Perchlorate in fish from a contaminated site in east-central Texas.
Perchlorate, a known thyroid endocrine disruptor, contaminates surface waters near military instillations where solid fuel rocket motors are manufactured or assembled. To assess potential perchlorate exposure to fish and the human population which may feed on them, fish were collected around the Naval Weapons Industrial Reserve Plant in McLennan County, TX, and analyzed for the presence of the perchlorate anion. The sampling sites included Lake Waco and Belton Lake, and several streams and rivers within their watersheds. The general tendency was that perchlorate was only found in a few species sampled, and perchlorate was not detected in every individual within these species. When detected in the fish, perchlorate tissue concentrations were greater than that in the water. This may be due to highly variable perchlorate concentrations in the water coupled with individual-level variation in elimination from the body, or to routes of exposure other than water.
The Institute of Environmental and Human Health, Department of Environmental Toxicology, Texas Tech University, Lubbock, 79409-1163, USA. chirs.theodorakis@tiehh.ttu.edu
Christopher
C
Theodorakis
Jacques
J
Rinchard
Todd
T
Anderson
Fujun
F
Liu
June-Woo
JW
Park
Filipe
F
Costa
Leslie
L
McDaniel
Ronald
R
Kendall
Aaron
A
Waters
D000818:Animals; D001492:Bass; D001822:Body Burden; D002397:Catfishes; D003531:Cypriniformes; D004781:Environmental Exposure / Q000009:adverse effects; D005399:Fishes; D005618:Fresh Water / Q000032:analysis; D005648:Fuel Oils; D007220:Industrial Waste / Q000032:analysis; D010472:Perchlorates / Q000032:analysis*; D010473:Perciformes; D012621:Seasons; D013781:Texas; D014874:Water Pollutants, Chemical / Q000032:analysis*
D005648:Fuel Oils; D007220:Industrial Waste; D010472:Perchlorates; D014874:Water Pollutants, Chemical; C494474:perchlorate