Assessment of marine pollution in Izmir Bay: Nutrient, heavy metal and total hydrocarbon concentrations

Izmir Bay (western Turkey) is one of the great natural bays of the Mediterranean. Izmir is an important industrial and commercial centre and a cultural focal point. The main industries in the region include food processing, oil, soap and paint production, chemical industries, paper and pulp factories, textile industries and metal processing. The mean concentrations showed ranges of 0.01 -0.19 and 0.01 - 10 mu M for phosphate, 0.10-1.8 and 0.12-27 mu M for nitrate+ nitrite, and 0.30-5.8 and 0.43-39 mu M for silicate in the outer and middle-inner bays, respectively. The TNOx/PO4 ratio is significantly lower than the Redfield's ratio and nitrogen is the limiting element in the middle-inner bays. Diatoms and dinoflagellates were observed all year around in the bay and are normally nitrogen limited