Chemical pollution of the northwest Pacific

Volume 22/Number 9/September 1991 Ackman, R. G. & Noble, D. (1973). Steam Distillation: A Simple Technique for Recovery of Petroleum Hydrocarbons from Tainted Fish. J. Fish Res. Bd. Can. 30, 711-714. Addy, J. M., Hartley, J. P. & Tibbetts, P. J. C. (1984). Ecological Effects of Low Toxicity Oil-based Mud Drilling in the Beatrice Oiifield. Mar. Pollut. Bull. 15,429-436. Alexander, M. (1985). Biodegradation of Organic Chemicals. Environ. Sci. Technol. 19,106-111. Anon. (1990). Interim Report on The Quality Status of the North Sea. Third International Conference on the Protection of the North Sea, The Hague. Ministry of Transport and Public Works, The Netherlands. Atlas, R. M. (1981a). Fate of Oil from two Major Spills: Role of Microbial Degradation in in Removing Oil from Amoco Cadiz and Ixtoc Oil Spills. Environ. Intertt 5, 33-38. Atlas, R. M. (1981b). Microbial Degradation of Petroleum Hydrocarbons: An Environment Perspective. Microbiol. Rev. 45,180-209. Belisle, A. A. & Gay, M. L. (1982). Isolation of Hydrocarbon Residues from Sediment dry Steam Distillation. Bull. Environ. Contam. Toxicol. 29,539-543. Davies, J. M., Addy, J. M., Blackman, R. A. A., Blanchard, J. R., Ferbranche, J. E., Moore, D. C., Sommerville, K. J., Whitehead, A. & Wilkinson, T. (1984). Environmental Effects of the Use of Oil-based Drilling Muds in the North Sea. Mar. Pollut. Bull. 15,363-370. Donkin, P. & Evans, S. V. (1984). Application of Steam Distillation in the Determination of Petroleum Hydrocarbons in Water and Mussels (Mytilus edulis) from Dosing Experiments with Crude Oil. Anal. Chim. Acta 156, 207-219.

Gray, J. S., Clarke, K. R., Warwick, R. M. & Hobbs, G. (1990). Detection of initial effects of pollution on marine benthos: an example from the Ekofisk and Eldfisk oilfieids, North Sea. Mar. Ecol. Prog. Set. 66, 285-299. Gibbs, C. F. & Davis, S. (1976). The rate of Microbial Degradation of Oil in a Beach Gravel Column. Microbial Ecol. 3, 55-64, Godefroot, M., Sandra, P. & Verzeele, M. (1981). New Method for Quantitative Essential Oil Analysis. J. Chrom. 203,325-335. Godefroot, M., Stechele, M. & Sandra, E (1982). New Method for Quantitative Analysis of Organochlorine Pesticides and Polychlorinated Biphenyls. J. High Res. Cr. GG. 5, 75-79. Jensen, K., Albrechtsen, H.-J., Nielsen, J. & Kruse, B. (1988). The Use of Ecocores to Evaluate Bi0degradation in Marine Sediments. Water Air Soil Pollut. 39, 89-99. Kanneworf, E. & Nicolaisen, W. (1973). The "HAPS" a framesupported bottom corer. Ophelia 10, 119-129. Maersk Olie og Gas a/s (1984). Environmental Impact of Oil-based Mud. Data Report: Hydrocarbons and Taint in Plaice Caught around Tyra West in July 1984. COWIconsult, Virum, Denmark. Malins, D. C. (1977). Effects o f Petroleum on Arctic and Subarctic Marine Environments and Organisms. Petroleum. Academic Press, London.

I. Nature and Fate o f

Mills, A. L., Brevil, C. & Colwell, R. R. (1978). Enumeration of Petroleumdegrading Marine and Estuarine Microorganisms by the Most Probable Number Method. Can. J. Microbiol. 24, 552-557.

MarinePollutionBulletin,Volume22, No.9, pp. 455-457, 1991.

Printedin GroatBritain.

Chemical Pollution of the Northwest Pacific A. V. TKALIN Far Eastern Regional Hydrometeorological Research Institute (FERHRI), 24 Dzerzhinsky St., Vladivostok 690600, USSR

Data on the distribution of anionic detergents and petroleum hydrocarbons in the northwest Pacific surface waters are presented. Higher concentrations of these pollutants were observed in the Sea of Japan and in the Kuroshio region. The average content of total non-polar petroleum hydrocarbons, measured by IR spectrophotometry, was decreased from 26 ppb in 1 9 8 0 - 1 9 8 2 to 15 ppb in 1986-1988.

