BIOTA ACCUMULATION OF POLYCYCLIC AROMATIC HYDROCARBONS IN BENIN COASTAL WATERS

The contamination levels of 12 US-EPA polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) from the tri-aromatics to the hexa- aromatics in biota and sediment of Cotonou's lagoon and Benin's continental shelf waters are identified in this paper. PAHs were analyzed by gas-chromatography coupled with mass spectrometry (GC-SM). Total lipid contents (TLC) were measured for biota, and total organic carbon content (TOC) for sediment. Total PAH concentrations obtained for organisms ranged between 15 and 102ngg− 1, with mussels accumulating the highest concentrations of PAHs. The lower–molecular-weight (LMW) 3 ring PAHs were predominant in all biota and showed similar distribution patterns. Phenanthrene accounts for 76% of total bioaccumulation factors (BAFs). Biota and sediment accumulation factors (BSAFs) showed that the mussels are exposed to the LMW PAHs more than to the hydrophobic higher-molecular-weight (HMW) PAHs in the Benin coastal waters.