A new StoryMap, Passive Sampling for Pollutants in Charleston, South Carolina, highlights the process of using a new method to test the waters around the greater Charleston area for contaminants, specifically, polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs), a group of chemicals present in everyday items and in fuels (e.g. coal, oil, gas) and produced when fuels and wood are burned. Scientists with NOAA’s National Centers for Coastal Ocean Science (NCCOS) have been partnering with Charleston Waterkeeper – a nonprofit organization whose mission is to protect, defend, and restore the health and integrity of Charleston’s waterways – since 2020 in this effort.
This StoryMap highlights the use of a novel passive sampler, silicone bands, for contaminant monitoring in estuarine environments. While traditional, or grab, sampling provides a glimpse of contaminant conditions in the environment at the time of collection, passive sampling can yield greater temporal representation and increased sensitivity of chemical detection. Passive sampling is excellent for understanding contaminant concentrations in dynamic, tidally influenced, waters like the Charleston Harbor Estuary.
Due to the city’s growing population, industries, and commercial and recreational activities, Charleston area waterways are subject to a variety of harmful contaminants that can affect wildlife, human health, and the environment. Since PAHs are widespread and persistent within the environment, they are an ideal indicator of urban runoff. This StoryMap provides an expanded view of local waterways, watershed boundaries, and land cover and land use change data to build an understanding of how rain, flooding, and runoff impacts individual waterways in the greater Charleston area.
Charleston Waterkeeper, NCCOS scientists, and volunteers deploy the bands in Charleston waterways and collect them after 21 days, delivering them to Hollings Marine Laboratory where NCCOS scientists conduct the chemical analysis to determine PAH levels within the waterways.
This StoryMap heavily focuses on the step-by-step analytical process the scientists use to extract the PAHs from the bands, including chemicals and machines they use in this procedure.
Users can view the final data on a series of maps showcasing 2022 to 2024 collection information through the various seasons each year. The associated text draws attention to water ways with higher PAH contamination, and addresses how heavy rain or tidal flooding events may have contributed to higher contamination levels in certain areas.
View the full StoryMap to follow the data collection process and results.