Geographical trends of short-chain chlorinated paraffins (SCCPs) in ringed seals from the Arctic

• Main Authors: Vorkamp, Katrin, Young, Robert Bruce, Houde, Magali, Routti, Heli, Riget, Frank Farsø
• Format: Book
• Language: English
• Published: Aarhus University, DCE - Danish Centre for Environment and Energy 2024
• Subjects: Arctic; Greenland; Svalbard
• Online Access: https://pure.au.dk/portal/en/publications/8aad317c-63a3-4c3c-b027-1735128631d5

Chlorinated paraffins are high production volume chemicals used in in a variety of commercial and industrial applications, e.g. as lubricants, flame retardants and metal working fluids. They are commonly divided into short-, medium and long-chain chlorinated paraffins (C10−C13 (SCCPs), C14−C17 (MCCPs) and ≥ C18 (LCCPs), respectively), of which SCCPs are regulated via the Stockholm Convention on Persistent Organic Pollutants (POPs). Due to their complexity, the analytical chemistry is challenging, and different studies often lack comparability. The objective of this project was to study spatial differences in ΣSCCPs in ringed seals from Canada, Greenland and Svalbard. Blubber of juvenile ringed seals (N=4-5 per location) from a total of eight locations (Canada: 4; Greenland: 3; Svalbard: 1) were analysed with gas chromatography with Orbitrap high-resolution mass spectrometry (GC-Orbitrap MS). As blanks showed quantifiable levels of SCCPs, all concentrations were blank corrected. Mean ΣSCCPs ranged between 16 and 142 ng/g lipid weight, without statistically significant differences between locations. Standard deviations exceeded 100% in some cases, but were considerably lower for data without blank correction. ΣSCCP concentrations were generally lower than those of other POPs available for the same individuals from East and West Greenland. However, compared with previous studies from the 1990s to early 2000s, this difference seemed smaller, possibly indicating different temporal developments for SCCPs and other POPs. The applicability of the current analytical method for routine monitoring still poses challenges, in particular regarding sensitivity and blank occurrences.