MECHANISMS OF POLLUTANT TRANSPORT IN THE HUDSON ESTUARY

The discharge of industrial wastes and surface runoff of pollutant-laden soils have been occurring in the Hudson estuary since the 1890s. With tighter pollution control legislation eliminating most of the problem sources of pollution, the sediments of the Hudson River have now become the main source of pollutants in the estuary. Understanding the movement of sediments within the system is necessary in order to be able to determine the mechanisms of pollutant transport. This article presents some mechanisms describing how the majority of these sediments are moved from place to place and accumulated. Historical pollutant loadings in the estuary are presented in order to stress the magnitude of the problem. Studies on other estuaries are used as examples where no significant research has been conducted on the Hudson estuary. © 1990.