Estimates using fluorescence spectroscopy of the present state of petroleum hydrocarbon contamination in the water column of the northwest Atlantic Ocean |
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| Authors: | Donald C Gordon Jr Paul D Keizer Jacqueline Dale |
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| Institution: | Department of the Environment, Fisheries and Marine Service, Marine Ecology Laboratory, Dartmouth, N.S. Canada |
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| Abstract: | Concentrations of petroleum hydrocarbons in seawater from the general region between Nova Scotia and Bermuda were estimated using fluorescence spectroscopy. Concentrations in surface water (0–3 mm) averaged 20.4 μg/l, and in water from 1 and 5 m they averaged 0.8 and 0.4 μg/l respectively. No significant concentrations could be detected in deeper water. There was considerable variability in the concentrations suggesting that the distribution of oil in seawater is quite patchy, especially in surface waters. Seawater samples for hydrocarbon analysis cannot be collected with conventional sampling equipment. Due to adsorption problems, the inner surface of samplers must come into contact only with the water being sampled and must be rinsed with organic solvent after samples are removed. Because these precautions were not taken in previous investigations, much of the published data of hydrocarbons in seawater is unreliable. |
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