Metal concentration in the sediment did not significantly influence the metal AEs in
either bivalves (P.0.05, t-test), except for Cd in the mussels (Fig. 1, Table 1). The Cd
AE increased by 1.73 when the sediment was amended with Cd 153 higher than the
background Cd concentration (P,0.05, t-test). Between the two bivalve species, metal
AEs from ‘amended’ sediment were higher in clams than in mussels by about 2.43 for
Cd, 2.73 for Cr and 1.73 for Zn.