| Abstract: | ABSTRACT: Results from the National Status and Trends Program, a nationwide effort to evaluate U.S. coastal and estuarine environmental quality, are analyzed to provide information about regional sources of organic contaminants in the benthic environment. Spearman's rank correlation procedure is applied to measurements of coprostanol, a chemical tracer of sewage, and three classes of organic compounds in sediments. The results suggest that discharges from publicly owned treatment works are responsible for concentrations of the organic compounds encountered in the northeastern coastal region, while other sources may predominate in the other regions of the country. |
