Alternative tissue analysis method developed for organochlorine contaminants in aquatic organisms.

Abstract

The exposure of aquatic life to organochlorine contaminants has been investigated during the past two decades because of human and ecosystem health concerns related to the bioaccumulation of hazardous, lipophilic substances. The toxic effects of polychlorodibenzo-p-dioxines and polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs) are well known, and recent evidence also suggests that low level exposure to lipophilic organochlorines may interfere with normal development during sensitive early life history stages. As the use of lipophilic organochlorines, such as DDT, in third world countries continues and with the purported global cycling and food chain accumulation of persistent organochlorines, the occurrence of these compounds in aquatic organisms is a critical global environmental issue. An understanding of the fate of organochlorines in the environmental clearly remains an extremely important subject related to water quality. The U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) has recently gained congressional approval in the United States to track nation wide trends in water quality through the establishment of the National Water Quality Assessment Program (NAWQA). Among the goals defined by NAWQA, aquatic organisms, including fish, shellfish, and plants, collected from major drainage basins will be analyzed for, along with other contaminants, polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs), organochlorine insecticides, and chlorobenzenes. The purpose of this report is tomore » present quality assurance data obtained from the development of a PCB, chlorobenzene, and organochlorine insecticide tissue analysis method in support of NAWQA and other large-scale water quality programs conducted through our laboratory. 12 refs., 1 fig., 2 tabs.« less