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Toxaphene around Great Britain and Ireland

In a study conducted between 1990 and 1992, fish samples were obtained for total toxaphene analysis from waters adjacent to Ireland and Great [...] Significant concentrations of toxaphene [were] evident in mackerel flesh and in whitefish liver.

The highest concentrations are west of Britain and Ireland, with lower concentrations in the North Sea.

[Scientists] analyzed three specific toxaphene congeners in whole fish samples from widely separated locations, predominantly in the Northeast Atlantic. They found that this group of toxaphene congeners are most prevalent in larger, slow growing fish species e.g., halibut and redfish, and that there is a strong positive correlation between length and residue concentration in herring taken from the North Sea.

[The] data show that toxaphene is a widespread contaminant in fish from the Northeast Atlantic and, because concentrations are generally higher than PCB levels in similar species, toxaphene may be the dominant organochlorine contaminant in fish from the region. To date, there are no data on toxaphene levels in the tissues of marine mammals from this area.

In relation to consumer health, it should be noted that there is still uncertainty regarding the appropriate limits for toxaphene in fish flesh, partly because existing toxicological data relate to different suites of toxaphene congenors.

Nevertheless, most of the concentrations of toxaphene are higher than the maximum limit for food (100 mg/kg lipid) set in Germany in 1994. Moreover, the maximum acceptable daily intake of 1 mg/kg body weight per day would have been exceeded by light to moderate intakes of fish from these areas. It is likely that toxaphene, along with other volatile contaminants such as mercury and PCBs, is transported from the American continent by a combination of atmospheric and oceanic processes. Although the use of toxaphene has been banned in the United States since 1986, its continued use in Central and South America may lead to persistent elevations of this pesticide in fish near Great Britain for the foreseeable future. Certainly, further data are required on the status and transport pathways of this pesticide in the North Atlantic generally.