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PUBLIC HEALTH STATEMENT 

POLYCHLORINATED BIPHENYLS (PCBS) 

Division of Toxicology November 2000 

This Public Health Statement is the summary 

chapter from the Toxicological Profile for 

Polychlorinated Biphenyls (PCBs). It is one in a 

series of Public Health Statements about hazardous 

substances and their health effects. A shorter 

version, the ToxFAQsTM, is also available. This 

information is important because this substance may 

harm you. The effects of exposure to any hazardous 

substance depend on the dose, the duration, how 

you are exposed, personal traits and habits, and 

whether other chemicals are present. For more 

information, call the ATSDR Information Center at 

1-888-422-8737. 

________________________________________ 

This public health statement tells you about 

polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs) and the effects of 

exposure. 

The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) 

identifies the most serious hazardous waste sites in 

the nation. These sites make up the National 

Priorities List (NPL) and are the sites targeted for 

long-term federal cleanup activities. PCBs have 

been found in at least 500 of the 1,598 current or 

former NPL sites. However, the total number of 

NPL sites evaluated for PCBs is not known. As 

more sites are evaluated, the sites at which PCBs 

are found may increase. This information is 

important because exposure to PCBs may harm you 

and because these sites may be sources of exposure. 

When a substance is released from a large area, 

such as an industrial plant, or from a container, such 

as a drum or bottle, it enters the environment. This 

release does not always lead to exposure. You are 

exposed to a substance only when you come in 

contact with it. You may be exposed by breathing, 

eating, or drinking the substance, or by skin contact. 

If you are exposed to PCBs, many factors determine 

whether you'll be harmed. These factors include the 

dose (how much), the duration (how long), and how 

you come in contact with them. You must also 

consider the other chemicals you're exposed to and 

your age, sex, diet, family traits, lifestyle, and state 

of health. 

1.1 WHAT ARE POLYCHLORINATED 

BIPHENYLS (PCBs)? 

PCBs are a group of synthetic organic chemicals 

that can cause a number of different harmful effects. 

There are no known natural sources of PCBs in the 

environment. PCBs are either oily liquids or solids 

and are colorless to light yellow. Some PCBs are 

volatile and may exist as a vapor in air. They have 

no known smell or taste. PCBs enter the 

environment as mixtures containing a variety of 

individual chlorinated biphenyl components, known 

as congeners, as well as impurities. Because the 

health effects of environmental mixtures of PCBs 

are difficult to evaluate, most of the information in 

this toxicological profile is about seven types of 

PCB mixtures that were commercially produced. 

These seven kinds of PCB mixtures include 35% of 

all the PCBs commercially produced and 98% of 

PCBs sold in the United States since 1970. Some 

commercial PCB mixtures are known in the United 

States by their industrial trade name, Aroclor. For 

example, the name Aroclor 1254 means that the 

mixture contains approximately 54% chlorine by 

weight, as indicated by the second two digits in the 

name. Because they don't burn easily and are good 

insulating materials, PCBs were used widely as 

coolants and lubricants in transformers, capacitors, 

and other electrical equipment. The manufacture of 

DEPARTMENT of HEALTH AND HUMAN SERVICES, Public Health Service
 

Agency for Toxic Substances and Disease Registry 

www.atsdr.cdc.gov/ Telephone: 1-888-422-8737 Fax: 770-488-4178 E-Mail: atsdric@cdc.gov 
 

 

 

 

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PUBLIC HEALTH STATEMENT 

POLYCHLORINATED BIPHENYLS (PCBS) 

Division of Toxicology November 2000 

PCBs stopped in the United States in August 1977 

because there was evidence that PCBs build up in 

the environment and may cause harmful effects. 

Consumer products that may contain PCBs include 

old fluorescent lighting fixtures, electrical devices 

or appliances containing PCB capacitors made 

before PCB use was stopped, old microscope oil, 

and old hydraulic oil. 

1.2 WHAT HAPPENS TO 

POLYCHLORINATED BIPHENYLS 

(PCBs) WHEN THEY ENTER THE 

ENVIRONMENT? 

