PCBs in Marine Life

A new report from Oceana, “Toxic Burden: PCBs in Marine Life,” compiles information from 40 studies relating to polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs) in humans and marine animals. Over 1.5 billion pounds (680 million kg) of PCBs were produced in the U.S. for industrial and commercial applications, most notably in electrical, heat-transfer, and hydraulic equipment and as plasticizers in building products. Although the production of PCBs was banned in the U.S. in 1977, the chemical remains highly persistent in the environment and builds up in the blood and tissues of humans and other animals. The report tells of one bottlenose dolphin with PCB levels of 2,000 parts per million (ppm), 40 times the level needed for its carcass to be considered hazardous waste. Due to their consumption of contaminated marine mammals (especially seal blubber), average Inuit people in Greenland carry nearly 16 ppm in their body fat. The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency warns against eating fish containing PCB levels higher than 0.094 ppm. The complete report is available online at www.oceana.org.