Status and trends of copper concentrations in mussels and oysters in the USA

Since 1986, the NOAA National Status and Trends (NS&T) Program Mussel Watch has monitored concentrations of copper and other trace chemicals in mussels and oysters of the coastal United States. The measured organic contaminants are uncharged and concentrations are the resultant of essentially passive accumulation and depuration processes. Accumulation of copper and other metals by mollusks, on the other hand, involves complex chemical factors external to organisms (physical/chemical speciation in seawater), as well as propensities for uptake that are based on species-specific metabolic requirements. Despite the complex chemistry of copper, both external to and within mollusks, long-term Mussel Watch monitoring shows that highly elevated concentrations in populated areas and upward temporal trends reasonably reflect contamination from human uses of the metal.