PARENT SESSION
PS21 - POPs: Organisms & Atmospheric Transport
Sunday, 17 November 2002
8:00 AM to 6:30 PM
Exhibit Hall
(P201) PCB, PBDE and organochlorine concentrations in marine invertebrates and juvenile fish from the Antarctic Peninsula.
Klosterhaus, Susan*,1, Stapleton, Heather1, Baker, Joel1, 1 University of Maryland Chesapeake Biological Laboratory, Solomons, MD, USA
ABSTRACT- Polar regions are well-established receptors of persistent organic pollutants (POPs) that are transported globally via long-range atmospheric mechanisms. Most POP emissions are in the northern hemisphere, resulting in higher atmospheric POP concentrations in the northern hemisphere than in the southern hemisphere. Atmospheric mixing between the hemispheres is relatively slow; such that POPs released in the northern hemisphere are delayed in arriving to the Antarctic. While the input of POPs is most likely low level, the continuous release of emissions makes it a potential chronic source of contamination and accumulation in polar biota. Polybrominated diphenyl ethers (PBDE) are a more recent contaminant of emerging concern. Compared to PCBs and organochlorine pesticides, such as DDT, which are decreasing in the environment, levels of PBDE are increasing exponentially in biota in the northern hemisphere (Noren and Meironyte, 2000; Ikonomou et al., 2002). Previous studies have documented low levels of POPs in Antarctic biota, with relatively few measurements recorded for pelagic species. The objective of this study was to characterize levels of POPs in krill and other pelagic species off the coast of the Antarctica Peninsula and examine the relative proportions of new contaminants (i.e. PBDEs) versus old contaminants (i.e. PCBs) in the Antarctic food web. Krill (Euphausia superba), mysids (Antarctomysis ohlinii), and amphipods (Eusirus spp.) from four sites, and juvenile fish (Pleuragramma spp.) and benthic shrimp from one site, were collected from the waters of Crystal Sound and Marguerite Bay on the western Antarctic Peninsula shelf during the austral fall of 2002. A suite of PCBs, PBDEs, and organochlorine contaminants were quantified in biota samples using GC-MS and GC-ECD and will be discussed.
Key words: antarctic, persistent organic pollutants, polybrominated diphenyl ether, organochlorines