Human Health Effects Research Program
Chemicals of Concern
The "critical Great Lakes pollutants" identified by the International Joint Commission (IJC) are polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs), dichlorodiphenyl trichloroethane (DDT), dieldrin, toxaphene, mirex, methylmercury, benzo[a]pyrene (a member of a class of substances known as polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons [PAHs], hexachlorobenzene (HCB), furans, dioxins, and alkylated lead.
These PTSs are persistent materials, and many are lipophilic so that they bioaccumulate in biota and biomagnify at successive levels of the food web (IJC, 1983; Hicks, 1996). The ATSDR Great Lakes Human Health Effects Research Program (GLHHERP) focused on these 11 critical pollutants as well as others toxic chemicals of concern, e.g., arsenic, cadmium.
Persistent Toxic Substances in the Great Lakes Basin
Organochlorine compounds
DDT and its metabolites
Dieldrin
Dioxins (2,3,7,8,-TCDD)
Furans
Hexachlorobenzene (HCD)
Mirex
Polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs)
Toxaphene
Heavy Metals
Alkylated Lead
Methylmercury
Polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons
Benzo[a]pyrene