Before 1977, PCBs entered the air, water, and soil 

during their manufacture and use in the United 

States. Wastes that contained PCBs were generated 

at that time, and these wastes were often placed in 

landfills. PCBs also entered the environment from 

accidental spills and leaks during the transport of 

the chemicals, or from leaks or fires in transformers, 

capacitors, or other products containing PCBs. 

Today, PCBs can still be released into the 

environment from poorly maintained hazardous 

waste sites that contain PCBs; illegal or improper 

dumping of PCB wastes, such as old transformer 

fluids; leaks or releases from electrical transformers 

containing PCBs; and disposal of PCB-containing 

consumer products into municipal or other landfills 

not designed to handle hazardous waste. PCBs may 

be released into the environment by the burning of 

some wastes in municipal and industrial 

incinerators. 

Once in the environment, PCBs do not readily break 

down and therefore may remain for very long 

periods of time. They can easily cycle between air, 

water, and soil. For example, PCBs can enter the air 

by evaporation from both soil and water. In air, 

PCBs can be carried long distances and have been 

found in snow and sea water in areas far away from 

where they were released into the environment, 

such as in the arctic. As a consequence, PCBs are 

found all over the world. In general, the lighter the 

type of PCBs, the further they may be transported 

from the source of contamination. PCBs are present 

as solid particles or as a vapor in the atmosphere. 

They will eventually return to land and water by 

settling as dust or in rain and snow. In water, PCBs 

may be transported by currents, attach to bottom 

sediment or particles in the water, and evaporate 

into air. Heavy kinds of PCBs are more likely to 

settle into sediments while lighter PCBs are more 

likely to evaporate to air. Sediments that contain 

PCBs can also release the PCBs into the 

surrounding water. PCBs stick strongly to soil and 

will not usually be carried deep into the soil with 

rainwater. They do not readily break down in soil 

and may stay in the soil for months or years; 

generally, the more chlorine atoms that the PCBs 

contain, the more slowly they break down. 

Evaporation appears to be an important way by 

which the lighter PCBs leave soil. As a gas, PCBs 

can accumulate in the leaves and above-ground 

parts of plants and food crops. 

PCBs are taken up into the bodies of small 

organisms and fish in water. They are also taken up 

by other animals that eat these aquatic animals as 

food. PCBs especially accumulate in fish and 

marine mammals (such as seals and whales) 

reaching levels that may be many thousands of 

times higher than in water. PCB levels are highest 

in animals high up in the food chain. 

DEPARTMENT of HEALTH AND HUMAN SERVICES, Public Health Service
 

Agency for Toxic Substances and Disease Registry 

www.atsdr.cdc.gov/ Telephone: 1-888-422-8737 Fax: 770-488-4178 E-Mail: atsdric@cdc.gov 
 

 

 

 

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PUBLIC HEALTH STATEMENT 

POLYCHLORINATED BIPHENYLS (PCBS) 

Division of Toxicology November 2000 

1.3 HOW MIGHT I BE EXPOSED TO 

POLYCHLORINATED BIPHENYLS 

(PCBs)? 

Although PCBs are no longer made in the United 

States, people can still be exposed to them. Many 

older transformers and capacitors may still contain 

PCBs, and this equipment can be used for 30 years 

or more. Old fluorescent lighting fixtures and old 

electrical devices and appliances, such as television 

sets and refrigerators, therefore may contain PCBs 

if they were made before PCB use was stopped. 

When these electric devices get hot during 

operation, small amounts of PCBs may get into the 

air and raise the level of PCBs in indoor air. 

Because devices that contain PCBs can leak with 

age, they could also be a source of skin exposure to 

PCBs. 

Small amounts of PCBs can be found in almost all 

outdoor and indoor air, soil, sediments, surface 

water, and animals. However, PCB levels have 

generally decreased since PCB production stopped 

in 1977. People are exposed to PCBs primarily from 

contaminated food and breathing contaminated air. 

