May Organic Pollutants Affect Fish Populations in the North Sea?

The North Sea is a highly productive area with large fish populations that have been extensively harvested over the past century. North Sea fisheries remain important to the surrounding countries despite declining fish stocks over the past decades. The main reason for declining fish stocks is nearly...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Journal of Toxicology and Environmental Health, Part A Part A, 2006-01, Vol.69 (1-2), p.125-138
Main Authors: Hylland, Ketil, Beyer, Jonny, Berntssen, Marc, Klungsøyr, Jarle, Lang, Thomas, Balk, Lennart
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Animals
Biomarkers
Embryo, Nonmammalian - drug effects
Embryonic Development - drug effects
Environmental Monitoring
Epidemiological Monitoring
Estrogens - toxicity
Fish Diseases - epidemiology
Fishes
North Sea
Water Pollutants, Chemical - toxicity
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Summary:The North Sea is a highly productive area with large fish populations that have been extensively harvested over the past century. North Sea fisheries remain important to the surrounding countries despite declining fish stocks over the past decades. The main reason for declining fish stocks is nearly certainly overfishing, but other environmental pressures also affect fish populations, such as eutrophication, climate change, and exposure to metals and organic pollutants, including polyaromatic hydrocat bons (PAHs), alkylphenols, and organochlorine compounds. There are three main sources of organic pollutants in the North Sea: atmospheric, land-based sources, and inputs from offshore gas and oil installations. All three sources contribute to elevated concentrations of organic pollutants in the North Sea compared to the Norwegian Sea. There is evidence that chlorinated organic contaminants were present in sufficiently high concentrations in the southern North Sea two decades ago, to alter embryonal development in fish. The results from extensive, long-term monitoring programs show that some diseases decreased whereas other increased in the southern North Sea and that, among other factors, contaminants may play a role in the temporal changes recorded in disease prevalence. Recent studies demonstrated that components in offshore effluents may affect fish reproduction and that tissues of fish near oil rigs are structurally different to tissues of fish from reference areas. Data on effluents from offshore activities have recently become available through an international workshop (BECPELAG) and follow-up studies.
ISSN:1528-7394
1087-2620
DOI:10.1080/15287390500259392