Nonylphenol and nonylphenol ethoxylates in fish, sediment, and water from the Kalamazoo River, Michigan

• Published in: Archives of environmental contamination and toxicology Vol. 44; no. 1; pp. 77 - 82
• Main Authors: KANNAN, K, KEITH, T. L, NAYLOR, C. G, STAPLES, C. A, SNYDER, S. A, GIESY, J. P
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Heidelberg Springer-Verlag 2003; Berlin Springer Nature B.V; New York, NY
• Subjects: Animal, plant and microbial ecology; Animals; Applied ecology; Biological and medical sciences; Data Collection; Detection limits; Distillation; Ecotoxicology, biological effects of pollution; Environmental Monitoring; Fish; Fishes; Fresh water environment; Freshwater; Fundamental and applied biological sciences. Psychology; Geologic Sediments - chemistry; Michigan; Phenols - analysis; Phenols - pharmacokinetics; Pisces; Rivers; Sediments; Tissue Distribution; Wastewater treatment plants; Water analysis; Water Pollutants, Chemical - analysis; Water Pollutants, Chemical - pharmacokinetics; Water sampling; Water treatment; United States; North America; America; Michigan; USA, Michigan, Kalamazoo; USA, Michigan, Kalamazoo R; Non ionic surfactant; Endocrine disruptor; Sediments; Freshwater environment; Lepomis macrochirus; Pollutant; Vertebrata; Micropterus dolomieui; Pisces; Water pollution; Chemical concentration; Stream; Biological accumulation; Waste water purification; Waste water discharge; River water; Comparative study
• ISSN: 0090-4341; 1432-0703
• DOI: 10.1007/s00244-002-1267-3

A survey measuring concentrations of nonylphenol (NP) and its ethoxylates (NPEs) in fish was performed in the Kalamazoo River, Michigan, USA, in 1999. Of 183 fish analyzed, 59% had no detectable NP or NPE. Detected concentrations were reported to range from 3.3 (limit of detection) to 29.1 ng NP/g wet weight. To further explore the means of exposure of NP and NPE in the fish, concentrations of NP and its mono-through tri-ethoxylates (NPE(1-3)) were measured in fish, sediment, and water collected near two wastewater treatment plants on the Kalamazoo River in 2000. Samples were analyzed using exhaustive steam distillation with concurrent liquid extraction. Nonylphenol ethoxycarboxylates (NPE(1-3)C) were also analyzed in water. Concentrations of NP and NPEs in fish were less than the method detection limits (MDLs) in all the samples except one fish, which contained 3.4 ng NP/g wet weight, just above the detection limit of 3.3 ng/g. Three of 36 sediments and 1 of 24 water samples contained detectable concentrations of NP or NPE(1). NPE(2), NPE(3), and NPEC were not detected in water samples.