ABSTRACT
Ecological consequences of the off-shore disposal of urban wastewaters or sewage sludges have for a long time been a question of major concern 1,2 As a result, there has been a growing interest in the establishmentment of analytical methodologies for the detection of contaminants in both wastewaters and coastal waters3,4, and in the development of predictives model for assessing the environmental fate and the distribution of these contaminants in the marine environment5−7 Over the long term, continuing these dumping practices will depend on the capacity of the receiving systems to dilute, disperse or degrade and ultimately accomodate the asssociated contaminants at acceptable levels.
