Access

Published online 18 September 2003 | Nature | doi:10.1038/news030915-7

News

Salmon dump pollutants on lake bed

Decaying fish dump PCBs in Alaska's lakes.

Salmon travelling to Alaska's lakes to spawn are carrying large doses of industrial pollutants with them, a study has shown1.

Environmentalists fear that the accumulation of these compounds, called polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs), could have harmful consequences for the region's top carnivores: bears, eagles - and humans.

Comments

Reader comments are usually moderated after posting. If you find something offensive or inappropriate, you can speed this process by clicking 'Report this comment' (or, if that doesn't work for you, email redesign@nature.com). For more controversial topics, we reserve the right to moderate before comments are published.