Temporal and spatial variability of PCB concentrations in lake trout (Salvelinus namaycush) in Lake Superior from 1995 to 2016

Urban, Noel R.; Lin, Hongyi; Perlinger, Judith A.

doi:10.1016/j.jglr.2020.02.001

Cited by 5 publications

(5 citation statements)

References 63 publications

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“…Lake Superior (LS) data are reported from Apostle Island (AI) and Keweenaw Point (KP) GLFMSP sample sites (Figure S1). As previously reported, 42,47,76 significant collection site differences in contaminant concentrations were determined by M−W U test in LSLT (M−W U test; p < 0.05, Supporting Information WS-7). LSLT total PCN concentrations (range: MAX−MIN) are 315.23−152.02 and 178.8−100.1 pg/g for the AI and KP collection sites over the 2004−2018 study period, respectively.…”

Section: U S a G E B Y A N Y I N D I V I D U A L N O T D I R E C T L ...mentioning

confidence: 78%

Polychlorinated Naphthalenes across the Great Lakes: Lake Trout and Walleye Concentrations, Trends, and TEQ Assessment—2004–2018

Pagano

Garner

2021

Environ. Sci. Technol.

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Polychlorinated naphthalenes (PCNs) were measured in lake trout and walleye over the period 2004–2018, utilizing isotope dilution techniques with high-resolution gas chromatography/high-resolution mass spectrometry to assess concentrations and toxic equivalence (TEQ). An age-trend model was applied to mitigate the effect of a changing lake trout age structure. Most Great Lakes Fish Monitoring and Surveillance Program sampling sites demonstrated significant half-life and percent decreases for lake trout total PCNs and total TEQ over the 2004–2018 period, the exceptions being Lake Erie lake trout and walleye which illustrated increasing concentrations. Great Lakes total PCN concentrations ranged between 5701 and 100 pg/g ww, whereas total PCN TEQ concentrations ranged between 8.89 and 0.13 pg-TEQ/g ww. Based on the average number of chlorines per naphthalene, we determined that the overall lake trout and walleye PCN congener distribution has significantly shifted to a lower-chlorinated composition in the Great Lakes (5.33 to 4.48 Cl/CN) and has resulted in a substantial 59.1% reduction of the overall total PCN TEQ burden. A prominent PCN concentration trend breakpoint was observed in Lake Ontario lake trout over the 2012–2016 period likely associated with hazardous waste cleanups, channel dredging, and spoils disposal in the Detroit River and western-basin of Lake Erie.

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Section: U S a G E B Y A N Y I N D I V I D U A L N O T D I R E C T L ...mentioning

confidence: 78%

Polychlorinated Naphthalenes across the Great Lakes: Lake Trout and Walleye Concentrations, Trends, and TEQ Assessment—2004–2018

Pagano

Garner

2021

Environ. Sci. Technol.

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“…Lake Superior is the largest of the Great Lakes, the second largest freshwater lake in the world by surface area, and the fourth largest by volume and has an extremely long water retention time of 191 years . Unlike the other Great Lakes, atmospheric deposition and volatilization are major input and removal pathways for legacy chemicals in Lake Superior. , Several distinct ecological habitats (zones) exist within the lake, with the odd–even GLFMSP sampling sites representing vastly different environments and food web structures . As such, the Lake Superior sampling sites at Keweenaw Point (KP) and Apostle Island (AI) are the only in the Great Lakes with significantly different odd–even sampling sites for both lake trout age and all select contaminant concentrations (Supporting Information WS-03).…”

Section: Resultsmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…84,86 Several distinct ecological habitats (zones) exist within the lake, with the odd−even GLFMSP sampling sites representing vastly different environments and food web structures. 87 As such, the Lake Superior sampling sites at Keweenaw Point (KP) and Apostle Island (AI) are the only in the Great Lakes with significantly different odd−even sampling sites for both lake trout age and all select contaminant concentrations (Supporting Information WS-03). The LS-KP site has the oldest lake trout age profile in the Great Lakes (9.7 years, age rank = 1), followed by a middling value for age variability (MAD = 1.65, MAD-Rank = 4), indicating that the lake trout collected for this study have been consistently older with only limited lake trout recruitment into the GLFMSP sample population.…”

Section: Lake Erie (Le)mentioning

confidence: 99%

Temporal Trends of Great Lakes Legacy Contaminants: Ecological and Biological Considerations Applying the Age-Trend Model

Pagano,

Garner

2024

Environ. Sci. Technol.

