Palos Verdes outfalls and at island control sta- 

 tions during 1971 yielded-"^ an outfall-to-control 

 ratio for cadmium of 0.81. 



The relatively low cadmium levels often found 

 in some tissues or organisms living around the 

 Palos Verdes outfalls may be related to the high 

 levels of chlorinated hydrocarbons that have ac- 

 cumulated there from past wastewater dis- 

 charges. Concentrations of total DDT and total 

 PCB in mussels, sediments, and flatfish from the 

 region are 100 to 1,000 times those measured in 

 samples from island control areas (Young et al. 

 1976: McDermott, Young, and Heesen 1976). Re- 

 cently, Nimmo and Bahner (1976) reported that 

 exposure of a penaeid shrimp to methoxychlor (a 

 chlorinated pesticide somewhat similar to DDT 

 and PCB) appeared to depress concentrations of 

 cadmium in this organism. It is possible that ani- 

 mals off Palos Verdes are showing a similar effect. 



Conclusions 



The data presented here indicate that the sub- 

 marine injection of primary-treated municipal 

 wastewater can lead to distinct trace metal con- 

 tamination of filter-feeding rock scallops within a 

 few kilometers of the discharge. Mean values for 

 silver, cadmium, chromium, copper, mercury, and 

 zinc in gonadal and or muscle tissue of specimens 

 collected near the Los Angeles County outfalls 

 ranged from approximately 2 to 23 times the cor- 

 responding means for control specimens. These 

 elevations do not appear to be artifacts caused by 

 contamination from particulates in the digestive 

 gland, but rather to result from actual physiologi- 

 cal uptake of the metals. Although the results of 

 this study point to a potential problem from waste 

 metals discharged via municipal outfalls, we do 

 not yet know the degree to which such elevated 

 metals affect the rock scallop or its predators. 



Acknowledgments 



We thank Douglas Hotchkiss and the captain 

 and crew of the Los Angeles County Sanitation 

 District research vessel for collecting the scallop 

 specimens used in this study. We also thank Proj- 

 ect associates Deirdre McDermott-Ehrlich, Pat- 

 rick Hershelman, Michael Moore, and Edward 

 Motola for their assistance. 



^Southern California Coastal Water Research Project. 1973. 

 The ecology of the Southern California Bight: Implications for 

 water quality management. South. Calif. Coastal Water Res. 

 Proj., El Segundo, TR 104, 531 p. NTIS PB274462/AS. 



Literature Cited 

 Alex.^n'dkr. G. v., and D. r. Young. 



1976. Trace metals in southern California mussels. Mar. 

 Pollut. Bull. 7:7-9. 



DE GoEij, J. J. M., V. P. GuiNN, D. R. Young, and a. J. 

 Mearns. 



1974. Neutron activation analysis trace element studies of 

 Dover sole liver and marine sediments. In Proceedings 

 of the Symposium on Nuclear Techniques in Comparative 

 Studies of Food and Environmental Contamination, p. 

 189-200. Int. At. Energy Agency, Vienna. 



Eganhouse. R. p., and D. R. Young. 



1976. Mercury in tissues of mussel off southern California. 

 Mar. Pollut. Bull. 7:145-147. 



Galloway. J. N. 



1972. Man's alteration of the natural geochemical cycle of 

 selected trace-metals. Ph.D. Thesis, Univ. California, 

 San Diego, 143 p. 



McDermott, d. J., G. V. Alexander, D. R. Young, and a. J. 

 Mearns. 



1976. Metal contamination of flatfish around a large sub- 

 mai-ine outfall. J. Water Pollut. Control Fed. 48:1913- 

 1918. 



MCDERMOTT. d. J., D. R. Young, .'^nd T. C. Hee.sen. 



1976. PCB contamination of southern California marine 



organisms. In Proceedings of the National Conference 



on Polychlorinated Biphenyls, 19-21 Nov. 1975, Chicago, 



p. 209-217. Environ. Prot. Agency, EPA Rep. 560/6-75- 



004. 

 NiMMO, D. W. R., AND L. H. BAHNER. 



1976. Metals, pesticides, and PCB's: Toxicities to shrimp, 



singly and in combination. In Estuarine processes, Vol. 



1, p. 523-532. Academic Press, N.Y. 

 ROTH, B., AND E. V. COAN. 



1978. Nomenclatural notes on Hinnites giganteus 



(Gray). Veliger 20:297-298. 

 T.ATE. M. W., and R. C. CLELL.JiND. 



1957. Nonparametric and shortcut statistics in the social, 



biological, and medical sciences. Interstate Printers and 



Publishers. Inc.. Danville, 111., 171 p. 

 YOUNG, D. R., D. J. MCDERMOTT, AND T. C. HEESEN. 



1976. DDT in sediments and organisms around southern 



California outfalls. J. Water Pollut. Control Fed. 



48:1919-1928. 



Young, D. R., D. J. McDer.mott. T. C. Heesen, andT. K.Jan. 



1975. Pollutant inputs and distributions off southern 

 California. In T. M. Church (editor). Marine chemistry 

 in the coastal environment, p. 424-439. Am. Chem. Soc, 

 Wash., D. C. 



Young. D. R., C. S. Young, and G. E. Hlavka. 



1973. Sources of trace metals from highly-urbanized 

 southern California to the adjacent marine ecosys- 

 tem. In Cycling and control of metals, p. 21-39. U.S. 

 Environ. Prot. Agency, Natl. Environ. Res. Cent., Cincin- 

 nati, Ohio. 



David R. Young 

 Tsu-Kai Jan 



Southern California Coastal Water Research Project 

 1500 East Imperial Highway 

 El Segundo, CA 90245 



939 



