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Characterisation of perfluorooctane sulfonate (PFOS) in a terrestrial ecosystem near a fluorochemical plant in Flanders, Belgium

  • 14th EuCheMS International Conference on Chemistry and the Environment (ICCE 2013, Barcelona, June 25 - 28, 2013)
  • Published:
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Abstract

Bioaccumulation of perfluorooctane sulfonate (PFOS) in a restricted terrestrial food chain was investigated with the omnivorous wood mouse (Apodemus sylvaticus) on top of the studied food chain. The levels detected are very high compared with literature as a result of the presence of fluorochemical plant in the immediate vicinity of the study area. Soil, surface water, fruits of European elder and common blackberry, invertebrates, bank vole and wood mouse were collected at two sites, e.g. Blokkersdijk, adjacent to the fluorochemical plant, and Galgenweel, a reference site 2 km further away. In wood mouse, the highest PFOS concentrations were found in the liver followed by the pancreas, lungs and kidneys, with the spleen having the lowest levels. In the liver, the concentrations ranged from 787 to 22,355 ng/g ww at Blokkersdijk and these were significantly correlated with those detected in the kidneys (13.7–4,226 ng/g ww). If current results are compared to the findings of a previous study conducted in 2002 at the same sites, a significant decrease of PFOS in livers of wood mouse is observed. To the best of our knowledge, so far no studies reported levels of PFOS in terrestrial invertebrates under field conditions. At Blokkersdijk, PFOS was detected in all invertebrate species ranging from 28 to 9,000 ng/g. Soil and water were also contaminated with levels of respectively 68 ng/g and 22 ng/L. Biota-to-soil accumulation factors ranged from 0.11 to 68 for earthworms. Biomagnification factors (BMFs) of liver wood mouse/berries were as high as 302. BMFs for invertebrates were remarkably lower (up to 2).

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Acknowledgments

Walter Van Dongen of the Nucleoside Research and Mass Spectrometry Unit from the University of Antwerp is acknowledged for assistance with LC-MS/MS measurements. Furthermore, the authors would like to thank Willy Verschueren, the conservator of Blokkersdijk, for his permission to allow us working in the nature reserve.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Systemic Physiological and Ecotoxicology Research (SPHERE), Department of Biology, University of Antwerp, Groenenborgerlaan 171, 2020, Antwerp, Belgium

    Wendy D’Hollander, An Hagenaars & Lieven Bervoets

  2. Evolutionary Ecology Group, University of Antwerp, Groenenborgerlaan 171, 2020, Antwerp, Belgium

    Luc De Bruyn

  3. Research Institute for Nature and Forest (INBO), Kliniekstraat 25, 1070, Brussels, Belgium

    Luc De Bruyn

  4. Institute for Biodiversity and Ecosystem Dynamics, University of Amsterdam, Science Park 904, 1098XH, Amsterdam, Netherlands

    Pim de Voogt

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  1. Wendy D’Hollander
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  2. Luc De Bruyn
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  4. Pim de Voogt
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Correspondence to Wendy D’Hollander.

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Responsible editor: Leif Kronberg

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D’Hollander, W., De Bruyn, L., Hagenaars, A. et al. Characterisation of perfluorooctane sulfonate (PFOS) in a terrestrial ecosystem near a fluorochemical plant in Flanders, Belgium. Environ Sci Pollut Res 21, 11856–11866 (2014). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11356-013-2449-4

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