Occurrence of organic plastic additives in surface waters of the Rhône River (France)

Abstract. Seawater samples were collected monthly in surface waters (2 and 5 m depths) of the Bay of Marseilles (northwestern Mediterranean Sea; 5°17'30" E, 43°14'30" N) during one year from November 2007 to December 2008 and studied for total organic carbon (TOC) as well as chromophoric dissolved organic matter (CDOM) optical properties (absorbance and fluorescence). The annual mean value of surface CDOM absorption coefficient at 350 nm [aCDOM(350)] was very low (0.10 ± 0.02 m−1) in comparison to values usually found in coastal waters, and no significant seasonal trend in aCDOM(350) could be determined. By contrast, the spectral slope of CDOM absorption (SCDOM) was significantly higher (0.023 ± 0.003 nm−1) in summer than in fall and winter periods (0.017 ± 0.002 nm−1), reflecting either CDOM photobleaching or production in surface waters during stratified sunny periods. The CDOM fluorescence, assessed through excitation emission matrices (EEMs), was dominated by protein-like component (peak T; 1.30–21.94 QSU) and marine humic-like component (peak M; 0.55–5.82 QSU), while terrestrial humic-like fluorescence (peak C; 0.34–2.99 QSU) remained very low. This reflected a dominance of relatively fresh material from biological origin within the CDOM fluorescent pool. At the end of summer, surface CDOM fluorescence was very low and strongly blue shifted, reinforcing the hypothesis of CDOM photobleaching. Our results suggested that unusual Rhône River plume eastward intrusion events might reach Marseilles Bay within 2–3 days and induce local phytoplankton blooms and subsequent fluorescent CDOM production (peaks M and T) without adding terrestrial fluorescence signatures (peaks C and A). Besides Rhône River plumes, mixing events of the entire water column injected relative aged (peaks C and M) CDOM from the bottom into the surface and thus appeared also as an important source of CDOM in surface waters of the Marseilles Bay. Therefore, the assessment of CDOM optical properties, within the hydrological context, pointed out several biotic (in situ biological production, biological production within Rhône River plumes) and abiotic (photobleaching, mixing) factors controlling CDOM transport, production and removal in this highly urbanized coastal area.

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Macro-litter in surface waters from the Rhone River: Plastic pollution and loading to the NW Mediterranean Sea

Marine Pollution Bulletin ◽

10.1016/j.marpolbul.2019.05.067 ◽

2019 ◽

Vol 146 ◽

pp. 60-66 ◽

Cited By ~ 35

Author(s):

Javier Castro-Jiménez ◽

Daniel González-Fernández ◽

Michel Fornier ◽

Natascha Schmidt ◽

Richard Sempéré

Keyword(s):

Mediterranean Sea ◽

Surface Waters ◽

Plastic Pollution ◽

Rhône River ◽

Rhone River ◽

Nw Mediterranean ◽

Nw Mediterranean Sea

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Occurrence of α , ω -dicarboxylic acids and ω-oxoacids in surface waters of the Rhone River and fluxes into the Mediterranean Sea

Progress In Oceanography ◽

10.1016/j.pocean.2017.07.002 ◽

2018 ◽

Vol 163 ◽

pp. 136-146 ◽

Cited By ~ 4

Author(s):

Richard Sempéré ◽

Bruno Charrière ◽

Javier Castro-Jiménez ◽

Kimitaka Kawamura ◽

Christos Panagiotopoulos

Keyword(s):

Mediterranean Sea ◽

Surface Waters ◽

Dicarboxylic Acids ◽

Rhône River ◽

Rhone River ◽

The Mediterranean

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Fluorescence and absorption properties of chromophoric dissolved organic matter (CDOM) in coastal surface waters of the Northwestern Mediterranean Sea (Bay of Marseilles, France)

Biogeosciences Discussions ◽

10.5194/bgd-7-5675-2010 ◽

2010 ◽

Vol 7 (4) ◽

pp. 5675-5718 ◽

Cited By ~ 10

Author(s):

