Influence of Contaminants on Baltic Fish and Fisheries

FIGURE 18.16 Concentrations of PCBs (a) in Baltic herring, sprat, and salmon muscle and (b) in cod liver (MacKenzie et al., 2004). Error bars represent two standard errors. 

Fisheries also have some influence on overall contaminant budgets of the Baltic Sea (MacKenzie et al., 2004). Fishing in the early 1980s removed 40-60 kg PCB/year from the Baltic and ca. 10 kg/year in the mid 1990s (most recent data available). These removals are comparable to some components (i.e., degradation in water column, advective loss to North Sea) of an existing PCB budget model for the Baltic Sea (Wania et al., 2001 MacKenzie et al., 2004). 

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