Stable nitrogen isotope ratios and accumulation of various HOCs in northern Baltic aquatic food chains
- Stockholm Univ. (Sweden)
Ratios of naturally occurring stable isotopes of nitrogen ({delta}{sup 15}N) can be used to numerically classify trophic levels of organisms in food chains. By combining analyses results of various HOCs (e.g. PCDD/Fs, PCBs, DDTs, HCHs and some other pesticides) the biomagnification of these substances can be quantitatively estimated. In this paper different pelagic and benthic northern Baltic food chains were studied. The {delta}{sup 15}N-data gave food chain descriptions qualitatively consistent with previous conceptions of trophic arrangements in the food chains. The different HOCs concentrations were plotted versus the {delta}{sup 15}N-values for the different trophic levels and an exponential model of the form e{sup (A+B*{delta}N)} was fitted to the data. The estimates of the constant B in the model allows for an estimation of a biomagnification power (B) of different singular, or groups of, contaminants. A B-value around zero indicates that a substance is flowing through the food chain without being magnified, whereas a value > 0 indicates that a substance is biomagnified. Negative B-values indicate that a substance is not taken up or is metabolized. The A-term of the expression is only a scaling factor depending on the background level of the contaminant.
- OSTI ID:
- 191318
- Report Number(s):
- CONF-9511137-; ISBN 1-880611-03-1; TRN: IM9610%%319
- Resource Relation:
- Conference: 2. Society of Environmental Toxicology and Chemistry (SETAC) world conference, Vancouver (Canada), 5-9 Nov 1995; Other Information: PBD: 1995; Related Information: Is Part Of Second SETAC world congress (16. annual meeting): Abstract book. Global environmental protection: Science, politics, and common sense; PB: 378 p.
- Country of Publication:
- United States
- Language:
- English
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