J. Para ◽

P. G. Coble ◽

B. Charrière ◽

M. Tedetti ◽

C. Fontana ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Organic Matter ◽

Optical Properties ◽

Mediterranean Sea ◽

Surface Waters ◽

Chromophoric Dissolved Organic Matter ◽

River Plumes ◽

Rhône River ◽

Rhone River ◽

Northwestern Mediterranean Sea ◽

Northwestern Mediterranean

Abstract. Seawater samples were collected in surface waters (2 and 5 m depths) of the Bay of Marseilles (Northwestern Mediterranean Sea; 5°17′30′′ E, 43°14′30′′ N) during one year from November 2007 to December 2008 and studied for total organic carbon (TOC) as well as chromophoric dissolved organic matter (CDOM) optical properties (absorbance and fluorescence). The annual mean value of surface CDOM absorption coefficient at 350 nm [aCDOM(350)] was very low (0.10 ± 0.02 m−1) with in comparison to values usually found in coastal waters, and no significant seasonal trend in aCDOM(350) could be determined. By contrast, the spectral slope of CDOM absorption (SCDOM) was significantly higher (0.023 ± 0.003 nm−1) in summer than in fall and winter periods (0.017 ± 0.002 nm−1), reflecting either CDOM photobleaching or production in surface waters during stratified sunny periods. The CDOM fluorescence, assessed through excitation emission matrices (EEMs), was dominated by protein-like component (peak T; 1.30–21.94 QSU) and marine humic-like component (peak M; 0.55–5.82 QSU), while terrestrial humic-like fluorescence (peak C; 0.34–2.99 QSU) remained very low. This reflected a dominance of relatively fresh material from biological origin within the CDOM fluorescent pool. At the end of summer, surface CDOM fluorescence was very low and strongly blue shifted, reinforcing the hypothesis of CDOM photobleaching. Our results suggested that unusual Rhône River plume eastward intrusion events may reach Marseilles Bay within 2–3 days and induce local phytoplankton blooms and subsequent fluorescent CDOM production (peaks M and T) without adding terrestrial fluorescence signatures (peak C). Besides Rhône River plumes, mixing events of the entire water column injected humic (peaks C and M) CDOM from the bottom into the surface and thus appeared also as an important source of CDOM in surface waters of the Marseilles Bay. Therefore, the assessment of CDOM optical properties, within the hydrological context, pointed out several biotic (in situ biological production, biological production within Rhône River plumes) and abiotic (photobleaching, mixing) factors controlling CDOM transport, production and removal in this highly urbanized coastal area.

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Insights into natural organic matter and pesticide characterisation and distribution in the Rhone River

Environmental Chemistry ◽

10.1071/en16038 ◽

2017 ◽

Vol 14 (1) ◽

pp. 64 ◽

Cited By ~ 9

Author(s):

Danielle L. Slomberg ◽

Patrick Ollivier ◽

Olivier Radakovitch ◽

Nicole Baran ◽

Nicole Sani-Kast ◽

...

Keyword(s):

Organic Matter ◽

Organic Carbon ◽

Particulate Organic Carbon ◽

Natural Organic Matter ◽

Surface Waters ◽

Gas Chromatography Mass Spectrometry ◽

Pyrolysis Gas ◽

Rhône River ◽

Allochthonous Species ◽

Rhone River

Environmental contextNatural organic matter in surface waters is a transport vector for environmental pollutants with both its concentration and composition influencing pollutant fate. Characterisation of organic matter in surface waters, crucial to understanding pollutant transport, should also account for spatial variation along the water source. The present work characterises the natural organic matter in the Rhone River and describes the distributions of various pesticides and metabolites along the river. AbstractThorough characterisation of natural organic matter (NOM) in natural surface waters remains vital for evaluating pollutant dynamics and interactions with NOM under realistic environmental conditions. Here, we present the characterisation of NOM and pesticide compositions for nine sampling sites over the length of the Rhone River, also evaluating the advantages and limitations of different analytical techniques to determine how they complement one another. Together with dissolved and particulate organic carbon analyses, the dissolved organic matter (DOM, <0.8μm) or NOM (unfiltered organic matter) was characterised with gel permeation chromatography, the polarity rapid-assessment method, excitation–emission matrix fluorescence, and pyrolysis–gas chromatography–mass spectrometry to evaluate both composition and distribution. An additional objective was the determination of the NOM degradation state (i.e. constantly produced autochthonous or weakly degraded allochthonous species), an important factor in assessing potential NOM–pollutant interactions. The NOM compositions (i.e. proteins, polyhydroxy aromatics, polysaccharides, amino sugars) and proportions were similar between sites, but variations were observed in the relative proportions of autochthonous and allochthonous material from north to south. Anionic proteins and polyhydroxy aromatics in a molecular weight range of ~1000–1200 Da comprised the majority of the DOM. As a pollutant case study, five pesticides (glyphosate, metalochlor, chlortoluron, isoproturon, propyzamide) and some of their metabolites (aminomethylphosphonic acid, metolachlor ethanesulfonic acid and metolachlor oxanilic acid) were measured. Several exhibited trends with the NOM, particulate organic carbon and suspended particulate matter distributions in the Rhone waters, suggesting a significant influence on pesticide fate and transport in the river.

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