A TIE Approach to Identify Substances Causing Sediment Pore Water Toxicity After a Major Fire at Fuel Storage Tanks in the Port of Santos (SE, Brazil)

Author(s)

Ferraz, Mariana Aliceda ^[1] ; Alves, Aline Vecchio ^[1] ; Choueri, Rodrigo Brasil ^[1]

Affiliation

^[1] Univ Fed Sao Paulo IMAR UNIFESP, Inst Mar, Dept Ciencias Mar, Campus Baixada Santista, Rua Maria Maximo, BR-11030100 Santos, SP - Brazil

• Document type: Journal article
• Source: Bulletin of Environmental Contamination and Toxicology; v. 107, n. 1, SI, p. 62-68, JUL 2021.
• Web of Science Citations: 0

Abstract

The major fire at the fuel storage tanks of a Chemical Terminal in April 2015 at the Port of Santos (SP), SE Brazil, potentially caused significant environmental impacts to the Santos Estuarine System (SES). The aim of the study was to identify the classes of substances causing pore water toxicity in the SES sediments in the vicinity of the port terminal before and after the incident using the TIE approach. Our results suggest that nonpolar compounds (e.g. PAHs, BTX, oil and grease) from the storage tanks that burned, and surfactants present in the formulation of foam fire extinguishing agents were the responsible for the sediment toxicity observed in the vicinity of the incident site. The contribution of metals to the toxicity related to the incident was ruled out. A long-term monitoring of the environmental effects of the incident is recommended since substances for which evidence of toxicity was found are toxic, persistent and can accumulate in the biota. (AU)

• FAPESP's process: 15/00030-2 - Development of a simple method of Toxicity Identification Evaluation (TIE) of marine sediments using a benthic organism (Nitokra sp.)
• Grantee: Aline Vecchio Alves
• Support Opportunities: Scholarships in Brazil - Master