Granulometric dependence of chromium accumulation in estuarine sediments in Maine

Variation of chromium concentrations with grain size in estuarine sediments comples use of a sediment textural indicator in examination of pollutant chromium distribution. Sediment specific surface area is shown to be superior to measurements of the proportion of fine-grained sediment in defining regional variations of chromium concentration with sediment texture in three relatively unpolluted estuaries. Mineralogy is the prime control on chromium levels in these estuaries. The application of a textural normalization technique using specific surface areas in an estuary receiving a chromium-rich effluent allows differentiation of polluted from nonpolluted sediments. Accumulation of effluent chromium occurs within the estuary, not in adjacent coastal sediments, and concentration occurs in intertidal rather than subtidal zones.