Sea otters in British Columbia have been found to be contaminated with “forever chemicals,” according to a recent study whose authors say was the first to do this type of research in the marine mammal in the province.
Researchers from the University of British Columbia (UBC) say they have identified PFAS in sea otters around coastal B.C. PFAS is short for perfluorinated and polyfluorinated alkyl substances, or per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances. They are a class of thousands of extremely persistent human-made substances that are deemed harmful to humans and the environment, according to Environment Canada.
Published on Nov. 4, the research analyzed liver and skeletal muscle samples from 11 dead sea otters that had been recovered along the B.C. coastline between 2016 and 2021. It found “eight of 40 tested PFAS chemicals present in every otter, with seven found only in the liver,” a Nov. 5 UBC news release said….