Accumulation of copper, chromium, and arsenic in blue mussels (Mytilus edulis) from laboratory and field exposures to wood treated with chromated copper arsenate type C

Laboratory and field experiments were conducted to examine the uptake of Cu, Cr, and As leached from southern yellow pine (SYP) treated with chromated copper arsenate type C (CCA-C), as well as effects on mortality and growth, in blue mussels (Mytilus edulis). Mussels were exposed to CCA-C-treated wood at a preservative retention of 40 kg/m(3) and control (nontreated) SYP in laboratory Bow-through sea table and field exposure experiments for 9 months in 1994 and 3 months in 1995. Mussels were sampled at regular intervals to evaluate possible short- and long-term exposure effects. Individual mussels were measured to determine the length, dry weight, and condition index. Mussel tissues were then analyzed for Cu, Cr, and As. Results showed few significant differences in condition index, dry weight, and length between CCA-C-exposed and control mussels. In addition, no statistically significant differences in mortality were found between the mussels exposed to CCA-C-treated and nontreated SYP in the laboratory flow-through sea table and field exposure experiments. Significant differences in Cu, As, and Cr contents in mussel tissues between treatments were few, and generally cannot be attributed to exposure to CCA-C-treated SYP. The lack of Cu, Cr, and As uptake from CCA-C-treated SYP was attributed to the low, although continuous, rate of release of these elements from CCA-C-treated wood and to the experimental design, which allowed continuous flushing, prohibiting the accumulation of these elements in the water surrounding the mussels.