Environmental response to decreased dioxin and furan loadings from British Columbia coastal pulp mills

Dioxin/furan contamination resulted in shellfish harvesting restrictions covering up to 1200 km2 of the British Columbia coast between 1988 and 1995. Process changes made by pulp mills discharging to marine waters reduced their dioxin and furan loadings by over 97% between 1989 and 1994. A dioxin and furan trend monitoring program conducted at sites adjacent to pulp mill outfalls documented the following average declines in dioxin and furan toxicity equivalents (TEQs) between 1990 and 1995: sediment (61%), Dungeness crab hepatopancreas (80%), Dungeness crab muscle (85%), oyster (93%), prawn (92%), and shrimp (87%). In 1995, harvesting restrictions due to dioxin/furan contamination were removed for 486 km2 of affected area.