Occurrence and degradation of butyltins and wastewater marker compounds in sediments from Barcelona harbor, Spain

Abstract

Contamination of Barcelona harbor sediments was assessed by the quantitative determination of butyltins (TBT, DBT and MBT) and surfactant intermediates, namely linear alkylbenzenes (LABs) and nonylphenols (NPs), as markers of urban and industrial wastewater contamination, respectively. Degradation indexes of TBT and LABs were calculated. Tributyltin predominated in the whole area over its degradation products, ranging from 98 to 4702 ng Sn/g. These elevated concentrations reveal a persistent historical contamination and a moderate degradation (BTdeg). Moreover, the high LAB concentrations (1.2–53.1 μg/g) compared to the relatively low NP levels (3.8–72.0 ng/g) suggest a predominance of urban over industrial wastewater inputs, although a significant correlation (r2=0.82, N=12, P=0.001) between LABs and NPs was found. Stormwater runoff and combined sewer overflows (CSO) were likely the most possible sources for both surfactant intermediates. The high degradation index values obtained for LABs could indicate an improvement in the wastewater management reducing its recent discharge into the Barcelona harbor area.