What is a PCB congener?

A PCB congener is any single, unique well-defined chemical compound in the PCB category. The name of a congener specifies the total number of chlorine substituents , and the position of each chlorine.

How many chlorinated PCB congeners are there?

There are 209 distinct PCB compounds (known as congeners) with from 1 to 10 chlorine atoms on a biphenyl molecule. The number and placement of the chlorine atoms on the biphenyl molecule determines how the congener is named and dictates its environmental fate and toxicity.

What is PCB biomagnification?

PCBs tend to build up in living organisms both by uptake from the environment over time (bioaccumulation) and along the food chain (biomagnification). PCBs remain stored in fatty tissues much more than in muscles or other body parts.

What was aroclor used for?

In the U.S., the most commonly used Aroclors were: 1221, 1232, 1242, 1248, 1254, and 1260 (DEQ, 1997). These and other Aroclors were used in a variety of materials to enhance insulative properties, improve physical and chemical resistance, and act as plasticizers, coolants, and lubricants.

What are PCBs contaminants?

PCBs, or polychlorinated biphenyls, are industrial products or chemicals. PCB contamination is high in the Housatonic River and New Bedford Harbor in Massachusetts. According to the EPA, PCBs belong to a broad family of human-created organic chemicals known as chlorinated hydrocarbons.

What is a PCB?

What are PCBs most commonly found in?

Most people are exposed to PCBs by eating contaminated fish, meat, and dairy products. Catfish, buffalo fish, and carp usually have the highest PCB levels. Plants take up only small amounts of PCBs from the soil, so amounts in grazing animals and dairy products are generally lower than in fish.

What do PCBs do to humans?

PCBs are a probable human carcinogen.

Studies of PCBs in humans have found increased rates of melanomas, liver cancer, gall bladder cancer, biliary tract cancer, gastrointestinal tract cancer, and brain cancer, and may be linked to breast cancer.

How do I know if a ballast has PCBs?

Ballasts manufactured between 1979 and 1998 that do not contain PCBs are labeled “No PCBs” If a ballast is not labeled “No PCBs”, it is best to assume it contains PCBs. If the ballast does contain PCBs, they are located inside the small capacitor or in the surrounding potting material.

What were PCBs used for in the 1970s?

They were used in the manufacturing of electrical equipment, heat exchangers, hydraulic systems, and several other specialized applications up to the late 1970s. They were never manufactured in Canada but were widely used in this country. PCBs are very persistent both in the environment and in living tissue.

Does Motor oil contain PCBs?

Although the manufacture of PCBs was banned in 1979 by the Toxic Substances Control Act (TSCA), PCB-containing used oil still shows up today—33 years later. PCBs are ubiquitous and are found frequently, especially in oil drained from electrical equipment (transformers, capacitors, etc.) and old hydraulic systems.

How do PCBs bioaccumulate?

PCB bioaccumulation in humans is known to occur via partitioning of PCBs from air and water into terrestrial plants and aquatic autotrophs and invertebrates of the lowest trophic levels, followed by transfer through the food webs (Schwarzenbach et al., 2003).

Are PCBs still used today?

Although no longer commercially produced in the United States, PCBs may be present in products and materials produced before the 1979 PCB ban. Products that may contain PCBs include: Transformers and capacitors. Electrical equipment including voltage regulators, switches, re-closers, bushings, and electromagnets.

How do PCBs affect the food chain?

Environmental Impacts:

The PCBs accumulate in the food chain when bigger fish consume contaminated smaller fish or organisms. The contamination is passed up the food chain and can reach levels thousands of times higher than the actual levels in the water.

How do you get rid of PCBs in your body?

No specific treatment exists for PCB accumulation. Patients should avoid further PCB exposure and also avoid other hepatotoxic substances, including ethanol. Treat acute skin and eye PCB exposure immediately by flushing with copious amounts of water.

What are some examples of PCBs?

Telecommunications (indicators, displays, high-frequency amplifiers, and filtering appliances) Medical (lights in medical examination and surgery tools) Computer. Automotive (indicators, headlights, brake lights, etc.)

Which PCB congeners are dioxin like?

The non-ortho dioxin-like PCBs (i.e., PCBs 77, 81, 126 & 169) bind the AHR and cause dioxin-like toxicity in fish, birds and mammals. The mono-ortho chlorinated dioxin-like PCBs are also able to bind the AHR and cause dioxin-like toxicity in birds and mammals, but generally do not cause dioxin-like responses in fish.

Are PCB boards toxic?

Some of the materials in one component of e-waste, printed circuit boards (PCBs), are particularly toxic and difficult to recycle, and are often dumped into landfills, on open land or in water, where they pollute the soil and the water systems, damaging human health and the environment.

When did they stop using PCBs in transformers?

Polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs) were used in electrical transformers manufactured between 1929 and 1977, with the majority being installed in residential and commercial buildings and industrial facilities prior to 1978.

Do all fluorescent light ballasts contain PCBs?

1. First of all, not all fluorescent light ballasts contain PCB. The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) banned the manufacture of PCB in 1978. Thus, all light ballasts manufactured thereafter should not contain PCB.

Do fluorescent lights contain PCBs?

Polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs) were commonly used in the small capacitor within fluorescent light ballasts. Ballasts manufactured through 1979 may contain PCBs.

Are old ballasts worth anything?

Most Valuable Ballasts

Depending on their age, and their casing, even if they have to be scrapped, ballasts can be worth a couple of dollars. According to current listings, if you can resell one that's in fantastic condition, you can often get $13 to $20 for the average ballast! These are ones in great condition.

Where can PCBs be found?

They have been detected in air, water, soil, and sediments throughout the world. PCBs last a long time in the environment before breaking down and may find their way into the food chain. Low levels of PCBs can be found in fish, shellfish, meat, poultry, milk, dairy products, and other foods.

Is it OK to touch a PCB?

The non conductive substrate is completely safe and is usually the green or blue bit of the PCB. However starting to touch some of the components on it, for example a capacitor or resistor could have fatal consequences, (to the board) as they do conduct electricity and with a very very small voltage) with short out.

Are PCBs absorbed through the skin?

Because of their highly lipophilic nature, PCBs also can be absorbed through the skin following contact with contaminated equipment, water, or soil.