HA7 Phthalate Esters: Fate and Effects
201 Oregon Ballroom
8:00 AM - 12:00 PM, Thursday
() Bioaccumulation of Phthalate Esters in Food-chains: Relation to UNEP LRTAP Protocol.
Gobas, F1, MacIntosh, C1, Webster, G1, Kelly, B1, Morin, A1, Ratzlaff, D1, Ikonomou, M2, 1 Simon Fraser University, Burnaby, BC, Canada2 Department of Fisheries & Oceans, Sidney, BC, Canada
ABSTRACT- Di-alkyl phthalate esters (DPEs) are hydrophobic compounds that are produced commercially at global production volumes exceeding 5 million tones per year and used in many consumer goods. As high volume production substances, they receive special attention in PBT evaluations in countries that are signatories of the UNEP Protocol on Long Range Transport of Atmospheric Pollutants (LRTAP). In this paper, we report on long standing studies into the bioaccumulation properties of DPEs. We will summarize findings of field studies of the distribution of DPEs in two marine aquatic systems and laboratory based bioconcentration and biomagnification studies in freshwater and saltwater fish. Food-web studies include measurements in water, sediments phyto- and zoo-plankton, benthic invertebrates, filter feeders, benthic and pelagic fish, water fowl and marine mammals. BAFs and BSAFs are reported and discussed in relation to the UNEP LRTAP criteria. Results from laboratory based bioconcentration experiments in fresh and saltwater fish are also presented and measured BCFs are discussed in relation to the UNEP LRTAP criteria. It is concluded that in the food webs investigated DPEs do not biomagnify in the food-web. Also, BAFs in higher trophic level organisms in the field and BCFs of DPEs in laboratory experiments are consistently less than those of non-metabolizable PCBs of corresponding Kow. Metabolism of DPEs to Mono-alkyl Phthalate Esters (MPEs) in the intestinal tract is a key process reducing the actual bioaccumulative nature of DPEs below that expected from their Kow.
Key words: Bioaccumulation, Phthalate Esters, Food-Web, POP