A laboratory experiment was conducted to measure the accumulation of selected polychlorinated compounds by marine benthos exposed to environmentally contaminated sediment. Sandworms (Nereis virens), clams (Macoma nasuta), and grass shrimp (Palaemonetes pugio) were exposed to sediment collected from the Passaic River, New Jersey. All three species accumulated 2,3,7,8-tetrachlorodibenzo-p-dioxin (2,3,7,8-TCDD), 2,3,7,8-tetrachlorodibenzofuran (2,3,7,8-TCDF) and polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs) from the sediment. In addition, a recently identified sulfur containing analog of tetrachlorinated dibenzofurans. The objectives of the study were to determine the relative bioavailability of 2,3,7,8-TCDD, 2,3,7,8-tetrachlorodibenzofuran (2,3,7,8-TCDF) and selected PCB congeners from bottom sediments as well as to examine the relationship between contaminant concentrations in sediments and biota.