6 research outputs found
Investigation of Hydrophobic Organic Carbon (HOC) Partitioning to 1 kDa Fractionated Municipal Wastewater Colloids
Natural organic matter from the aquatic environment passing
a 1
kDa filter has been hypothesized to not contribute appreciably to
hydrophobic organic compound (HOC) partitioning; however, to our knowledge
this limit has not been verified experimentally for any sorbate/sorbent
system. Presently, colloidal organic carbon (COC) < 1 kDa approached
70% of the total COC (<1.5 μm) mass in primary effluent (PE)
from a municipal wastewater treatment plant. Partitioning of HOCs
1,2,4,5-tetrachlorobenzene, pentachlorobenzene, and hexachlorobenzene
to COC for both 1.5 μm and 1 kDa filtrates of PE was investigated
using the gas-stripping technique. Contrary to the hypothesis, significant
HOC–COC partitioning to the 1 kDa filtrate was observed with
organic carbon-normalized partitioning coefficients (log<i>K</i><sub>COC</sub>) of 4.30, 4.36, and 3.74 for 1,2,4,5-TeCB, PeCB, and
HCB, respectively. Further, partitioning to COC < 1 kDa dominated
the overall partitioning of the three chlorobenzenes in the 1.5 μm
filtrate, and the partitioning behavior did not follow the trend based
on hydrophobicity (<i>K</i><sub>OW</sub>). The results show
that significant partitioning of HOC may occur to OC < 1 kDa and
highlights the need for further experiments with other HOCs and COC
characterization to better understand and explain the observed partitioning
Calibration of the Gastrointestinal Magnification Model to Predict Maximum Biomagnification Potentials of Polychlorinated Biphenyls in a Bird and Fish
The gastrointestinal magnification (GI-magnification)
model was
calibrated in ring doves and Japanese koi using matched data on dietary
assimilation and fecal depuration of polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs).
Mass transport parameters describing PCB flux from gut contents to
organism (<i>D</i><sub>go</sub><sup>′</sup>; mol d<sup>–1</sup> Pa<sup>–1</sup>) and organism to gut contents (<i>D</i><sub>og</sub>;
mol d<sup>–1</sup> Pa<sup>–1</sup>) were quantified
to test the hypothesis that the ratio of these two terms approached
unity. For birds, <i>D</i><sub>go</sub><sup>′</sup>/<i>D</i><sub>og</sub> ranged
from 2.9 to 6.3 and for fish the ratios ranged from 0.7 to 3.1. In
both species, the ratio commonly exceeded 1. The GI-magnification
model was used to predict maximum PCB biomagnification factors (BMF<sub>max</sub>) for each species which ranged from 18.5 to 33.8 for ring
doves and 7.9 to 14.8 for Japanese koi. Chemical losses via respiration
reduced steady state biomagnification factor (BMF<sub>ss</sub>) estimates
by a negligible amount in birds, whereas for fish, predicted BMF<sub>ss</sub> decreased to values from 0.5 to 7.2. This study demonstrated
that chemical transfer efficiency during assimilation exceeds organism/feces
transfer which contributes to elevated PCB biomagnification potentials
in birds and fish. Combined with reduced losses of chemical across
respiratory surfaces, higher <i>D</i><sub>go</sub><sup>′</sup>/<i>D</i><sub>og</sub> ratios of birds contribute to elevated biomagnification
in birds over fish
Calibration of the Gastrointestinal Magnification Model to Predict Maximum Biomagnification Potentials of Polychlorinated Biphenyls in a Bird and Fish
The gastrointestinal magnification (GI-magnification)
model was
calibrated in ring doves and Japanese koi using matched data on dietary
assimilation and fecal depuration of polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs).
Mass transport parameters describing PCB flux from gut contents to
organism (<i>D</i><sub>go</sub><sup>′</sup>; mol d<sup>–1</sup> Pa<sup>–1</sup>) and organism to gut contents (<i>D</i><sub>og</sub>;
mol d<sup>–1</sup> Pa<sup>–1</sup>) were quantified
to test the hypothesis that the ratio of these two terms approached
unity. For birds, <i>D</i><sub>go</sub><sup>′</sup>/<i>D</i><sub>og</sub> ranged
from 2.9 to 6.3 and for fish the ratios ranged from 0.7 to 3.1. In
both species, the ratio commonly exceeded 1. The GI-magnification
model was used to predict maximum PCB biomagnification factors (BMF<sub>max</sub>) for each species which ranged from 18.5 to 33.8 for ring
doves and 7.9 to 14.8 for Japanese koi. Chemical losses via respiration
reduced steady state biomagnification factor (BMF<sub>ss</sub>) estimates
by a negligible amount in birds, whereas for fish, predicted BMF<sub>ss</sub> decreased to values from 0.5 to 7.2. This study demonstrated
that chemical transfer efficiency during assimilation exceeds organism/feces
transfer which contributes to elevated PCB biomagnification potentials
in birds and fish. Combined with reduced losses of chemical across
respiratory surfaces, higher <i>D</i><sub>go</sub><sup>′</sup>/<i>D</i><sub>og</sub> ratios of birds contribute to elevated biomagnification
in birds over fish
Bioamplification and the Selective Depletion of Persistent Organic Pollutants in Chinook Salmon Larvae
The maternal provisioning of yolk to eggs transfers significant
quantities of persistent organic pollutants (POPs). As yolk utilization
progresses via metabolic activity, there is a potential to realize
further increases in POP concentrations if yolk lipids are depleted
at a faster rate than POPs, a condition referred to as bioamplification.
