Hello Friends,

This month one of the topics I wish to discuss is the levels of contaminants and pollutants in the arctic. Many including myself were shocked to learn that the Arctic Ocean has become one of the biggest pools of contaminates in the world. With this contamination of the waters, the ecosystem and the keystone species of the region have been severely impacted. One of the animals that have been affected is the magnificent Killer Whale. The Killer Whale has now become the region?s most toxic animal.

So, what has caused one of the most unpopulous areas in the world to become such a toxic sink? What toxins have affected the area? And, how do we solve this crisis? All that we explore in this article.

Firstly, we can look to the toxins that have affected the area. The toxins are called PCBs, pesticides, and brominated flame retardants. The chemicals that are most harmful are fat soluble but water insoluble. Therefore, the chemicals bind themselves to the animal?s fat tissue but are not able to be removed in the animals water based waste. These toxins are those that cause the problem of bio amplification and bioaccumulation in other ecosystems in the world. By these processes, the top predator of the food chain will receive the highest concentration of toxins. The most toxic animal in the arctic ecosystem was believed to be the polar bear, but studies that use dart guns to remove samples of fat tissues from the animal to study concentration of toxins reveals that it is in fact the killer whale that has the top spot.

But, the arctic was one of the most serene, unpopulous, and clean areas on earth. However, global issues are called global issues for a reason: they affect the entire planet. Due to earth?s weather systems, we find that the arctic is the final destination of most chemicals released in the Northern Hemisphere. Why is this? Well this is because weather is basically the result of uneven warming of the earth?s surface. The equator receives more heat than the poles. This sets in motion the air and ocean currents to attempt to redistribute the heat around the world. The air and ocean currents carry warmth from the equator to the poles but sometimes also carry pollutants along for the ride. For example, the contaminated waters of the Gulf of Mexico are carried north by the Gulf Stream where the water is further transported to the arctic by the North Atlantic Current. This is how the pollutants all ultimately end up in the arctic. It shows us that the actions we take in our backyards can hurt an animal thousands of miles away. We can pour pesticides in our gutter, that will drain into an ocean based on what drainage basin it is located in and be carried by the ocean currents to the poles, contaminating some of the most beautiful and pristine ecosystems on earth.

So how do we solve this problem? Well, the ban of chemicals has proven to be a solution. It has its problems but it has shown that it will reduce the concentration of chemicals. However, another solution is to use fat insoluble chemicals. They are harmful as well but if ingested by an animal they are able to be removed from the animal?s body as waste. So, as soon as we can ban fat soluble chemicals and replace them with fat insoluble chemicals, we will start to see a gradual change in concentration levels of these chemicals. As with other problems we have caused, there is no quick fix, but it is better to at least try to fix the problem rather than sit by and let the problem propagate.

Regards,

Nitish