- Messages
- 5,661
Studies into temperate populations of Orcas (killer whales) show they are facing extinction.
This because they are top of the food chain and the seas are still very contaminated by polychlorinated biphenyls- a toxic man made oil that gets into fat tissue.
Two prey species are particularly affected. Tuna that man and Orcas eat and the seal population around Scotland and north of England.
PCB gets into body fat and stops reproduction. Because Orcas have c.40% fat milk the little Orcas have being getting a load of it for years.
Seals, further down the food chain are not affected so much as they were in the Baltic.
Unfortunately Icelandic Orcas that were safe are coming south to eat seals and are therefore building up PCBs in there fat tissue. The seal population in the UK has rocketed since they stopped controlling them.
I was exposed to PCB's when I was a transmitter engineer and we didn't know how toxic they were and the large components that had them were eventually removed when we found out.
However burning PCB's at lower temperatures produces dioxins which are extremely toxic, if you remember Bhopal?
I wouldnt subject your Tuna to any heat!
This gives me reservation about my consumption of fresh Mackerel.
Derek
This because they are top of the food chain and the seas are still very contaminated by polychlorinated biphenyls- a toxic man made oil that gets into fat tissue.
Two prey species are particularly affected. Tuna that man and Orcas eat and the seal population around Scotland and north of England.
PCB gets into body fat and stops reproduction. Because Orcas have c.40% fat milk the little Orcas have being getting a load of it for years.
Seals, further down the food chain are not affected so much as they were in the Baltic.
Unfortunately Icelandic Orcas that were safe are coming south to eat seals and are therefore building up PCBs in there fat tissue. The seal population in the UK has rocketed since they stopped controlling them.
I was exposed to PCB's when I was a transmitter engineer and we didn't know how toxic they were and the large components that had them were eventually removed when we found out.
However burning PCB's at lower temperatures produces dioxins which are extremely toxic, if you remember Bhopal?
I wouldnt subject your Tuna to any heat!
This gives me reservation about my consumption of fresh Mackerel.
Derek
Last edited: