Identification of PAHs sources in intertidal bivalves and subtidal sediments following the Sea Prince oil spill in Korea

Abstract

The residual effects of beached oil and the fate of dispersed oil by analyzing PAH in indigenous intertidal bivalves and subtidal sediments were studied with a help of Soft Independent Modeling of Class Analogy pattern recognition. Twenty-four PAH were analyzed and principal component analysis was performed to elucidate weathering status, bioaccumulation pattern, and input sources. There were signs of bioconcentration of oil-derived PAH in bivalves of Kumo Island and Soheongan Island. However, seasonal variations overwhelmed these so that all the bivalves studied showed similar pattern in the first half of 2000. There was no significant evidence of transport of oil-derived PAH into the subtidal environment. However, one station showed exceptionally high concentration, which implied the limited input of particle-bound PAH into these confined area. This is an abstract presented at the 25th Arctic and Marine OilSpill Program Technical Seminar (Calgary, Alberta, 6/11-13/2002).