Study of macro and microelements in fish from the Cienfuegos Bay. Relationship with its content in sediments M. Peña-Icart & E. Rodrigues Pereira-Filho & L. Lopes Fialho & J. A. Nóbrega & C. Alonso-Hernández & Y. Bolaños-Alvarez & A. Muñoz-Caravaca & M. S. Pomares-Alfonso Received: 16 May 2017 /Accepted: 20 July 2017 # Springer International Publishing AG 2017 Abstract Thirteen microelements (Al, As, Cd, Co, Cr, Cu, Fe, Li, Mn, Ni, Ti, V, and Zn) and four macroelements (Ca, K, Mg, and Na) were determined in the edible muscle tissue of fish in Cienfuegos Bay. Eight species, Albula vulpes, Diapterus rhombeus, Gerres cinereus, Haemulon carbonarium, Haemulon sciurus, Micropogonias furnieri, Kyphosus sectatrix, and Lutjanus cyanopterus were studied. The total con- centrations and extracted concentrations using HCl were also determined in sediments. The quality of the analysis was guaranteed by validating the used analytical methods with certified reference materials of fish and sediments. The high content of macroelements confirmed the importance of fish as a valuable source of food for the local population. New information is provided on bioaccumulation of toxic elements As, Cd, Cu, Zn, and Cr in fish of the bay, with concentrations that overcame the local or inter- national maximum allowable levels for human con- sumption in most samples analyzed. A high correla- tion between the content of toxic elements As, Cd, Zn, and macroelement K in fish and its concentration extracted from sediments using the HCl extraction method was observed. Keywords Macroelement . Microelement . Fish muscle tissue . Superficial sediment . Bioaccumulation factor . Hydrochloric acid extraction Introduction The Bay of Cienfuegos is one of the five most important Cuban bays, and in the last 40 years, it presented an increasing growth of anthropogenic activities near the coastal zones, mainly in the northernmost zone. The development of a petro-chemical pole, including an oil refinery producing 65,000 barrels per day, a thermo- electric power station of 370 MWh, and a nitrogen fertilizer factory, has been relevant. High contents of Cr, Ni, Ti, V, and Zn, among others, were found in the bottom ashes of both industries, with values signifi- cantly higher than those reported in the literature (Alonso-Hernández et al. 2011). It is also known that the nitrogen fertilizer factory was authorized to release As residuals into the bay up to 1981, and additionally, Environ Monit Assess (2017) 189:427 DOI 10.1007/s10661-017-6144-7 Electronic supplementary material The online version of this article (doi:10.1007/s10661-017-6144-7) contains supplementary material, which is available to authorized users. M. Peña-Icart : M. S. Pomares-Alfonso (*) Institute of Materials Science and Technology (IMRE), University of Havana, CP 10400 Havana, Cuba e-mail: mpomares@imre.uh.cu M. Peña-Icart : E. Rodrigues Pereira-Filho : L. Lopes Fialho : J. A. Nóbrega Departamento de Química, Universidade Federal de São Carlos, Rod. Washington Luíz, km 235, São Carlos, São Paulo 13565-905, Brazil C. Alonso-Hernández : Y. Bolaños-Alvarez : A. Muñoz-Caravaca Cienfuegos City Environmental Study Center, St. Castillo de Jagua, km 1½. A.P. 5, CP 59350 Cienfuegos, Cuba