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POCs can build up
on the particles that are suspended in an aquatic system or settled on the
sediment. Numerous bottom-dwelling organisms will feed on these contaminated
particles. The contaminated microbes in turn will serve as food for aquatic
biota. People consuming fish can also be exposed to POCs present in these
aquatic systems, in that POCs can become increasingly concentrated in bigger
fish up the food chain. These persistent chemicals can accumulate in the
fats of contaminated fish and later build up in a fish consumer’s body,
usually for a fairly long time. Further argument for such a contamination
potential was presented in an earlier online lecture on environmental
endocrine disruptors (Dong,
2004). |