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IMPACTS OF HISTORIC AND CURRENT-USE CHEMICALS IN WESTERN NATIONAL PARKS
Citation:
LANDERS, D. H. IMPACTS OF HISTORIC AND CURRENT-USE CHEMICALS IN WESTERN NATIONAL PARKS. Presented at Alaska Region 2006 Science Symposium, Denali National Park, AK, September 12 - 14, 2006.
Description:
The Western Airborne Contaminants Assessment Project (WACAP) is an interagency effort to determine if airborne contaminants such as semi-volatile organic compounds (sacs) and metals
(e.g. mercury) are impacting National Parks in the western United States. Remote, high elevation
and/or high latitude watersheds were studied in twenty National Parks from the Arctic to central
California and East to Colorado and Montana to determine if contaminants are present and how
they are distributed in ecosystems. Seven National Parks or Reserves have been studied in
Alaska. Early results clearly demonstrate that a broad suite of airborne contaminants, both
historic and current-use, are present in all parks and that bioaccumulation within the studied
ecosystems is occurring. In Alaska, both current-use and historic sac concentrations in snow
and sediments are generally considerably lower than concentrations determined for Parks in
other states. Significant sac temporal trends in sediments vary with some chemical groups (i.e.
current-use) increasing and others (i.e. historic)decreasing in recent years. WACAP research
results indicate that the concentrations of current-use and banned pesticides in snow are highly
correlated with regional agricultural intensity. Mercury concentrations in salmonids from Alaskan Parks are generally among the highest values found in all Parks while flux rates of Hg to lake sediments are very low. Results from this six year project that ends in 2007 will assist the
National Park Service, the United States Environmental Protection Agency and other agencies
and states in evaluating the threat posed by various local, regional and hemispheric sources of
airborne contaminants.