Use of Tissue and Sediment Based Threshold Concentrations of Polychlorinated Biphenyls (PCBs) to Protect Juvenile Salmonids Listed under the Endangered Species Act.

摘要

Under the Endangered Species Act (ESA), the National Marine Fisheries Services (NMFS) has authority to protect listed species from any adverse actions that may jeopardize the population's ability to recover and increase to sustainable levels. Listed salmon species in the northwest United States are known to travel through urban areas in their migration from river to ocean. Species such as the chinook salmon (Oncorhynchus tshawytscha) often spend several weeks in these urban estuaries where they can be highly exposed to urban-related contaminants that reside in the sediments and accumulate in their prey species. The concern is that these contaminants are bioaccumulated to levels that may impact the ability of individual salmon to grow and mature normally. This paper provides a framework for determining the tissue and sediment concentrations of polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs) that are likely protective against adverse effects in listed salmonid species.