Investigations of chemical pollution of the Pacific Ocean waters have been carried out by FERHRI since 1978. In this paper the results of some recent expeditions (19861988) are presented. Spatial distribution and temporal variability of synthetic surface-active substances (detergents) and two classes of petroleum hydrocarbons in the northwest Pacific are considered.

Materials and M e t h o d s

Synthetic surface-active substances (SSAS) were extracted with chloroform and analysed by t h e methylene-blue photocolorimetric method (Oradovsky, 1977). Total non-polar petroleum hydrocarbons (PHC) were extracted from 2 I. of sea water with carbon tethrachloride and measured by IR spectrophotometry (Carlberg & Skarstedt, 1972). Aromatic hydrocarbons (AHC) were extracted from 2 I. of sea water with n-hexane and measured by spectrofluorimetric method (IOC, 1976) in chrysene equivalents. R e s u l t s and D i s c u s s i o n

Figure I illustrates distribution of SSAS at the surface (1 m depth). Higher concentrations were observed in the Sea of Japan and the Kuroshio region. Minimum content of detergents was registered in the southern part of the Philippine Sea. 455

Marine PollutionBulletin

,:

9

~...L...

-.~

99

40 °

40 °

18 35

46 42

38

•

61 0

j

I*

30 °

30 °

. 10

13 10

27 16 63

-

/ ~

o*

°

17 40

24 e

12 28

20 °

20 °

t

'L

13 6 33

e

o 0

5

2

12

100

10 °

19 Io 61 130 °

10 24 140 °

130 .0

140 °

Fig. 1 Surface distribution of SSAS. Average.concentration--number of samples--maximum content.

Fig. 2 Surface distribution of PHC. Average concentration--number of samples--maximum content.

TABLE 1 SSAS content (ppb) in surface waters of the northwest Pacific (19861988).

TABLE 2 PHC content (ppb) in surface waters of the Northwest Pacific.

Region Philippine Sea (SOUthof 20*N) Kuroshio and Oyashio Sea of Japan Northwest Pacific (mean)

i 17

n 16

S..t 15

m 2

m/n (%) 12

21 25 24

80 156 252

' 13 23 20

11 60 73

14 38 29

X--mean concentration. n--total number of samples. S..,--root square deviation. m --number of samples with concentration above 25 ppb.

Statistical data on the distribution of SSAS in different parts of the northwest Pacific are presented in Table 1. Pollution level increases from the Philippine Sea to the Sea of Japan. Surface concentrations above 25 ppb were measured in two samples (12%) in the Philippine Sea and in sixty samples (38%) in the Sea of Japan. ---At-l-0-/ffdep/h, SSAS content decreases to 11 ppb in the Philippine Sea and to 20 ppb in the Sea of Japan. It is r~ecessary to note that the background level of SSAS content in the north Pacific is less than 10 ppb (Tkalin, 1988). Spatial distribution of non-polar hydrocarbons in surface waters (1 m depth) is shown in Fig. 2. As in the SSAS case, higher concentrations of PHC were observed in the Sea of Japan and in the Kuroshio region. Minimum hydrocarbon content was indicated in the Philippine Sea. Data on the PHC distribution in some parts of the northwest Pacific are presented in Table 2. Average con456

Region Philippine Sea (south of 20*N) Kuroshio and Oyashio Sea of Japan Northwest Pacific (mean)

i 10

n 16

S.. 1 8

m 0

m/n (%) 0

12 18 15

102 180 298

12 20 20

1 12 13

1 7 4

X--mean concentration. n--total number of samples. S..,--root square deviation. m --number of samples with concentration above 50 ppb.

centration of petroleum hydrocarbons in the Sea of is significantly higher (P=0.95) than in the Philippine Sea, Kuroshio and Oyashio regions. Concentrations higher than 50 ppb were observed in the Sea of Japan more frequently also (7%). These results are consistent with the data by I. A. Nemirovskaja (1985). Petroleum hydrocarbons in the northwest Pacific are evenly distributed in the surface waters up to 50 m. Average PHC content in this layer is about 13 ppb. It is interesting to consider interannual variability of PHC content in the northwest Pacific. In 1980-1982 the average surface PHC concentration was 26 ppb, in 1983-1985, 20 ppb, in 1986-1988, 15 ppb. A significant reduction of petroleum hydrocarbon content is probably connected with the decreasing of oily water discharges to the sea. These data are confirmed by the information on tar balls at the sea surface in the Pacific. In 1979 the average tar ball concentration north from 20*N was 0.421 mg Japan

