Composition and distribution of polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons in the surface sediments from the Susquehanna River

Abstract

Polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbon (PAH) concentrations in 34 surface sediments along the Susquehanna River were investigated in 2000. The total concentrations of PAHs in the surface sediments of Lake Clarke, Lake Aldred, the upper Conowingo Reservoir, and the lower Conowingo Reservoir were 3.3 ± 1.5 μg g −1 ( n = 9), 1.6 ± 1.3 μg g −1 ( n = 4), 9.8 ± 5.5 μg g −1 ( n = 7), and 4.0 ± 1.2 μg g −1 ( n = 14), respectively. These represent the first comprehensive measurement of PAHs in Susquehanna River surface sediments. Overall, total PAH concentrations were relatively lower in Lake Aldred, which is more shallow and sloped, and significantly higher in the upper Conowingo Reservoir. The sediment PAH levels were related to river flow rates, which are indirectly correlated with the particle size of the surface sediments. Total PAH levels in all the studied sites were below the effects range median (ERM) of 44.8 μg g −1 with 38% (13 of the 34 sampling sites) exceeding the effects range low (ERL) of 4.02 μg g −1. Principal component analysis indicated that variations in the PAH compound patterns of each reservoir decreased from upstream to downstream, indicating that the surface sediments were mixed along the Susquehanna River. The PAH patterns in the lower Conowingo Reservoir sediments were a combination of those upstream sources. Source analysis using isomer ratios as indicators suggested that PAHs in the Susquehanna River surface sediment are derived from the combustion of fossil fuels such as coal and gasoline with coal as the major source of contaminants.