GENERAL INFORMATION

Several organic contaminants of great environmental concern, such as polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs), polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs), chlorophenols and chlorinated dioxins, along with highly toxic heavy metals, are progressively accumulating in freshwater, estuarine and marine sediments.
Sediments act as both a repository and source of pollutants. Hydrophobic organic contaminants such as PCBs and PAHs are long-lived in sediments and impair water quality by leaching into overlying water, accumulating in sediment-dwelling organisms and aquatic biota, and transferring through the food web to humans and other animals.
Therefore, contaminated sediments comprise one of the most significant environmental problems in the world.