Volume 22/Number 9/September 1991

m-2, in 1984-0.015 mg m-2 (Takatani et aL, 1986). The decrease of tar ball content, caused by the reduction of oily water discharges, is observed in the Pacific (Day & Shaw, 1987; Takatani et al., 1986) and Atlantic Ocean (Holdway, 1986; Smith & Knap, 1985). The preliminary results on the distribution of aromatic hydrocarbons are presented in Table 3. Average AHC content in the northwest Pacific is not significantly higher than the background level, 0.04 ppb (Tkalin, 1988). Higher concentrations were observed the Sea of Japan and the South China Sea. Similar results were obtained by various authors in the Pacific (Cretney & Wong, 1974; IOC, 1981) and Atlantic Oceans (Knap et al., 1986). These data also indicate higher pollution level near Japan.

Conclusions The Sea of Japan and the Kuroshio region to the south of Japan are relatively the most contaminated by organic pollutants in the northwest Pacific. The Philippine Sea is less contaminated. The average content of total non-polar petroleum hydrocarbons, measured by IR spectrophotometry, decreased from 26 ppb in 1980-1982 to 15 ppb in 1986-1988. Crethey, W. J. & Wong, C. S. (1974). Fluorescence monitoring study at ocean weather station "P'. Marine Pollution Monitoring (Petroleum). NBS Special Publication No. 409. Washington, D.C., 175-177. Day, R. H. & Shaw, D. G. (1987). Patterns in the abundance of pelagic plastic and tar in the North Pacific Ocean, 1975-1985. Mar. Pollut. Bull. 18, 311-316.

TABLE 3 AHC content (ppb) in surface waters of the Northwest Pacific Region Tropical zone between 130" and 170*E Kuroshio and its countercurrent Sea of Japan South-China Sea Northwest Pacific (mean)

i 0.03

n 5

S,.t 0.004

min 0.03

max 0.04

0.04

5

0.053

0.01

0.13

0.06 0.05 0.04

3 3 16

0.017 0.012 0.030

0.04 0.04 0.01

0.07 0.06 0.13

Holdway, E (1986). A circumnavigational survey of marine tar. Mar. Pollut. Bull. 17,374-377. IOC (1976). Manuals and Guides No. 7: Guide to Operational Procedures for the IGOSS Pilot Project on Marine Pollution (Petroleum) Monitoring. Intergovemmental Oceanographic Commission. Paris. IOC (1981). Global Oil Pollution. Results of MAPMOPP, the IGOSS Pilot Project on Marine Pollution (Petroleum) Monitoring. Intergovernmental Oceanographic Commission. Paris. Karlberg, S. & Skarstedt, C. B. Determination of small amounts of nonpolar hydrocarbons (oil) in sea-water. J. Cons. Int. Explor. Met. 34, 506-515. Knap, A. H., Burns, K. A., Dawson, R., Ehrhardt, M. & Palmork, K. H. (1986). Dissolved/dispersed hydrocarbons, tarballs and the surface microlayer: experiences from an IOC/UNEP Workshop in Bermuda, December, 1984. Mar. Pollut. Bull. 17, 313-319. Nemirovskaja, I. A. (1985). Hydrocarbons in the water and suspended matter of the Pacific Ocean and the Bering Sea. Oceanology 25, 761767. On Russian). Oradovsky, S. G. (ed.) (1977). Handbook on Methods of Seawater Analysis. Hydrometeoizdat, Leningrad, USSR. On Russian). Smith, S. R. & Knap, A. H. (1985). Significant decrease in the amount of tar stranding on Bermuda. Mar. Pollut. Bull. 16, 19-21. Takatani, S., Sagi, T. & Imai, M. (1986). Distribution of floating tars and petroleum hydrocarbons at the surface in the western North Pacific. Oceanogr. Mag. 36, 33-42. Tkalin, A. V. (1988). Background level of some pollutant's content in the Pacific Ocean waters. Oceanology 25, 958. On Russian).

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