Organochlorine contamination in deep-sea fish from the davis strait

Abstract

Eight species of deep-sea fish caught at various depths off the west coast of Greenland exhibited low to moderate organochlorine (OC) contamination. Polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs) and dichlorodiphenyltrichloroethane metabolites (DDTs) were the dominating organochlorines. Hepatic levels of sum-PCB (19 individual PCB congeners) ranged from 110 ng g −1 lipid weight in jelly wolf-fish ( Anarhichas denticulatus) to 1156 ng g −1 in blue hake ( Antimora rostrata). Sum-DDT (p,p′-DDE, o,p′-DDD, p,p′-DDD, multiplied by a factor (1.11), and p,p′-DDT) ranged from 70 ng g −1 in jelly wolf-fish to 1446 ng/g in blue hake. Sum-chlordanes (oxychlordone and trans-nonachlor) ranged from 28 ng g −1 in jelly wolf-fish to 309 ng g −1 in roughhead grenadier ( Macrourus berglax). HCB (hexachlorobenzene) ranged from 3.6 ng g −1 in smalleyed rabbit-fish ( Hydrolagus affinis) to 73 ng g −1 in tusk ( Brosme brosme). Sum-HCH (hexachlorocyclohexanes α-HCH, β-HCH and γ-HCH) was of minor importance with levels ranging from 9.3 ng g −1 in Greenland halibut ( Reinhardtius hippoglossoides) to 22 ng g −1 in tusk. The levels are lower than most of the corresponding published data from deepsea fish and probably reflect a moderately contaminated area. No simple relationship was found between organochlorine contamination and depth range of the investigated species.