISMER), Université du Québec à Rimouski, 310 Allée des Ursulines, Rimouski G5L 3A1, Canada.
Sci Total Environ. 2021 Sep 1;785:147206. doi: 10.1016/j.scitotenv.2021.147206. Epub 2021 Apr 20.
The Northern region of the Antarctic Peninsula constitutes the area with the highest human presence in West Antarctica. The human presence, with all the activities associated such as logistic, scientific and tourism operations, represents a potential risk of chemical pollution with both, organic and inorganic contaminants. Under these conditions knowledge about the presence and levels of the main persistent organic pollutants (POPs) is essential to evaluate the environmental status of this ecologically relevant and sensitive area. In this work, which complements our previous study regarding trace elements, we performed the first regional-scale monitoring of 24 PAHs (16 of them included in EPA list of primary pollutant), and organotin compounds (OTCs:TBT, DBT and MBT) in surface sediment from 68 sites comprising six different areas in Maxwell Bay, southeast coast of 25 de Mayo (King George) Island. POPs were quantified in surface sediment samples (20-30 m depth) obtained during two summer Antarctic expeditions by gas chromatography-mass spectrometry (GC-MS). The two most anthropized areas (South Fildes and Potter Cove) showed moderated evidence of pollution for PAHs and OTC. In some sampling sites the concentration of total PAHs was higher than 100 ng/g dw, while TBT was detected in only five samples, two of them located in Potter Cove (ranged between 14 and 18 ng/g dw), and three, located in South Fildes area (ranged between 118 and 416 ng/g dw). Although POPs contamination was evidenced in some samples close to scientific stations, a pollution pattern was not clearly identified.
南极半岛北部是南极洲西部人类活动最频繁的地区。人类的存在以及与之相关的所有活动，如后勤、科学和旅游业务，都代表着与有机和无机污染物有关的化学污染的潜在风险。在这种情况下，了解主要持久性有机污染物（POPs）的存在和水平对于评估这个具有生态相关性和敏感性的地区的环境状况至关重要。在这项工作中，我们补充了之前关于微量元素的研究，首次在麦克斯韦湾（位于 25 号梅尔岛东南海岸）的六个不同区域的 68 个地点的表层沉积物中进行了 24 种多环芳烃（16 种被列入 EPA 优先污染物名单）和有机锡化合物（TBT、DBT 和 MBT）的区域规模监测。使用气相色谱-质谱法（GC-MS）在两次夏季南极考察中获得了表层沉积物样品（深度为 20-30 米），并对 POPs 进行了定量分析。在两个受人类活动影响最大的区域（南菲尔德斯和波特湾），多环芳烃和有机锡化合物的污染程度适中。在一些采样点，总多环芳烃的浓度高于 100ng/gdw，而 TBT 仅在五个样本中被检测到，其中两个位于波特湾（范围在 14 到 18ng/gdw 之间），三个位于南菲尔德斯地区（范围在 118 到 416ng/gdw 之间）。尽管在靠近科学站的一些样本中发现了 POPs 污染，但并没有明显确定出污染模式。
