A 2007 pilot study was initiated by the University of Alaska – Southeast in which baseline levels of contaminants, including persistent organic pollutants (POPs) and total mercury, were determined in whole bodies of juvenile coho salmon collected in streams in and near national park units in the Southeast Alaska Inventory and Monitoring Network. Although the concentrations of POPs determined in the juvenile coho were relatively low (< 10 ng/g, wet weight), the preliminary findings of this study indicate that, in the Glacier National Park region, salmon from streams with higher density of spawners had increased levels of certain banned chlorinated pesticides (i.e., alpha-chlordane, o,p’-DDT, p,p’-DDD) compared to salmon collected in other streams with lower salmon spawning density.
A follow up study will be initiated in spring/summer 2015 to determine concentrations of POPs in resident salmonids, as well as benthic macroinvertebrates collected from five streams that have fish barriers near or adjacent to Glacier National Park. Comparisons in contaminant concentrations and patterns will be made for fish collected below and above the barrier in each stream to help determine if certain classes of POPs are being transported by the spawners. As part of this study, the NWFSC will analyze whole bodies/muscle of salmonids and benthic macroinvertebrate samples POPs using gas chromatography / mass spectrometry (GC/MS). Percent lipid content of samples (with adequate sample mass) will also be determined. These data will be included in a report to the NIH-sponsored IDeA Network of Biomedical Research Excellence. Determining levels of persistent organic pollutants in salmonids and macroinvertebrates.