Dear Colleagues, I am pleased to announce the publication of a new paper about the development of a bioaccumulation model and an environmental guideline for polychlorinated biphenyl (PCBs) to protect resident killer whales in British Columbia (Canada) and surrounding areas. PDF copies of the article can be obtained from the first author (Juan José Alava: jalavasa@sfu.ca). Please, see below more details. Habitat-Based PCB Environmental Quality Criteria for the Protection of Endangered Killer Whales (Orcinus orca) Juan José Alava, Peter S. Ross, Cara Lachmuth, John K. B. Ford, Brendan E. Hickie, and Frank A. P. C. Gobas Environmental Science & Technology Article ASAP (As Soon As Publishable) http://pubs.acs.org/doi/full/10.1021/es303062q Environ. Sci. Technol., Article ASAP DOI: 10.1021/es303062q Publication Date (Web): October 25, 2012 Copyright © 2012 American Chemical Society Abstract The development of an area-based polychlorinated biphenyl (PCB) food-web bioaccumulation model enabled a critical evaluation of the efficacy of sediment quality criteria and prey tissue residue guidelines in protecting fish-eating resident killer whales of British Columbia and adjacent waters. Model-predicted and observed PCB concentrations in resident killer whales and Chinook salmon were in good agreement, supporting the model’s application for risk assessment and criteria development. Model application shows that PCB concentrations in the sediments from the resident killer whale’s Critical Habitats and entire foraging range leads to PCB concentrations in most killer whales that exceed PCB toxicity threshold concentrations reported for marine mammals. Results further indicate that current PCB sediment quality and prey tissue residue criteria for fish-eating wildlife are not protective of killer whales and are not appropriate for assessing risks of PCB-contaminated sediments to high trophic level biota. We present a novel methodology for deriving sediment quality criteria and tissue residue guidelines that protect biota of high trophic levels under various PCB management scenarios. PCB concentrations in sediments and in prey that are deemed protective of resident killer whale health are much lower than current criteria values, underscoring the extreme vulnerability of high trophic level marine mammals to persistent and bioaccumulative contaminants. Cheers Juan Jose Alava ------------------------------------------------------------ Juan Jose Alava, PhD Sessional Instructor Department of Biological Sciences, Faculty of Science School of Resource and Environmental Management, Faculty of Environment Simon Fraser UniversityOffice 8420; 8888 University Drive Burnaby, British Columbia V5A 1S6, CANADA Office Phone: (778) 782-7375 Fax: (778)782-4968 E-mail: jalavasa@sfu.ca http://www.intechopen.com/profiles/53467/Juan%20Jose-Alava