Distribution and possible sources of polychlorinated biphenyls in dated sediments from the Newark Bay Estuary, New Jersey

Sediment concentrations of several Aroclors and coplanar PCB congeners were determined in surface and buried sediments collected from the Hackensack River, Passaic River, Kill van Kull, Arthur Kill, Elizabeth River, and the Rahway River, NJ. The sediment samples were aged using radioisotopic dating techniques. Commercial Aroclors and coplanar PCBs were detected in surficial and buried sediments in each of the seven waterways examined. The vertical and spatial distribution of PCBs in Newark Bay Estuary sediments were found to be highly heterogeneous. Aroclors 1248 and 1254 were detected in approximately 25% of all samples, while each of the coplanar PCBs was detected in 29% or more of the samples. Highest sediment-accumulation rates were calculated from cores collected in the lower Passaic River, indicating historical disposition during the 1960s and 1970s. Estimated TCDD toxic equivalent concentrations indicated that the widespread PCB contamination may be causing adverse effects to aquatic organisms in the estuary.