Bioaccumulation Dynamics of Hydrophobic Organic Contaminants in the Anacostia River Food Web
Despite the fact that chlordane, polychlorinated biphenols (PCBs) and other hydrophobic organic contaminants (HOCs) are no longer manufactured or used in the United States, they are still present in the sediments of many aquatic systems. There they may cycle through the food web, eventually being concentrated in finfish, and thus posing a potential human health problem. The Anacostia River in Washington, D.C. is known to be impacted by HOCs as well as a variety of other toxic chemicals. Consequently, a number of remediation efforts are attempting to clean-up heavily polluted sediments. For these efforts to be successful, it is essential to have a better understanding of the sources and pathways through which HOCs enter the Anacostia food web. David Velinsky and his colleagues are studying this problem by examining the process by which HOCs are accumulated by key organisms and relating these data to the geochemical characteristics of the sediments as well as seasonally varying conditions within the river. The findings will be used to develop a detailed model that will enable scientists and managers to assess the impact of sediments upon HOC bioaccumulation and eventually determine the effectiveness of remediation efforts in the Anacostia River.
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David Velinsky and James McNair
The Academy of Natural Sciences
Patrick Center for Environmental Research
Gregory D. Foster and Donald P. Kelso
George Mason University
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