Assessment of hydrocarbons concentration in marine fauna due to Tasman Spirit oil spill along the Clifton beach at Karachi coast

Environ Monit Assess. 2009 Jan;148(1-4):139-48. doi: 10.1007/s10661-007-0145-x. Epub 2008 Feb 27.

Abstract

On 27 July 2003, Tasman Spirit spilled 31,000 tonnes of crude oil into the sea at the Karachi coast. This disaster badly affected the marine life (Flora and Fauna.) Present research has been proposed to ascertain the level of Polycyclic Aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) contamination in different fisheries including Fishes, Crustaceans; Crabs and Shrimps, Mollusks and Echinoderms along with passing time. Heavier components of crude oil such as Polycyclic Aromatic Hydrocarbons (PAHs) appear to cause most damages as these are relatively unreactive and persist in water. High concentrations of toxic PAHs were observed in all the fisheries and shellfishes caught form oil-impacted area. In this study fishes were found most contaminated than shellfishes i.e. summation operator 16 PAH = 1821.24 microg/g and summation operator 1164.34 microg/g, respectively. Naphthalene was found in the range of 0.042-602.23 microg/g. Acenaphthylene, acenaphthene, fluorene, phenanthrene and anthracene were detected in the range 0.008-80.03 microg/g, fluoranthene, pyrene, benzo(a)anthracene and chrysene 0.0008-221.32 microg/g, benzo(b) fluoranthene, benzo(k)fluoranthene and benzo(a) pyrene 0.0005-7.71 microg/g, benzo(g,h,i)perylene and indeno(1,2,3-c,d)pyrene 0.02-503.7 microg/g. Dibenzo(a,h)anthracenre was not detected in any specie.

Publication types

  • Research Support, Non-U.S. Gov't

MeSH terms

  • Animals
  • Chemical Hazard Release*
  • Crustacea
  • Disasters*
  • Environmental Monitoring
  • Fishes
  • Geologic Sediments
  • Humans
  • Molecular Structure
  • Pakistan
  • Petroleum*
  • Polycyclic Aromatic Hydrocarbons / analysis*
  • Polycyclic Aromatic Hydrocarbons / toxicity
  • Seawater / chemistry*
  • Shellfish
  • Water Pollutants, Chemical / analysis*

Substances

  • Petroleum
  • Polycyclic Aromatic Hydrocarbons
  • Water Pollutants, Chemical