In: Environmental Research Trends ISBN 978-1-60021-556-8 Editor: Marvin A. Cato, pp. © 2007 Nova Science Publishers, Inc. Chapter 2 DISTRIBUTION, SOURCE AND STATUS OF HEAVY METALS AND ORGANOCHLORINE PESTICIDES IN SEDIMENTS OF SUNDERBAN MANGROVE WETLAND, INDIA S. K. Sarkar * , C. Maggi ** , M. Chatterjee * , J. Bianchi ** , A. Bhattacharya * , L. Manfra ** , B. D. Bhattacharya * and K. K. Satpathy *** * Department of Marine Science, Calcutta University, 35 Ballygunge Circular Road, Calcutta-35, India ** ICRAM-Central Institute for Applied Marine Research, Via di Casalotti, 300-00166 Roma, Italy. *** Indira Gandhi Center for Atomic Research, Environmental and Industrial Safety Section, Safety Group, Kalpakkam 603102, Tamil Nadu, India ABSTRACT The paper elucidates a comprehensive account of heavy metals (Ba, Cr, Cu, Fe, Mn, Ni, Pb, Zn, Cd, As and Hg) and organochlorine pesticide residues in sediments from Sunderban mangrove wetland, West Bengal, India, one of the luxuriant mangrove ecosystems and biosphere reserves in the world. Sedimentary organic carbon, ph and textural properties were worked out in order to assess their role on metal distribution and pesticide residues. The sampling sites have been selected covering various geomorphological areas of intertidal zones that are under variable stresses both from natural and anthropogenic sources. The coastal processes of wave-tide-current climate together with riverine hydrodynamics act as the primary control of sedimentation in these areas. Sandflats (2-4 φ), mixed flats (sand+mud) and mudflats (silt+clay; φ <4) characterize the intertidal zone depending on the energy regimes and availability of the material. The heavy metallic pollutants as well as the organochlorine pesticides, as measured with the help of ICPAES and GC equipped with electron capture detector respectively, have accumulated in the sediment matrices from multifarious sources. Distribution of metals in the sediment cores is characteristically different from each other with elevated values either in surface or deeper layers. Regarding organochlorine pesticides, an