Publication

We synthesized existing data on chemical contaminants in Long Island Sound (LIS) from published reports and unpublished databases. We found several cases of systematic differences between data sources, which complicated the tasks of understanding the health of LIS and of identifying trends over time. Of the three media examined-water, sediment, and biota-sediment (especially in western LIS) most often exhibited pollutant concentrations that were high relative to guidelines and to other estuaries. These high sediment concentrations did not appear to be efficiently transmitted to biota. With the exception of Cd, median pollutant levels in embayment sediments were not higher than in open-water sediments, but the highest levels found in embayments were much higher than at open-water sites, especially for Ag and Hg. Trends over time in contaminant levels were mixed. We identify the most problematic contaminants in LIS and recommend adding Ag to the LIS Study's List of Contaminants of Concern.