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The USEPA Great Lakes Fish Monitoring and Surveillance Program (GLFMSP) has been monitoring top predator lake trout and walleye contaminant concentrations since the early 1970s. Our research revealed that select legacy contaminant groups (∑PCBs, ∑DDTs, ∑chlordanes, and ∑5PBDEs) have similar t 1/2 and k 2 values across the Great Lakes, with the exception of both Lake Erie sites and the Lake Superior�Keweenaw Point site. The slower halving times determined at both Lake Erie sites are consistent with legacy contaminant remobilization due to extreme weather climate effects and past remedial actions on the Detroit River, whereas the Lake Superior�Keweenaw Point site demonstrates contaminant halving times approaching the exponential minimum. Overall, Great Lakes select contaminant groupings have decreased between 25.8 and 97.9% since 2004. An age-normalized Great Lakes Contaminant Index (GLCI) was devised, indicating both Lake Michigan sites as the most highly impacted. The mean absolute deviation statistic was applied, documenting the need to age-correct contaminant trends due to highly variable age profiles. With the noted exceptions, the uniformity of age-corrected trend modeling suggests that a combination of the fundamental biological and physicochemical mechanisms of natural contaminant sequestration, declining dissolved water concentrations, accumulation/metabolism/depuration, and the overall reduction of legacy contaminant loading are driving the generally consistent rates of declines in the Great Lakes. Many of the biological and ecological stressors currently associated with climate change appear to be accounted for by the age-trend model.

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“…Upper Peninsula residents have a less robust estimate of the safety of local common carp than of local walleye. With a probabilistic design, measurements could be extrapolated statewide and facilitate the establishment of more representative fish consumption guidelines (Urban et al, 2020) and simultaneously fulfill monitoring obligations under the Clean Water Act (Stahl et al, 2009; Theobald et al, 2007). It is important to consider the inevitability of “sparse” sampling when developing a sampling plan.…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Latitudinal patterns in contaminants exist because of variable usage (Breivik et al, 2002) and transport distances (Friedman & Selin, 2016). While atmospheric PCB concentrations have declined following phase‐out and remediation (Hites & Holsen, 2019; Salamova et al, 2015), declines in fish tissue PCB concentrations in the Great Lakes are variable and remain high enough to invoke fish consumption guidelines (Urban et al, 2020).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

What can we learn from 28 years of monitoring of fish tissue polychlorinated biphenyls in Michigan's rivers?

Shaw

Urban

2022

Integr Envir Assess & Manag

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Polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs) are an important part of chemical legacies in the Laurentian Great Lakes basin. Used in industrial products worldwide, PCBs are now extensively monitored because of their potential toxicity to humans. Fish consumption is a major pathway for exposure. Edible portion (i.e., fish fillet) data from Michigan's fish tissue PCB monitoring program were evaluated using regression statistics, principal component analysis, and t-tests to answer three questions: (1) How do fish tissue total PCB concentrations vary across Michigan's rivers? (2) Are the PCB congener patterns uniformly distributed among tested sites and species? (3) Do monitoring methods limit our ability to discern trends in fish tissue PCB concentrations? Our results indicate that although contaminated sites have been successfully identified, based on higher PCB concentrations in samples from Areas of Concern (AOCs) compared to non-AOC sites, 77% of fish samples from 2010 to 2015 exceeded the safe fish tissue PCB concentration for unrestricted consumption (97 g/day) by sensitive populations. The PCB congener profiles vary among species and locations. Results demonstrate that these data are not useful for supplementing ongoing spatial and temporal trend analysis. Only 15 of the 83 species + waterbody pairs had adequate data for evaluating temporal trends with more than three data points. In general, the trends at each location varied based on the analytical method. Conclusions from this work can inform revisions to existing monitoring programs and improve our ability to protect human health.

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Temporal and spatial variability of PCB concentrations in lake trout (Salvelinus namaycush) in Lake Superior from 1995 to 2016

Cited by 5 publications

References 63 publications

Polychlorinated Naphthalenes across the Great Lakes: Lake Trout and Walleye Concentrations, Trends, and TEQ Assessment—2004–2018

Polychlorinated Naphthalenes across the Great Lakes: Lake Trout and Walleye Concentrations, Trends, and TEQ Assessment—2004–2018

Temporal Trends of Great Lakes Legacy Contaminants: Ecological and Biological Considerations Applying the Age-Trend Model

What can we learn from 28 years of monitoring of fish tissue polychlorinated biphenyls in Michigan's rivers?

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