Concentration of polybrominated diphenyl ethers (PBDEs) in sediment cores of Sundarban mangrove wetland, northeastern part of Bay of Bengal (India)

The paper presents the first comprehensive survey of congener profiles (12 congeners) of polybrominated diphenyl ethers (PBDEs) in core sediment samples ( 99 > 100 > 154, similar to the distribution pattern worldwide. Although tetrabromodiphenyl ether BDE 47 was found in all samples followed by hexabromodiphenyl ether BDE-154, they were not necessarily the dominant congeners. No uniform temporal trend on PBDE levels was recorded probably due to particular hydrological characteristics of the wetland and/on non-homologous inputs from point sources (untreated municipal wastewater and local industries, electronic wastes from the dump sites, etc.) of these compounds. Because of the propensity of PBDEs to accumulate in various compartments of wildlife and human food webs, evaluation of biological tissues should be undertaken as a high priority.