PCDD/Fs and dioxin-like PCBs in surface sediments from Lake Victoria, East Africa

Patrick Ssebugere, Bernard T. Kiremire, Bernhard Henkelmann, Silke Bernhöft, John Wasswa, Gabriel N. Kasozi, Karl Werner Schramm

Research output: Contribution to journalArticlepeer-review

23 Scopus citations

Abstract

Surface sediments (<60cm) from the Napoleon Gulf and Thurston Bay on the northern shore of Lake Victoria were analyzed for polychlorinated dibenzo-p-dioxins (PCDDs), polychlorinated dibenzofurans (PCDFs) and dioxin-like polychlorinated biphenyls (dl-PCBs). Fifteen PCDD/Fs and eleven dl-PCBs were found in 75.5% of the samples. The maximum concentrations of PCDD/Fs and dl-PCBs were 44.1 and 136pgg-1 dry weight (dw), respectively. Octachlorodibenzo-p-dioxin was the predominant PCDD/F congener at the Napoleon Gulf and Thurston Bay area. Regarding the dl-PCBs, a variation in levels was observed between the mono-ortho PCBs and non-ortho PCBs, with the former having higher levels than the latter. The PCDD/F and dl-PCB levels, in the sediments of Napoleon Gulf, which is near urban centers and industrial areas were markedly higher (α≤0.05) than those from the Thurston Bay, which is offshore, suggesting that human activities could be sources of the pollutants to the surrounding water resources. World Health Organization-toxic equivalency quotients (WHO-TEQs) lay in the range of 0.07-5.53pgg-1 dw for PCDD/Fs and 0.01-0.23pgg-1 dw for dl-PCBs. 23.1% of samples from the Napoleon Gulf had their results above the set WHOPCDD/Fs-TEQ value.

Original languageEnglish
Pages (from-to)528-533
Number of pages6
JournalScience of the Total Environment
Volume454-455
DOIs
StatePublished - 1 Jun 2013

Keywords

  • Dioxin-like polychlorinated biphenyls
  • Lake Victoria
  • Polychlorinated dibenzo-p-dioxins
  • Polychlorinated dibenzofurans
  • Sediments

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