The major dietary sources of PCBs are fish 

(especially sportfish that were caught in 

contaminated lakes or rivers), meat, and dairy 

products. Between 1978 and 1991, the estimated 

daily intake of PCBs in adults from dietary sources 

declined from about 1.9 nanograms (a nanogram is 

a billionth part of a gram) to less than 0.7 

nanograms. PCB levels in sportfish are still high 

enough so that eating PCB-contaminated fish may 

be an important source of exposure for some 

people. Recent studies on fish indicate maximum 

concentrations of PCBs are a few parts of PCBs in a 

million parts (ppm) of fish, with higher levels found 

in bottom-feeders such as carp. Meat and dairy 

products are other important sources of PCBs in 

food, with PCB levels in meat and dairy products 

usually ranging from less than 1 part in a billion 

parts (ppb) of food to a few ppb. 

Concentrations of PCBs in subsurface soil at a 

Superfund site have been as high as 750 ppm. 

People who live near hazardous waste sites may be 

exposed to PCBs by consuming PCB-contaminated 

sportfish and game animals, by breathing PCBs in 

air, or by drinking PCB-contaminated well water. 

Adults and children may come into contact with 

PCBs when swimming in contaminated water and 

by accidentally swallowing water during swimming. 

However, both of these exposures are far less 

serious than exposures from ingesting PCBcontaminated food (particularly sportfish and 

wildlife) or from breathing PCB-contaminated air. 

Workplace exposure to PCBs can occur during 

repair and maintenance of PCB transformers; 

accidents, fires, or spills involving PCB 

transformers and older computers and instruments; 

and disposal of PCB materials. In addition to older 

electrical instruments and fluorescent lights that 

contain PCB-filled capacitors, caulking materials, 

elastic sealants, and heat insulation have also been 

known to contain PCBs. Contact with PCBs at 

hazardous waste sites can happen when workers 

breathe air and touch soil containing PCBs. 

Exposure in the contaminated workplace occurs 

mostly by breathing air containing PCBs and by 

touching substances that contain PCBs. 

DEPARTMENT of HEALTH AND HUMAN SERVICES, Public Health Service
 

Agency for Toxic Substances and Disease Registry 

www.atsdr.cdc.gov/ Telephone: 1-888-422-8737 Fax: 770-488-4178 E-Mail: atsdric@cdc.gov 
 

 

 

 

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PUBLIC HEALTH STATEMENT 

POLYCHLORINATED BIPHENYLS (PCBS) 

Division of Toxicology November 2000 

1.4 HOW CAN POLYCHLORINATED 

BIPHENYLS (PCBs) ENTER AND LEAVE 

MY BODY? 

If you breathe air that contains PCBs, they can enter 

your body through your lungs and pass into the 

bloodstream. We do not know how fast or how 

much of the PCBs that are breathed will pass into 

the blood. A common way for PCBs to enter your 

body is by eating meat or fish products or other 

foods that contain PCBs. Exposure from drinking 

water is less than from food. It is also possible that 

PCBs can enter your body by breathing indoor air 

or by skin contact in buildings that have the kinds of 

old electrical devices that contain and can leak 

PCBs. For people living near waste sites or 

processing or storage facilities, and for people who 

work with or around PCBs, the most likely ways 

that PCBs will enter their bodies are from skin 

contact with contaminated soil and from breathing 

PCB vapors. Once PCBs are in your body, some 

may be changed by your body into other related 

chemicals called metabolites. Some metabolites of 

PCBs may have the potential to be as harmful as 

some unchanged PCBs. Some of the metabolites 

may leave your body in the feces in a few days, but 

others may remain in your body fat for months. 

Unchanged PCBs may also remain in your body and 

be stored for years mainly in the fat and liver, but 

smaller amounts can be found in other organs as 

well. PCBs collect in milk fat and can enter the 

bodies of infants through breast-feeding. 

1.5 HOW CAN POLYCHLORINATED 

BIPHENYLS (PCBs) AFFECT MY HEALTH? 

