Habitat-based PCB environmental quality criteria for the protection of endangered killer whales (Orcinus orca).
Environ Sci Technol
; 46(22): 12655-63, 2012 Nov 20.
Article
em En
| MEDLINE
| ID: mdl-23098163
ABSTRACT
The development of an area-based polychlorinated biphenyl (PCB) food-web bioaccumulation model enabled a critical evaluation of the efficacy of sediment quality criteria and prey tissue residue guidelines in protecting fish-eating resident killer whales of British Columbia and adjacent waters. Model-predicted and observed PCB concentrations in resident killer whales and Chinook salmon were in good agreement, supporting the model's application for risk assessment and criteria development. Model application shows that PCB concentrations in the sediments from the resident killer whale's Critical Habitats and entire foraging range leads to PCB concentrations in most killer whales that exceed PCB toxicity threshold concentrations reported for marine mammals. Results further indicate that current PCB sediment quality and prey tissue residue criteria for fish-eating wildlife are not protective of killer whales and are not appropriate for assessing risks of PCB-contaminated sediments to high trophic level biota. We present a novel methodology for deriving sediment quality criteria and tissue residue guidelines that protect biota of high trophic levels under various PCB management scenarios. PCB concentrations in sediments and in prey that are deemed protective of resident killer whale health are much lower than current criteria values, underscoring the extreme vulnerability of high trophic level marine mammals to persistent and bioaccumulative contaminants.
Texto completo:
1
Base de dados:
MEDLINE
Assunto principal:
Poluentes Químicos da Água
/
Monitoramento Ambiental
/
Bifenilos Policlorados
/
Cadeia Alimentar
/
Exposição Ambiental
/
Orca
Tipo de estudo:
Etiology_studies
/
Evaluation_studies
/
Prognostic_studies
/
Risk_factors_studies
Limite:
Animals
País como assunto:
America do norte
Idioma:
En
Ano de publicação:
2012
Tipo de documento:
Article