Bioaccumulation and Trophic Magnification of Short- and Medium-Chain Chlorinated Paraffins in Food Webs from Lake Ontario and Lake Michigan

Abstract

Chlorinated paraffins (CPs) are complex mixtures of chlorinated alkanes used in a myriad of industrial applications as flame retardant plasticizers and additives. In this study, the distribution and bioaccumulation/biomagnification of short-chain CPs (C10-C13, SCCPs) and medium-chain CPs (C14-C17, MCCPs) were investigated in samples collected between 1999 and 2004 from Lake Ontario and northern Lake Michigan. Total (sigma) SCCPs and sigmaMCCPs concentrations in water from Lake Ontario were 1190 pg/L and 0.9 pg/L (data from 2004 only), respectively. CPs were also detected in invertebrates and fish from both lakes. SCCP predominated in organisms from Lake Michigan with the highest mean concentrations found in lake trout [Salvelinus namaycush, 123 +/- 35 ng/g wet weight (ww)]. In Lake Ontario, MCCPs predominated in most species with the highest levels detected in slimy sculpin (Cottus cognatus, 108 ng/g ww) and rainbow smelt (Osmerus mordax, 109 ng/g ww). Bioaccumulation and biomagnification of CPs was evaluated on an isomer basis (i.e., C10H17Cl5, C10H16Cl6, etc). Log bioaccumulation factors for lake trout (lipid based) ranged from 4.1 to 7.0 for SCCPs and 6.3 to 6.8 for MCCPs. SCCPs and MCCPs were found to biomagnify between prey and predators from both lakes with highest values observed for Diporeia-sculpin (Lake Ontario, C15Cl9 = 43; Lake Michigan, C10Cl5 = 26). Trophic magnification factors for the invertebrates-forage fish-lake trout food webs ranged from 0.41 to 2.4 for SCCPs and from 0.06 to 0.36 for MCCPs. Given the prominence of CPs, particularly in lake waters and in lower food web organisms, further investigation is needed to evaluate the magnitude of their distribution and accumulation/magnification in the Great Lakes environment.

Short-chain chlorinated paraffins in marine organisms from the Pearl River Estuary in South China: Residue levels and interspecies differences

“…3). Similar results were also reported previously between bioaccumulation factors (BAFs) and the carbon and chlorine atoms in many other studies (Houde et al, 2008;Zeng et al, 2011a;Ma et al, 2014b). These results implied a high biomagnification potential for the SCCP formula groups with the longer carbon chain and higher chlorine content, which may be partly attributed to their higher log K OW and the elimination potential of the shorter chained CPs.…”

“…The calculated BMFs for SCCP homologues ranged from 1.1 (C 10 H 16 Cl 6 ) to 3.4 (C 13 H 18 Cl 10 ) (Fig. 3), which were comparable to the reported values from alewife to lake trout in Lake Ontario and from rainbow smelt to lake trout in Lake Michigan (Houde et al, 2008).…”

“…In general, CPs are divided into three groups according to their carbon chain length: short chain CPs (C 10-13 , SCCPs), medium chain CPs (C 14-17 , MCCPs) and long chain CPs (C 18-30 , LCCPs) (Feo et al, 2009). Among different CP groups, SCCPs have attracted increasing attention in the last decade due to their persistence (Iozza et al, 2008), bioaccumulation (Houde et al, 2008;Zeng et al, 2011a;Basconcillo et al, 2015), toxicity to organisms (Warnasuriya et al, 2010;Geng et al, 2015Geng et al, , 2016, and high potential for long-distance atmospheric transport (Reth et al, 2006;Strid et al, 2013). SCCPs have been placed on the toxic release inventory in the European Union, Japan, Canada, and the United States, and are classified as priority toxic substances in the United States (UNEP, 2015a).…”

Occurrence, bioaccumulation and long-range transport of short-chain chlorinated paraffins on the Fildes Peninsula at King George Island, Antarctica

“…Short-chain chlorinated paraffins (SCCPs, C 10 -C 13 ) can affect the liver, thyroid hormone system, and kidneys, e.g., by inducing hepatic enzymes and hyperactivity in the thyroid, which can lead to both acute and chronic toxic effects with long-term exposure (UNEP/POPS/POPRC.8/6, 2012). Because of their potential for environmental persistence (Iozza et al, 2008), toxicity (Geng et al, 2015), bioaccumulation (Fisk et al, 1996;Houde et al, 2008;Ma et al, 2014b;Zeng et al, 2011b) and long-range atmospheric transport (Ma et al, 2014c;Vulykh et al, 2007), SCCPs have received widespread public attention. SCCPs were even included in Annex E of the Stockholm Convention by the persistent organic pollutants (POPs) Review Committee as a POP candidate in 2008 (UNEP/POPS/POPRC.3/ 20, 2008) since these properties are quite similar to those of legacy POPs (Poremski et al, 2001).…”

Behavior, Fate, and Mass Loading of Short Chain Chlorinated Paraffins in an Advanced Municipal Sewage Treatment Plant

“…3 The presence of CPs in the environment has been ascertained in various environmental matrices (air, water, soil, sediment, and biota) worldwide. 4−9 Compared to other two groups of CP mixtures, SCCPs have received growing global attention in recent years for their long-range transport, 10,11 persistence in the environment, 12 bioaccumulation in food webs, 13 and potential toxicity to aquatic organisms. 14,15 Currently, SCCPs are being reviewed by Stockholm Convention's POP Review Committee (POPRC) to evaluate whether this substance meet the criteria on persistent organic pollutants (POPs).…”