This study investigated the bioamplification of POPs in Chinook salmon
(Oncorhynchus tshawytscha) eggs and
larvae. Chinook eggs were sampled from the Credit River, ON, Canada,
and brought to an aquaculture facility where they were fertilized,
incubated, and maintained posthatch until maternally derived lipid
reserves became depleted (approximately 168 days). The loss of chemicals
having an octanol–water partition coefficient (log <i>K</i><sub>OW</sub>) greater than 5.8 was slow to negligible
from days 0–135. However, during the increase in water temperatures
in early spring, <i>K</i><sub>OW</sub>-dependent elimination
of POPs was observed. Bioamplification was maximized for the highest
log <i>K</i><sub>OW</sub> POPs, with an approximate 5-fold
increase in lipid equivalents concentrations in 168 day old larvae
as compared to newly fertilized eggs. This study demonstrates that
later yolk-sac Chinook larvae (before exogenous feeding) are exposed
to higher lipid equivalents POP concentrations than predicted by maternal
deposition, which could lead to underestimates in the toxicity of
critical life stages
Assessing fish consumption Beneficial Use Impairment at Great Lakes Areas of Concern: Toronto case study
<p>Beneficial use of fish consumption was designated impaired in the 1980s in many Areas of Concern across the North American Great Lakes. Remedial Action Plans have guided the restoration of beneficial use impairments with the goal of delisting the Areas of Concern. Here we present generic re-designation criteria and a three-tier Assessment Framework to assess the status of the fish consumption beneficial use impairments using the Toronto and Region Area of Concern as a case study. Tier 1 assessment identified that consumption advisories for many resident fish on the Toronto waterfront are non-restrictive (8+ meals month<sup>−1</sup>). Advisory assessments in Tier 1 found that most migratory fish species, Carp and White Sucker are still restrictive in some cases preventing a ‘not impaired’ re-designation. Tier 2 Comparison with Reference Sites found that the advisories for most local fish are either non-restrictive or similar to reference locations in Lake Ontario, but some advisories due to elevated levels of polychlorinated biphenyl are still more restrictive for the Toronto waterfront and do not favour a ‘not impaired’ re-designation. An evaluation of multiple lines of evidence in Tier 3 including fish contaminant trend analyses, time to reach target fish levels, sediment concentrations and fish consumption patterns resulted in outcomes ranging from <i>neutral</i> (not conclusive) to <i>not impaired</i>. As a precautionary approach, the impaired status of the beneficial use impairment should be maintained to ensure continued polychlorinated biphenyl declines in fish. It is recommended that the Remedial Action Plan team update the fish consumption survey, investigate where additional feasible actions can be taken including examining potential polychlorinated biphenyl sources on the Humber and Don Rivers, and collect new data to undertake a future assessment.</p
Evaluation and Interconversion of Various Indicator PCB Schemes for ∑PCB and Dioxin-Like PCB Toxic Equivalent Levels in Fish
Polychlorinated
biphenyls (PCBs) remain chemicals of concern more
than three decades after the ban on their production. Technical mixture-based
total PCB measurements are unreliable due to weathering and degradation,
while detailed full congener specific measurements can be time-consuming
and costly for large studies. Measurements using a subset of indicator
PCBs (iPCBs) have been considered appropriate; however, inclusion
of different PCB congeners in various iPCB schemes makes it challenging
to readily compare data. Here, using an extensive data set, we examine
the performance of existing iPCB3 (PCB 138, 153, and 180), iPCB6 (iPCB3
plus 28, 52, and 101) and iPCB7 (iPCB6 plus 118) schemes, and new
iPCB schemes in estimating total of PCB congeners (∑PCB) and
dioxin-like PCB toxic equivalent (dlPCB-TEQ) concentrations in sport
fish fillets and the whole body of juvenile fish. The coefficients
of determination (<i>R</i><sup>2</sup>) for regressions
conducted using logarithmically transformed data suggest that inclusion
of an increased number of PCBs in an iPCB improves relationship with
∑PCB but not dlPCB-TEQs. Overall, novel iPCB3 (PCB 95, 118,
and 153), iPCB4 (iPCB3 plus 138) and iPCB5 (iPCB4 plus 110) presented
in this study and existing iPCB6 and iPCB7 are the most optimal indicators,
while the current iPCB3 should be avoided. Measurement of ∑PCB
based on a more detailed analysis (50+ congeners) is also overall
a good approach for assessing PCB contamination and to track PCB origin
in fish. Relationships among the existing and new iPCB schemes have
been presented to facilitate their interconversion. The iPCB6 equiv
levels for the 6.5 and 10 pg/g benchmarks of dlPCB-TEQ<sub>05</sub> are about 50 and 120 ng/g ww, respectively, which are lower than
the corresponding iPCB6 limits of 125 and 300 ng/g ww set by the European
Union