Contaminated Sediments Database for the Gulf of Maine

U.S. Geological Survey Open-File Report 02-403:

M.R. Buchholtz ten Brink¹, F.T. Manheim¹, E.L. Mecray¹ M.E. Hastings¹and J.M. Currence¹ in collaboration with J.W. Farrington² , S.H. Jones³, P.F. Larsen⁴, B.W. Tripp², G.T. Wallace, Jr^5,L.G. Ward³ and with participation from T.J. Fredette⁶, M.L. Liebman⁷, and W. Smith Leo⁸

This product is the result of a collaborative effort of principal investigators from the¹U.S. Geological Survey Coastal and Marine Geology Program (USGS-CMGP), ²Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution (WHOI), the³University of New Hampshire (UNH),⁴ Bigelow Laboratory for Ocean Sciences, the ⁵University of Massachusetts (UMASS), and active participation from the ⁶U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (USACOE), the ⁷U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (USEPA), the ⁸Massachusetts Water Resources Authority (MWRA), the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA), and other federal and state agencies. Funding was provided by participating institutions and the Gulf of Maine Regional Marine Research Program.

ABSTRACT

Bottom sediments in the Gulf of Maine and its estuaries have accumulated pollutants of many types, including metals and organic compounds of agricultural, industrial, and household derivation. Much analytical and descriptive data has been obtained on these sediments over the past decades, but only a small effort had been made, prior to this project, to compile and edit the published and unpublished data in forms suitable for a variety of users. The Contaminated Sediments Database for the Gulf of Maine provides a compilation and synthesis of existing data to help establish the environmental status of our coastal sediments and the transport paths and fate of contaminants in this region. This information, in turn, forms one of the essential bases for developing successful remediation and resource management policies.

CITATION
This document should be cited as:
Buchholtz ten Brink, M.R., Manheim, F.T., Mecray, E.L. , Hastings, M.E., and Currence, J.M., along with Farrington, J.W., Fredette, T.J., Jones, S.H., Liebman, M.L., Larsen, P.F., Smith Leo, W., Tripp, B.W., Wallace, Jr., G.T., and Ward, L.G., 2002, Contaminated sediments database for the Gulf of Maine, U.S. Geological Survey Open-file Report No. 02-403, Online at https://pubs.usgs.gov/of/2002/of02-403/.

This compilation of available data includes many references by hyperlink to information created and maintained by other organizations. Please note that USGS does not control and cannot guarantee the continued accessibility, relevance, timeliness, or accuracy of those outside sources.

This report is preliminary and has not been reviewed for conformity with U.S. Geological Survey editorial standards (or with the North American Stratigraphic Code). Any use of trade, product, or firm names is for descriptive purposes only and does not imply endorsement by the U.S. government.