A model of the fate of polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons in the Saguenay Fjord, Canada

• Published in: Environmental toxicology and chemistry Vol. 17; no. 2; pp. 333 - 341
• Main Authors: Lun, Rebecca, Lee, Kenneth, De Marco, Lisa, Nalewajko, Czesia, Mackay, Donald
• Format: Journal Article Conference Proceeding
• Language: English
• Published: Hoboken Wiley Periodicals, Inc 01.02.1998; SETAC
• Subjects: Animal, plant and microbial ecology; Aquatic; Biological and medical sciences; Deposition; Fundamental and applied biological sciences. Psychology; General aspects. Techniques; Marine; Methods and techniques (sampling, tagging, trapping, modelling...); Polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons; Sediments; Canada; North America; America; Quebec; ANW, Canada, Quebec, Saguenay Fjord; Marine environment; Fugacity; Fjord; Pollutant behavior; Polycyclic aromatic compound; Mathematical model; Sediments; Deposition
• ISSN: 0730-7268; 1552-8618
• DOI: 10.1002/etc.5620170226

A comprehensive mass balance model is described that simulates the fate of polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) in the Saguenay Fjord in eastern Quebec, Canada. The receiving environment is segmented into five compartments that are connected by upstream and downstream flows. Each segment consists of a layer of surficial sediment and a water column exposed to the atmosphere. The steady state model provides a method by which defined loadings of PAHs from the atmosphere and industrial sources are combined with other input parameters such as advective flow and atmospheric deposition rates to deduce quantities, concentrations, and transport and transformation rates. Results are presented for naphthalene, phenanthrene, and benzo[a]pyrene. The overall environmental pathways and simulation results are discussed. The simulated concentrations of benzo[a]pyrene in the sediment ranged from 100 to 315 ng/g, which are in good agreement with reported measurements.