Trace elements (TE) naturally occur in the environment but their inputs have been increasing by anthropogenic activities in the last decades, causing environmental concerns, particularly in coastal ecosystems. TE are toxic and the need of reliable methods for their determination in environmental samples is undeniable. The first part of this PhD was focused on the development and full validation of methods for the analysis of TE in sediments and marine organisms by Solid Sampling High Resolution Continuum Source Atomic Absorption Spectrometry (SSHR-CS-AAS). Second, environmental studies based on these and others methodologies were then performed. A first monitoring survey was performed on sediments (surface and core samples) collected along the Namibian coast. This thesis provides the first baseline of TE contents and historical record of pollution in the area. Significant Pb, Cu, Cd and Zn enrichments were highlighted around the most populated areas, providing a needed baseline for present and future evaluation of the Namibian marine environment. Pb pollutions and their sources were also tracked through the use of Pb isotope ratios. A second monitoring survey was performed on different marine sponges and sediments collected in the French Mediterranean and in the Irish coasts. This work showed that sponges accumulate more TE than sediments in different extents according to species. Arsenic speciation analysis was performed in sponges by High Performance Liquid Chromatography (HPLC) coupled with ICP-MS. This special focus on arsenic highlighted the great bioaccumulation of this metalloid in sponges and its biotransformation from inorganic forms to less toxic organic forms.