Zinc

Definition of zinc: Zinc is a heavy metal with the symbol Zn and atomic number 30. It is brittle and has a bluish-white color. It becomes coated with a corrosion-resistant layer in moist air. This is the common definition for zinc, other definitions can be discussed in the article

Notes

The bucktail creek- turquoise color is copper precipitate on rocks © Iadanza, NOAA, 1996

Zinc concentrations are much higher in highly polluted industrialized coastal areas like the North Sea (up to 70µg/l) than in the open ocean (0,1µg/l).. Zinc usually enters the marine environment through effluents from smelters and mining sites.

Zinc tends to be accumulated by bivalves. Especially oysters contain large amounts of zinc, in the highly contaminated English Restronguet Creek they contain zinc concentrations above 10.000 µg/g dry weight. However, like most heavy metals zinc doesn't tend to biomagnify, so that it causes little harm to sea birds or marine mammals.