Many studies have looked at how PCBs can affect 

human health. Some of these studies investigated 

people exposed in the workplace, and others have 

examined members of the general population. Skin 

conditions, such as acne and rashes, may occur in 

people exposed to high levels of PCBs. These 

effects on the skin are well documented, but are not 

likely to result from exposures in the general 

population. Most of the human studies have many 

shortcomings, which make it difficult for scientists 

to establish a clear association between PCB 

exposure levels and health effects. Some studies in 

workers suggest that exposure to PCBs may also 

cause irritation of the nose and lungs, 

gastrointestinal discomfort, changes in the blood 

and liver, and depression and fatigue. Workplace 

concentrations of PCBs, such as those in areas 

where PCB transformers are repaired and 

maintained, are higher than levels in other places, 

such as air in buildings that have electrical devices 

containing PCBs or in outdoor air, including air at 

hazardous waste sites. Most of the studies of health 

effects of PCBs in the general population examined 

children of mothers who were exposed to PCBs. 

The possible health effects of PCBs in children are 

discussed in Section 1.6. 

To protect the public from the harmful effects of 

toxic chemicals and to find ways to treat people 

who have been harmed, scientists use many tests. 

One way to see if a chemical will hurt people is to 

learn how the chemical is absorbed, used, and 

released by the body; for some chemicals, animal 

testing may be necessary. Animal testing may also 

be used to identify health effects such as cancer or 

birth defects. Without laboratory animals, scientists 

would lose a basic method to get information 

needed to make wise decisions to protect public 

health. Scientists have the responsibility to treat 

DEPARTMENT of HEALTH AND HUMAN SERVICES, Public Health Service
 

Agency for Toxic Substances and Disease Registry 

www.atsdr.cdc.gov/ Telephone: 1-888-422-8737 Fax: 770-488-4178 E-Mail: atsdric@cdc.gov 
 

 

 

 

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PUBLIC HEALTH STATEMENT 

POLYCHLORINATED BIPHENYLS (PCBS) 

Division of Toxicology November 2000 

research animals with care and compassion. Laws 

today protect the welfare of research animals, and 

scientists must comply with strict animal care 

guidelines. 

Rats that ate food containing large amounts of PCBs 

for short periods of time had mild liver damage, and 

some died. Rats, mice, or monkeys that ate smaller 

amounts of PCBs in food over several weeks or 

months developed various kinds of health effects, 

including anemia, acne-like skin conditions, and 

liver, stomach, and thyroid gland injuries. Other 

effects caused by PCBs in animals include 

reductions in the immune system function, 

behavioral alterations, and impaired reproduction. 

Some PCBs can mimic or block the action of 

hormones from the thyroid and other endocrine 

glands. Because hormones influence the normal 

functioning of many organs, some of the effects of 

PCBs may result from endocrine changes. PCBs are 

not known to cause birth defects. Only a small 

amount of information exists on health effects in 

animals exposed to PCBs by skin contact or 

breathing. This information indicates that liver, 

kidney, and skin damage occurred in rabbits 

following repeated skin exposures, and that a single 

exposure to a large amount of PCBs on the skin 

caused death in rabbits and mice. Breathing PCBs 

over several months also caused liver and kidney 

damage in rats and other animals, but the levels 

necessary to produce these effects were very high. 

Studies of workers provide evidence that PCBs 

were associated with certain types of cancer in 

humans, such as cancer of the liver and biliary tract. 

Rats that ate commercial PCB mixtures throughout 

their lives developed liver cancer. Based on the 

evidence for cancer in animals, the Department of 

Health and Human Services (DHHS) has stated that 

PCBs may reasonably be anticipated to be 

carcinogens. Both EPA and the International 

Agency for Research on Cancer (IARC) have 

determined that PCBs are probably carcinogenic to 

humans. 

1.6 HOW CAN POLYCHLORINATED 

BIPHENYLS (PCBs) AFFECT CHILDREN? 

This section discusses potential health effects from 

exposures during the period from conception to 

maturity at 18 years of age in humans. 

Children are exposed to PCBs in the same way as 

are adults: by eating contaminated food, breathing 

indoor air in buildings that have electrical devices 

containing PCBs, and drinking contaminated water. 

