Concentration and origin of heavy metals in the recent sediments of the Fort-de-France Bay (Martinique).

Mud progradation of eustatic and to a lesser extent of neotectonic origin b egan 2000 years ago in the bay of Fort-de-France (Martinique). The terrigen ous muds originate from erosion of rocks and soils and cover essentially th e inner part of the bay. Recent muds tend of the nineteenth century to the present) are characterized by a sharp enrichment in heavy metals. High conc entrations of Ph, Zn and Cu result from a) the rapid development of sugar c ane and distilleries about 1880, and b) industrial activities of Fort-de-Fr ance region (after the second world war). (C) 2000 Ifremer / CNRS / IRD / E ditions scientifiques et medicales Elsevier SAS.