The orcas of the Salish Sea live
with massive toxic contamination.

J1, male, born about 1950 & K12, female, born in 1971   ©1994 Stefan Jacobs

When salmon are scarce and orcas begin to go hungry, they metabolize their fat supplies, releasing persistent, hormone-disrupting pollutants such as PCBs into their bloodstream, where they wreak havoc with the whales' immune, reproductive and nervous systems. We know from killer whale biopsies and necropies in recent decades that their blubber tissues contain elevated levels of lipophilic toxic substances, notably poly-chlorinated biphenyls (PCBs).

Though PCB levels have generally declined slightly in Puget Sound since they were banned in the 70's, they continue to accumulate in long-lived mammals such as orcas, and are passed on to their young through the placental wall and in mother's milk. Present orca generations carry loads that may have begun to accumulate in their mothers' bodies even before they were born. For example J18, or Everett, a young male who died early in his maturity in January 2000, lacked immunity to common diseases and his sperm count was zero. He carried a massive load of PCBs in his tissues.


www.epa.gov/superfund/sites/npl/wa.htm (October, 2001)

For more background on PCBs, see Ohio State University's PCB fact sheet.

Recently scientists have become aware of a new threat to both orcas and humans, in the form of fire-retardant chemicals called PBDEs, found in everyday household products.
For information on PBDEs, see:
Fireproof killer whales (Orcinus orca): flame-retardant chemicals and the conservation imperative in the charismatic icon of British Columbia, Canada by Peter S. Ross (270KB)

Agencies and organizations doing something to clean up pollutants

• Washington Toxics Coalition is a non-profit, member-based organization dedicated to protecting public health and the environment by identifying and promoting alternatives to toxic chemicals.

  Washington’s new medicine return program helps keep waterways clean.

  Contaminant Exposure in Juvenile Salmon, a NMFS Publication about Puget Sound estuaries, pollution, and juvenile salmon health.

  Puget Soundkeeper Alliance. The mission of Puget Soundkeeper Alliance is to protect and preserve Puget Sound by tracking down and stopping the discharge of toxic pollutants into its waters.

  WA Dept. of Ecology's The Future of Waste and Toxins in Washington

  The EPA's Persistent Bioaccumulative and Toxic (PBT) Chemical Program