Endocrine disruptors in blue mussels and sediments from the Gulf of Gdańsk (Southern Baltic)

Abstract

Samples of blue mussel (Mytilus trossulus) and sediment were collected in the Gulf of Gdańsk (Southern Baltic Sea) to assess the extent of their contamination with two groups of endocrine disruptors: 4-nonylphenols and organotins (butyl- and phenyltins). Five sampling stations were chosen along the coastline of the Tricity Agglomeration (Gdańsk, Sopot, Gdynia) in 2008, 2012, and 2013. No evident differences between the three campaigns were found in either the mussel or the sediment samples. The mussels were moderately contaminated with 4-nonylphenols (30–111 ng g−1 d.w.), whereas the levels of these compounds in the sediment samples were very low (0.8–2.7 ng g−1 d.w.). Total concentrations of butyltin compounds in the mussels and sediments ranged between 41 and 164 ng Sn g−1 d.w., and from below the limit of detection to 22 ng Sn g−1 d.w., respectively, whereas phenyltins were not detected in any of the samples. Butyltin degradation indices indicate an old tributyltin input into the coastal environment, which is characterized by intense maritime activity. The results obtained from this work demonstrate that 5 years after the total ban on using organotin-based antifouling paints was imposed, butyltins are still present in mussels and sediments of the Gulf of Gdańsk.