Dissolved/dispersed hydrocarbons, tarballs and the surface microlayer: Experiences from an IOC/UNEP Workshop in Bermuda, December, 1984

Abstract

An intercomparison exercise was conducted at the Bermuda Biological Station for Research, Inc, Bermuda on 1–15 December 1984. It primarily involved the testing of the IOC Manual for monitoring oil and dissolved/dispersed petroleum hydrocarbons (DDPH) in marine waters and on beaches (IOC, Manuals and Guides, No. 13). An additional exercise sought to intercompare methodologies for the collection of sea surface microlayer samples. DDPH measurements in the inshore waters of Bermuda resulted in a mean concentration of 0.057 μg l −1 of ( n = 30) chrysene equivalents with a 60% relative standard deviation (RSD). Open ocean samples yielded a mean concentration of 0.011 μg l −1 ( n = 44) with a 65% RSD. These concentrations are extremely low and the results indicate that the method described in the Manual is sufficiently sensitive for the detection of ‘hot spots’ The collection of beach tar using the method outlined in the Manual indicated that the data, when expresed as per metre of linear beach length, are an extremely good measure of oil contamination. The mean of 42 collections was 23.1 ± 14.4 g m −1 in the first sampling period and the mean of 39 transects was 40.6 ± 17.7 g m −1 on the second sampling period. Although 14 individuals took part in the sampling the results of individuals were consistent enough to demonstrate that beach tar collections are indeed valuable tools for monitoring contamination by petroleum in the marine environment. The operational manual for the sampling of the sea surface microlayer (IOC Manuals and Guides, No. 15), was also tested. The results indicated that this method collects reproduceable volumes of elevated concentrations of materials from the sea surface suitable at least for qualitative analyses. However, the spatial distribution and stability of surface films may render quantitative analyses less meaningful.