Bioavailability of PAH in effluent water from an aluminium works evaluated by transplant caging and biliary fluorescence measurements of Atlantic cod (Gadus morhua L.)

Fixed wavelength fluorescence (FF) of bile was used as a biomarker for PAH exposure in fish caged adjacent to an aluminium works. After 30 days of caging, a 20–50 fold increase of pyrene fluorescence was found in groups caged adjacent to the works as compared to two control groups. The PAH uptake occurred mainly from suspended particles rather than from PAH contaminated sediments at the caging sites. Our results demonstrates the combined use of fish caging and bile-fluorescence measurements as a powerful field model for the monitoring of coastal waters subjected to PAH pollution.