U.S. Geological Survey Toxic Substances Hydrology Program--Proceedings
of the Technical Meeting, Colorado Springs, Colorado, September 20-24, 1993,
Water-Resources Investigations Report 94-4015
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Isolation of Lipophilic Organic Contaminants Along the Upper
Mississippi River Using A Semipermeable Membrane Device
by
Geoffrey S. Ellis (U.S. Geological Survey, Arvada, Colo.) and
Colleen E. Rostad (U.S. Geological Survey, Arvada, Colo.)
Abstract
The detection of many environmental contaminants in water is often hindered
by their transient nature and low concentration. However, these compounds
can represent a significant environmental hazard to biota and humans through
bioconcentration. Traditional methods of analyzing aquatic biota are complicated
by variations in species, sex, age, reproductive stage, location, behavioral
patterns, metabolism, and water conditions. A new sampling device consisting
of a tubular semipermeable membrane of low-density polyethylene filled with
synthetic fish fat, triolien, which mimics the mechanism of bioconcentration,
may resolve some of these problems. To evaluate the effectiveness of these
sampling devices, they were deployed at nine sites along the upper Mississippi
River; caged fish at three of these sites were used for comparison purposes.
The devices and caged fish were collected over an eight-week period, and
indigenous fish were collected at the end of the study. Compounds were extracted
from the triolien by back dialysis into an appropriate solvent. Fish tissues
were ground and extracted wet into a solvent and the lipid removed. All
samples were analyzed by gas chromatography/mass spectrometry (GC/MS). Target
compounds were pesticides, herbicides, and polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs).
Comparisons of compound concentrations in the fish samples and sampling
devices will be used to determine the effectiveness of this technique
as a monitoring tool for bioconcentration.
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