Pollution history of fecal sterols in dated sediment core from Masan Bay, Korea

Abstract

Fecal sterols have been used as a molecular marker for domestic pollution because of their abundance in human waste, high affinity to organic matter and persistence in anoxic sediment. Dated sediment core was collected near a wastewater treatment plant (WWTP) in Masan Bay, Korea, to investigate the historical trend of fecal sterols. The highest concentration of fecal sterols in the sediment core was found at the surface layer (dated as 2005). Rapid change in the concentrations of fecal sterols coincides with the establishment and operation of a WWTP; this suggested that discharges from WWTP contributed to contamination by fecal sterols in the bay. Analysis of data by non-parametric multidimensional scaling ordination showed the pollution history of fecal sterols associated with WWTP operation. Inventories and fluxes of fecal sterols have rapidly increased since establishment of the WWTP, indicating that the discharge of WWTP is an important source of sediment contamination in aquatic environment.