Organic Contaminants in the Shenandoah River – A possible link to declining fish health? David...
Transcript of Organic Contaminants in the Shenandoah River – A possible link to declining fish health? David...
Organic Contaminants in the Shenandoah River – A possible link to declining fish health?
David Alvarez
US Geological Survey, Columbia Environmental Research Center, Columbia, MO
U.S. Department of the InteriorU.S. Geological Survey
USGS’s Role in the Shenandoah River Valley
USGS has been approached in recent years by other Federal, State, and non-profit organizations to conduct studies to help understand the causes for increased incidences of fish kills and intersex in a variety of fish species.
The Columbia Environmental Research Center (CERC) has played a major role in determining the types of chemical contaminants that are present in the surrounding watershed which may be linked to declining fish health.
USGS’s Role in the Shenandoah River Valley
Since 2005, CERC has conducted several contaminant studies related to fish health issues in Maryland, West Virginia, and Virginia partnering with:
•Friends of the North Fork of the Shenandoah River
•Virginia Department of Environmental Quality
•Virginia Poultry Foundation
•US Fish and Wildlife Service
•US Geological Survey
2005/2006 FWS study (6 sites)
Spring/Summer 2007 NF Shenandoah River (2 sites)
Spring 2007 VADEQ (10 sites)
Spring 2007 USGS (6 sites)
Spring 2008 VADEQ (8 sites)
Monitoring Sites Using Passive Samplers
Passive samplers – What are they and how do they work?
•Non-mechanical devices made of plastics and fatty substances that are put into the water for periods of weeks to months
•They accumulate chemicals from the water in a manner similar to how a fish picks up chemicals
•They are left in the water for weeks to months
• Sample 10s-100s more water than standard methods
• Catch episodic events (surface runoff, spills, etc.)
Passive samplers – What are they and how do they work?
•Two types of samplers were used:
•Semipermeable Membrane Device (SPMD)
• Fat soluble chemicals
•Polar Organic Chemical Integrative Sampler (POCIS)
• Water soluble chemicals
SPMD
POCIS
Chemical Classes Typically Targeted in Each Study
Water Soluble
Fat Soluble
Pesticides
Petroleum Chemicals
Plasticizers
Flame Retardants
Industrial Chemicals
Hormones
Pharmaceuticals
Personal Care Products
Soaps, Fragrances
Lotions/Creams
Items used everyday
2005/2006
FWS study
2007
NF Shen R.
2007
VADEQ study
2007
USGS study
2008
VADEQ study
Pesticides
Petroleum Chemicals
Fragrances
Flame Retardants
Plasticizers
*
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* Did not look for pharmaceuticals
Pesticides
Petroleum Chemicals
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Pharmaceuticals
Hormones
Pesticides
Petroleum Chemicals
Fragrances
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Plasticizers
Pharmaceuticals
Hormones
Pesticides
Petroleum Chemicals
Fragrances
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*
Pharmaceuticals
Hormones
* Data Analysis
Not Complete
Pesticides
Petroleum Chemicals
*
Flame Retardants
*
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* Data Analysis
Not Complete
Chemical Classes Found During Each Study
Fish Health Determinations in VA, WV, and MD
Fish health measurements have been made largely on smallmouth bass; however, largemouth bass and suckers have also been looked at.
