TY - JOUR
T1 - Element concentrations in some species of seaweeds from La Paz Bay and La Paz Lagoon, south-western Baja California, Mexico
AU - Rodríguez-Castañeda, Ana P.
AU - Sánchez-Rodríguez, Ignacio
AU - Shumilin, Evgueni N.
AU - Sapozhnikov, Dmitry
N1 - Funding Information:
This study was supported by grant # 27728-T (1999–2001) of Consejo Nacional de Ciencia y Tec-nología of Mexico, as well by the Coordinación Gen- eral del Posgrado e Investigación (CGPI) of the In-stituto Politécnico Nacional of Mexico (project # 20040093). Rodríguez-Castañeda A. P., I. Sánchez-R. and E. Shumilin were fellows of COFAA-IPN. The authors are greatly indebted to Mrs. Danielle Maither L. for the editng the English text.
PY - 2006/10
Y1 - 2006/10
N2 - La Paz Bay and La Paz Lagoon are water bodies of the Gulf of California that are influenced by waste water discharges from the City of La Paz and from activities of the phosphorite mining company "Rofomex". Because seaweeds concentrate elements from the water and are used as effective indicators of contamination by metals, we investigated their usefulness in this region. Concentrations of certain major elements (Ca, Fe, K and Na) and trace elements (As, Ba, Co, Cr, Cs, Hf, Rb, Sb, Sc, Se, Sr, Ta, Th, U, Zn and Zr) were determined in 12 species of seaweeds from La Paz Bay and La Paz Lagoon using instrumental neutron activation analysis. The contents of trace elements of environmental importance (As, Co, Cr, Fe, Sb, Se and Zn) in all studied samples are within the range of typical levels for a pristine environment not subjected to anthropogenic impact. Somewhat higher concentrations of Cr (81mg kg -1), Hf (4mg kg -1), Rb (48mg kg -1), Sc (6.3mg kg -1), Ta (0.95mg kg -1), Th (6.8mg kg -1), U (33mg kg -1) and Zn (90mg kg -1) were found in the green seaweed species Ulva (formerly Enteromorpha) intestinalis, whereas such elements as As (77mg kg -1), Sb (1.4mg kg -1) and Se (1.8mg kg -1) were mainly concentrated in the species Sargassum sinicola, Codium cuneatum and Padina mexicana respectively. Because of their higher abundance and heterogeneity in elemental composition the seaweeds species Ulva intestinalis and Caulerpa sertularioides seem to be more suitable for further biomonitoring of heavy metal pollution of the coastal waters in this zone.
AB - La Paz Bay and La Paz Lagoon are water bodies of the Gulf of California that are influenced by waste water discharges from the City of La Paz and from activities of the phosphorite mining company "Rofomex". Because seaweeds concentrate elements from the water and are used as effective indicators of contamination by metals, we investigated their usefulness in this region. Concentrations of certain major elements (Ca, Fe, K and Na) and trace elements (As, Ba, Co, Cr, Cs, Hf, Rb, Sb, Sc, Se, Sr, Ta, Th, U, Zn and Zr) were determined in 12 species of seaweeds from La Paz Bay and La Paz Lagoon using instrumental neutron activation analysis. The contents of trace elements of environmental importance (As, Co, Cr, Fe, Sb, Se and Zn) in all studied samples are within the range of typical levels for a pristine environment not subjected to anthropogenic impact. Somewhat higher concentrations of Cr (81mg kg -1), Hf (4mg kg -1), Rb (48mg kg -1), Sc (6.3mg kg -1), Ta (0.95mg kg -1), Th (6.8mg kg -1), U (33mg kg -1) and Zn (90mg kg -1) were found in the green seaweed species Ulva (formerly Enteromorpha) intestinalis, whereas such elements as As (77mg kg -1), Sb (1.4mg kg -1) and Se (1.8mg kg -1) were mainly concentrated in the species Sargassum sinicola, Codium cuneatum and Padina mexicana respectively. Because of their higher abundance and heterogeneity in elemental composition the seaweeds species Ulva intestinalis and Caulerpa sertularioides seem to be more suitable for further biomonitoring of heavy metal pollution of the coastal waters in this zone.
KW - Baja California Peninsula
KW - Elements
KW - Instrumental neutron activation analysis
KW - La Paz Bay
KW - Seaweeds
KW - Trace elements
UR - http://www.scopus.com/inward/record.url?scp=33845418365&partnerID=8YFLogxK
U2 - 10.1007/s10811-006-9040-z
DO - 10.1007/s10811-006-9040-z
M3 - Artículo
SN - 0921-8971
VL - 18
SP - 399
EP - 408
JO - Journal of Applied Phycology
JF - Journal of Applied Phycology
IS - 3-5
ER -