The bioaccumulation and depuration of 2,3,7,8-tetrachlorodibenzo-p-dioxin, 2,3,7,8-tetrachlorodibenzofuran and polychlorinated biphenyls by marine benthos exposed to environmentally contaminated sediment were measured in a laboratory study. Sandworms (Nereis virens), clams (Macoma nasuta) and shrimp (Palaemonetes puqio) were exposed to sediment from the Passaic River, New Jersey for up to 180 days. Worms accumulated the highest concentrations of these compounds. Uptake and depuration rates were slowest in the worms and most rapid in the clams. © 1990.