• General Health
• External Lesions
• Hormone Levels
• Vitellogenin
• Gonad Histology
• Sperm Quality
Virginia
West Virginia
Pennsylvania
Maryland
Bedford
Augusta
Bath
Somerset
Randolph
Fayette
Hardy
Greenbrier
Garrett
Grant
Preston
Pocahontas
Franklin
Greene
Albemarle
Fulton
RockinghamPendleton
Nelson
Lewis
Webster
Westmoreland
Tucker
Washington
Page
Hampshire
Amherst
Nicholas
Rockbridge
Allegheny
Botetourt
Allegany
Harrison
Upshur
Buckingham
Highland
Alleghany
FrederickMarion
Braxton
Mineral
Barbour
Monroe
Shenandoah
Bedford
Madison
Berkeley
Craig
Monongalia
Fluvanna
Morgan
Washington
Warren
Taylor
Summers
Clarke
Appomattox
Fauquier
Culpeper
Jefferson
GreeneOrange
Louisa
Wetzel
Fayette
Cambria
Rappahannock
Huntingdon
Prince EdwardCampbell
Cumberland
Blair
Gilmer
Lynchburg
Beaver
Staunton
CumberlandIndiana
Harrisonburg
Waynesboro
Marshall
Winchester
Charlottesville
Buena VistaCovington
Clay
LexingtonClifton Forge
Goochland
Charlotte
SR4SR3
SR2
SB8
SB5
SB4
SB3
SB2
SB1
WV6
WV5
WV4WV20
WV21
Proportion of fish
sampled with intersex
0-25%
25-50%
50-75%
75-100%
Intersex in Smallmouth Bass
30 0 3015 Kilometers
Data courtesy of Dr. Vicki Blazer, USGS Leetown Science Center, WV
Intersex = organism exhibits characteristics of both sexes(female egg cells in male gonads)
Out of basin sites• low intersex• no fish kills
South Branch sites• moderate intersex• moderate fish kill rates
Shenandoah River sites• high intersex• high fish kill rates
Intersex in Smallmouth Bass collected in 2003-2005
Conclusions
A wide range of chemicals has been identified, many of which can be linked to agriculture and wastewater/sewage effluents.
Pesticides/Herbicides were commonly found throughout the studies.
Atrazine was the most commonly found chemical and generally was present at the highest concentrations (up to 2.1 ppb).
Pharmaceuticals, fragrances, flame retardants, and caffeine (all wastewater markers) were commonly found, but at low concentrations.
Conclusions
Declining fish health and fish kills were evident at many of the study areas indicating a possible link to the contaminants which were present.
Pharmaceuticals and personal care products are an emerging, but not new, group of chemicals.
These emerging contaminants can enter the environment through many pathways including: treated effluents, direct disposal, leaking septic tanks and runoff.
Very little data exists on the fate and transport of these chemicals in the environment.
AcknowledgementsCERC Environmental Chemistry Branch
Walter Cranor, Stephanie Perkins, Vickie Schroeder, Randal Clark
Virginia Department of Environmental QualityDon Kain, Robert Brent, Ted Turner, William VanWort
Friends of the North Fork of the Shenandoah RiverJohn Holmes, Bud Griswold
US Fish and Wildlife ServiceChris Guy, Fred Pinkney, Susan Lingenfelser
US EPA Region IIILou Reynolds, John Forren, Patricia Mazik
Virginia Poultry FoundationHobey Bauhan
US Geological SurveyVicki Blazer, Luke Iwanowicz, Ed Furlong, Steve Werner, Steve Zaugg, Mike Meyer, James Gray, Bill Foreman, Dana Kolpin, Doug Chambers
For more information
David Alvarez, USGS, 573-441-2970, [email protected]
Investigation of organic chemicals potentially responsible for mortality and intersex in fish of the North Fork of the Shenandoah River, Virginia, during spring of 2007: U.S. Geological Survey Open-File Report 2008-1093
http://pubs.usgs.gov/of/2008/1093/
Reconnaissance of persistent and emerging contaminants in the Shenandoah and James River Basins, Virginia, during Spring of 2007: U.S. Geological Survey Open-File Report 2008-1231
http://pubs.usgs.gov/of/2008/1231
Work by Douglas Chambers, USGS, West Virginia Science Center
A reconnaissance for emerging contaminants in the South Branch Potomac River, Cacapon River, and Williams River Basins, West Virginia, April-October 2004: U.S. Geological Survey Open-File Report 2006-1393
http://pubs.usgs.gov/of/2006/1393