Persistent organic pollutants at the base of the Antarctic marine food web

Abstract

Various organochlorine pesticides and brominated diphenyl ethers (BDE-47, -99, and -100) were measured in sea ice algae, water column plankton, and juvenile and adult krill collected in the Palmer Long-Term Ecological Research (LTER) region west of the Antarctic Peninsula during late austral winter and midsummer, 2001-2002. BDEs were 100-1000 times higher in ice algae and 2-10 times higher in phytoplankton than the most abundant organochlorine pesticide, hexachlorobenzene (HCB), reflecting the current production and use of BDEs versus organochlorine pesticides. However, concentrations of HCB and BDEs were significantly lower in summer plankton than in ice algae indicating lower atmospheric inputs, removal from the water column, and/or biodilution of persistent organic pollutants at the base of the food web during summer. Concentrations of HCB (juvenile and adult krill) and BDEs (juvenile krill) were not significantly different from their primary food source (ice algae, phytoplankton), and BDEs were significantly lower in adult krill versus phytoplankton, indicating no biomagnification of HCB or BDEs during transfer from plankton to krill. The high concentrations of BDEs and HCB in ice algae and associated juvenile krill illustrate the importance of sea ice as a vector for entry of POPs into the Antarctic marine ecosystem.