Forever Chemicals Found In B.c. Sea Otters For 1st Time - Beritaja
New investigation from the University of British Columbia has recovered that B.C.’s sea otters are contaminated.
“Unfortunately, each azygous oversea otter that we looked astatine did person ‘forever chemicals’ successful them, including a very young oversea otter that had died conscionable aft being born,” Dana Price, a interrogator astatine the university, told BERITAJA.
For the first time, UBC researchers person identified per-and polyfluoroalkyl substances, besides known arsenic PFAS, successful B.C. oversea otters.
Of the 11 deceased animals studied, 8 of 40 tested PFAS chemicals were present, pinch 7 recovered only successful the liver.
“They are this man-made chemical; they don’t beryllium connected their ain successful nature,” Price said.
“But a batch of them person been recovered to beryllium rather toxic and could origin things from cancers, organ damage, and they enactment a batch successful suppressing the immune system, which is simply a concern.”
PFAS are recovered successful products specified arsenic cosmetics, non-stick cookware and firefighting foam.
Concentrations of the substances were connected mean 3 times higher successful otters recovered adjacent larger cities and shipping routes connected B.C.’s coast, specified arsenic Victoria and Tofino.
And while the levels are beneath what would require an contiguous response, the researchers said location is nary uncertainty that the contaminants are contributing to the animal’s wide health.
“We’ve known for decades that they’re toxic,” Peter Ross pinch the Rainforest Conservation Foundation said.
“I struggle to understand why it takes america truthful agelong arsenic a nine to get harmful substances disconnected the market.”
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Sea otters photographed trying to joining B.C. surfers adjacent Sooke
Ross said the national authorities has only regulated a fraction of the PFAS — six of the 15,000.
He said regularisation of manufacturing is cardinal to preventing further spread.
“We do person an rumor here, we do person a problem,” Ross said.
“We are chasing the crippled and we are trying to play catch-up.”
For now, the investigation provides a baseline for PFAS levels successful oversea otters going forward.
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"Forever Chemicals Found In B.c. Sea Otters For 1st Time - Beritaja"
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