Publication Details |
| Category | Text Publication |
| Reference Category | Journals |
| DOI | 10.1016/j.jhazmat.2026.143495 |
Licence  |
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| Title (Primary) | Does contamination with legacy persistent organic pollutants still prevail over emerging compounds in Arctic marine mammals? |
| Author | Jahnke, A.
; Reiter, E.B.; Miller, A.; Rosing-Asvid, A.; Sonne, C.; Dietz, R.; Rojo-Nieto, E. |
| Source Titel | Journal of Hazardous Materials |
| Year | 2026 |
| Department | EXPO |
| Volume | 517 |
| Page From | art. 143495 |
| Language | englisch |
| Topic | T9 Healthy Planet |
| Supplements | Supplement 1 Supplement 2 |
| Keywords | Toothed whales; Dolphins; Polar bears; Biomagnification; Global transport and fate |
| Abstract | Transboundary
pollution with harmful chemicals triggers research in remote regions
such as the Arctic. Legacy and emerging hydrophobic organic
contaminants, including persistent organic pollutants, biomagnify and
are of particular concern in marine top predators and humans. Each
chemical group can exceed effect thresholds in apex predators without
considering mixture effects with other contaminants nor multiple
stressor settings. We used silicone chemometers to investigate the
contaminant profiles in blubber tissues collected from 84 individuals
covering six Arctic marine mammal species from East Greenland during
2012–2021: long-finned pilot whales, white-beaked dolphins, Atlantic
white-sided dolphins, killer whales, narwhal, and polar bears. Of 98
analyzed chemicals we found 53 at least once. We observed widespread
contamination in which legacy, regulated pollutants and their
degradation products prevailed over emerging compounds, both in terms of
detection frequency and concentrations, and in numerous cases (up to
81%) at concentrations that exceeded indicative effect thresholds. The
species showed distinct patterns of polychlorinated biphenyls,
organochlorine pesticides, polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons,
pyrethroids, musk compounds, antioxidants, and UV stabilizers. The
highest contamination was observed for dichlorodiphenyldichloroethylene
and polychlorinated biphenyls in killer whales. No differences between
sexes were found in pilot whales, but in some cases concentrations
correlated with age. Our results stress the importance of reducing use
and emissions of industrial chemicals to support protection of these
iconic species in our planet’s remotest regions. |
| Jahnke, A., Reiter, E.B., Miller, A., Rosing-Asvid, A., Sonne, C., Dietz, R., Rojo-Nieto, E. (2026): Does contamination with legacy persistent organic pollutants still prevail over emerging compounds in Arctic marine mammals? J. Hazard. Mater. 517 , art. 143495 10.1016/j.jhazmat.2026.143495 |
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