The Truth About Chemicals in Our Water: Are They Really Building Up in Fish?

Scientists have been investigating whether certain chemicals, known as volatile methylsiloxanes (VMS), accumulate in fish and other sea creatures. These chemicals have been studied in various water bodies worldwide to determine if they increase in concentration as they move up the food chain, a process called biomagnification.

Recent Study on the Yugawara Coast

In a recent study, researchers examined VMS levels in both rocky and sandy areas of the Yugawara coast in Japan. They also used a computer model to predict how these chemicals behave in different aquatic food webs. The model's predictions aligned well with actual measurements.

Key Findings:

• VMS levels decrease as they move up the food chain, a phenomenon called trophic dilution.
• This is unlike polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs), which increase in concentration as they move up the food chain.

Global Predictions

The researchers used the model to predict VMS levels in six different aquatic food webs around the world, including:

• Lake Erie
• False Creek
• Tokyo Bay

The predictions showed that VMS levels do not increase significantly in any of these food webs, suggesting that VMS are not likely to build up in aquatic organisms.

Model Improvements and Future Research

The researchers noted that the model could be improved with:

• More precise measurements of how efficiently organisms absorb these chemicals.
• More accurate data on how quickly they break them down.

Despite these limitations, the current findings provide a good starting point for understanding the behavior of VMS in the environment.

Focus on Cyclic VMS

The study primarily focused on cyclic VMS, with linear VMS also included in the model predictions. The study did not find any significant biomagnification of VMS in the food webs studied. This is a crucial finding, as it suggests that these chemicals may not pose as big a risk to aquatic life as previously thought.

Conclusion

The study provides valuable insights into the behavior of VMS in aquatic environments. While more research is needed to fully understand these chemicals, the current findings are a step in the right direction. They highlight the importance of using models to predict chemical behavior and the need for more precise measurements to improve these predictions.