Depositional history of organic contaminants in Narragansett Bay, Rhode Island, USA

Sediment cores were taken at three locations in Narragansett Bay, Rhode Island, USA in 1997 and analyzed for a variety of organic contaminants including polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs), polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs), chlordanes, linear alkyl benzenes (LABs), benzotriazoles (BZTs) and dichlorodiphenyltrichloroethanes (DDTs) and metabolites. The distributions of these chemicals at Apponaug Cove and in the Seekonk River indicate that there was a disturbance in the depositional environment relative to cores collected at these locations in 1986 demonstrating the potential for buried contaminants to be remobilized in the environment even after a period of burial. Sharp breaks in the concentration of several organic markers with known dates of introduction were successfully used to determine the sedimentation rate at Quonset Point. Both the Quonset Point and Seekonk River cores had subsurface maximums for DDTs, PCBs, PAHs and BZTs, which are consistent with expected inputs to the environment. The Apponaug Cove core showed an increase of most contaminants at the surface indicating a recent event in which more contaminated sediments were deposited at that location.     

Reflection Coefficient Calculation from Marine High Resolution Seismic Reflection (Chirp) Data and Application to an Archaeological Case Study

Chirp sub-bottom profilers produce high-resolution images of the near-surface. An attribute of the sea-bed reflection in chirp data are fluctuations in polarity between adjacent traces. Two models are proposed and presented to explain this: the first incorporates changes in an acoustic impedance gradient at the sea bed; the second uses changes in the thickness of the uppermost sediment layer. Mixing of adjacent traces produces a consistent polarity for the sea-bed reflector. Reflection coefficients are calculated, using amplitude information derived from single-traces, and polarity information from trace mixing, with application to a marine archaeological case study. The reflection coefficient calculated for the top of a buried 18th century wooden wreck is -0.26.     

Environmental controls on phytoplankton production in coastal ecosystems: A case study from Tokyo Bay

Phytoplankton biomass and primary production were examined in their environmental context, for a semi-enclosed bay (Tokyo Bay, Japan) using data from monthly samples collected over a three-year period. Heavy precipitation and high surface temperatures in the late spring and summer gave rise to a highly-stratified water-column and stimulated a series of phytoplankton blooms, whereas during the winter, a weakly-stratified and deeply-mixed water-column led to a rapid decline in phytoplankton biomass under light-limited growth conditions. By incorporating pigment, photophysiological and optical data into a primary production model we show that daily, water-column primary production ranges from ∼160 mg C m⁻² d⁻¹ to 7600 mg C m⁻² d⁻¹. High water turbidity and deep vertical mixing, both separately and in concert, limit the light available for algal growth over much of the year. Annual primary production varied from 370 to 580 g C m⁻² y⁻¹. The relative influences of nutrient limitation and light limitation are assessed. A model is developed that describes this in an explicit manner using photophysiological parameters.