Toxic ‘forever chemicals’ are in B.C. sea otters, new study finds

Sea otters living along B.C.’s South coast and Vancouver Island have high levels of toxic “forever chemicals” present in their bodies, a new study finds.

Researchers found elevated levels of the chemicals, commonly found in food packaging, cosmetics, electronics and other consumer products, in samples of 11 dead sea otters collected between 2016 and 2021.

University of British Columbia master’s candidate Dana Price led the study, published this week in the journal Environmental Toxicology and Chemistry.

“I think the main takeaway here is that we did find these contaminants in sea otters. This gives us a baseline that we can compare things to in the future,” she said, noting it was the first study of its kind in the province.

WATCH | Toxic chemicals in B.C. sea otters:

Harmful ‘forever chemicals’ making their way into B.C. sea otters

A new study out of UBC shows that so-called forever chemicals are making their way into sea otters off the coast of Vancouver Island, despite regulations from the Canadian government. As CBC’s Claire Palmer reports, researchers say that’s bad news for the marine ecosystem as a whole.

However, Price said she wasn’t surprised to find the contaminants, broadly categorized as polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAs), in sea otters, since researchers in California, Washington and Alaska had found the same.

PFAs are known as “forever chemicals,” she said, because they do not typically break down when they make their way into the environment, and they pose health risks including organ damage, cancer and weakened immune systems.

And while it is not believed any of the otters in her study had died because of PFAs, the fact the chemicals were present in every one of the collected samples is concerning to the long-term health of marine ecosystems, she said.

However, she noted the levels in B.C. sea otters is lower than in some of their American counterparts, which she speculates is due to a combination of Canadian regulations and relatively lower human populations where the otters live.

“Where [the otters] live makes a big difference,” she said, with those who are closer to cities having higher levels of PFAs than those in more rural areas.

Unlike other marine mammals, she said, sea otters don’t tend to migrate, and instead live their entire lives in one area, which makes it easier to determine how local factors can have an impact on their overall health.

Growing body of research

The study is just the latest in a growing body of research looking into the dangers posed by the presence of PFAs.

A report from the federal government says exposure to these “forever chemicals” in humans can be harmful to the body, including the liver, kidneys, immune system, reproductive system and nervous system, and Health Canada has set benchmarks limiting acceptable levels of the chemicals in drinking water.

“The [otter] study adds to the body of knowledge that Ottawa needs to make a decision as to how to proceed with regulations, or not, on this class of chemicals,” said Peter Ross, a senior scientist at the Raincoast Conservation Foundation. He said debate about how to approach the topic has been a “hot topic” in Ottawa for several years.

And while the Department of Fisheries and Oceans has imposed some regulations, the agency’s Lisa Lucero said with over 15,000 different PFAs on the market, it can be difficult to get a handle on them all.

“What we’re seeing is sometimes some of these forever chemicals, or styles or types of them, are being banned, but then other ones are being put new on the market,” she said.

“And so there’s a bit of a constant chase between the scientists and the producers.”

Price said the study didn’t pinpoint the source of forever chemical contamination, as they are in many different products that could end up in the ecosystem. 

“It’s hard to say exactly where they came from,” she said. “They just come at a price.”