Pollution status of polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons in surface sediments off the Jiangsu coastal zone, East China: A case study of Rudong

Highlights: • Sediments at coastal Rudong in Jiangsu, China were sampled at 32 sites for 16 PAHs • PAH levels were highest in the fine offshore/deep water sediments • The PAHs were low-MW species from oil spills, fuel combustion, and marine traffic • The PAH levels in the local seafood were acceptable according to ILCR criteria· PAH enrichment in the Rudong sediment food chain is not a serious human health risk In the current study, 16 congeners of PAHs were measured in 32 surface sediment samples to determine their pollution status in the Jiangsu coastal zone, East China. The total concentrations of the 16 PAHs ranged from 2.2 to 46.6 ng g⁻¹ with an average of 8.36 ng g⁻¹ in surface sediments and were significantly lower than those of PAHs in other coastal areas of China. The spatial distribution of PAHs revealed an increasing trend from nearshore to offshore, controlled by the regional sedimentary dynamic environment. Diagnostic ratios and positive matrix factorization demonstrated that petroleum, industries, biomass and coal combustion, and marine and vehicular traffic sources contributed to 28.9%, 25.5%, 24.7%, and 20.9% of the total PAHs, respectively. Risk assessment suggested that the carcinogenic risks were −4 for all age groups in the area, indicating that long-term seafood consumption does not pose a significant cancer risk in this area.