Simultaneous butyltin determinations in the microlayer, water column and sediment of a northern Chesapeake Bay marina and receiving system

Abstract

Abstract Butyltins were determined in the microlayer, water column and sediment of a northern Chesapeake Bay marina and its receiving system. Concentrations of the toxicant species tributyltin (TBT) ranged from 60 to 4130 ng dm −3 in the microlayer, from 34 to 367 ng dm −3 in the water column and from <0.05 to 1.4 m̈g g −1 (dry weight) in sediment. TBT concentrations in all three environmental compartments were higher in the marinas than in the receiving system. Concentrations of TBT in the microlayer and water column of the study area were potentially toxic to sensitive aquatic biota. The microlayer appears to be depleted in dibutyltin relative to tributyltin compared to both water column and sediment.