Limited Arsenic Dispersion in Sea Water, Sediments, and Biota Near a Continuous Source

Abstract

Moreton’s Harbour, Newfoundland, has been exposed to arsenic-bearing drainage and leaching from a stibnite mine for at least 38 yr and possibly longer than 84 yr. Measurements of inorganic arsenic in sea water and sediments and total arsenic in some marine organisms revealed a very limited influence of continuous exposure to arsenic in the small harbor. Arsenic concentrations in surface water declined to normal within 200 m, and in sediments within 50 m. Animals did not show significantly higher levels nearer the mine, with the exception of the sea urchin Strongylocentrotus droebachiensis, which accumulated significantly higher levels of arsenic adjacent to the mine site.