Chemical Characteristics and Acute Toxicity of Foam on Two Aerated Lagoons

Abstract

Foam collected from two aerated lagoons treating kraft pulp effluents was highly toxic to juvenile sockeye salmon (Oncorhynchus nerka). Chemical fractionation of one foam revealed large amounts of toxic resin acids and neutral diterpenes. In the other foam, toxicity was related to a pitch dispersant and unidentified material. Neither foam was readily detoxified by biological treatment in the laboratory.