Title

Environmental Contaminants in the Marine Foods of Coastal First Nations in British Columbia: a community-oriented risk evaluation

Fiscal Year

2006-2007

Community/Region

Snuneymuxw First Nation, Quatsino Indian Band, Campbell River Indian Band, Ahousaht First Nation, and Ahousaht First Nation, British Columbia

Principal Investigator

Dr. Peter S. Ross, Institute of Ocean Sciences (Fisheries and Oceans Canada)

Community Project Lead

Al Anderson (Snuneymuxw First Nation), Tom Nelson, David Schmidt (Quatsino Indian Band), John Henderson, Dana Roberts (Campbell River Indian Band), Keith Atleo (Ahousaht First Nation), and Arnold Jones and Helen Dunn (Ahousaht First Nation)

Project Members

Gary Ardon, Laurie Montour, Pam Morrison and Dr. Nancy Turner

Project Summary

Marine traditional foods are vital for the nutritional, cultural and social wellbeing of First Nations communities along the coast of British Columbia. However, members of these communities have expressed their ongoing concerns regarding the potential health risks associated with contaminants in seals and sea lions in the area.

In this study, dietary surveys were carried out to determine the relative importance of traditional marine foods in the diet of coastal BC First Nations and describe the amount and frequency of the specific species they consumed. Samples of four sentinel species (Dungeness crab, butter clams, sockeye salmon and harbour seals) were collected from each First Nations community and analysed for polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs), dioxins (PCDDs), furans (PCDFs), flame retardant polybrominated diphenyl ethers (PBDEs) and metals. Results not included in the final report.