Because of their smaller weight, children’s intake of 

PCBs per kilogram of body weight may be greater 

than that of adults. In addition, a child’s diet often 

differs from that of adults. A Food and Drug 

Administration (FDA) study in 1991 estimated 

dietary intakes of PCBs for infants (6 months) and 

toddlers (2 years) of less than 0.001 and 0.002 

μg/kg/day. Children who live near hazardous waste 

sites may accidentally eat some PCBs through 

hand-to-mouth behavior, such as by putting dirty 

hands or other soil/dirt covered objects in their 

mouths, or eating without washing their hands. 

Some children also eat dirt on purpose; this 

behavior is called pica. Children could also be 

exposed by playing with old appliances or electrical 

devices that contain PCBs. 

It is possible that children could be exposed to 

PCBs following transport of the chemical on 

clothing from the parent’s workplace to the home. 

DEPARTMENT of HEALTH AND HUMAN SERVICES, Public Health Service
 

Agency for Toxic Substances and Disease Registry 

www.atsdr.cdc.gov/ Telephone: 1-888-422-8737 Fax: 770-488-4178 E-Mail: atsdric@cdc.gov 
 

 

 

 

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PUBLIC HEALTH STATEMENT 

POLYCHLORINATED BIPHENYLS (PCBS) 

Division of Toxicology November 2000 

House dust in homes of workers exposed to PCBs 

contained higher than average levels of PCBs. PCBs 

have also been found on the clothing of firefighters 

following transformer fires. The most likely way 

infants will be exposed is from breast milk that 

contains PCBs. Fetuses in the womb are also 

exposed from the exposed mother. 

In one study of women exposed to relatively high 

concentrations of PCBs in the workplace during 

pregnancy, their babies weighed slightly less at 

birth than babies born to women exposed to lower 

concentrations of PCBs. Studies of women who 

consumed high amounts of fish contaminated with 

PCBs and other chemicals also had babies that 

weighed less than babies from women who did not 

eat fish. Similar observations have been made in 

some studies of women with no known high 

exposure to PCBs, but not all studies have 

confirmed these findings. Babies born to women 

who ate fish contaminated with PCBs before and 

during pregnancy showed abnormal responses to 

tests of infant behavior. Some of these behaviors, 

such as problems with motor skills and a decrease 

in short-term memory, persisted for several years. 

However, in these studies, the women may have 

been exposed to other chemicals. Other studies 

suggest that the immune system may be affected in 

children born to and nursed by mothers exposed to 

increased levels of PCBs. There are no reports of 

structural birth defects in humans caused by 

exposure to PCBs or of health effects of PCBs in 

older children. It is not known whether PCB 

exposure can cause in skin acne and rashes in 

children as occurs in some adults, although it is 

likely that the same effects would occur at very high 

PCB exposure levels. 

Animal studies have shown harmful effects in the 

behavior of very young animals when their mothers 

were exposed to PCBs and they were exposed in the 

womb or by nursing. In addition, some animal 

studies suggest that exposure to PCBs causes an 

increased incidence of prenatal death and changes 

in the immune system, thyroid, and reproductive 

organs. Studies in monkeys showed that young 

animals developed skin effects from nursing after 

their mothers were exposed to PCBs. Some studies 

indicate that very high doses of PCBs may cause 

structural birth defects in animals. 

Children can be exposed to PCBs both prenatally 

and from breast milk. PCBs are stored in the 

mother’s body and can be released during 

pregnancy, cross the placenta, and enter fetal 

tissues. Because PCBs dissolve readily in fat, they 

can accumulate in breast milk fat and be transferred 

to babies and young children. PCBs have been 

measured in umbilical cord blood and in breast 

milk. Some studies have estimated that an infant 

who is breast fed for 6 months may accumulate in 

this period 6–12% of the total PCBs that will 

accumulate during its lifetime. However, in most 

cases, the benefits of breast-feeding outweigh any 

risks from exposure to PCBs in mother’s milk. You 

should consult your health care provider if you have 

any concerns about PCBs and breast feeding. 

Because the brain, nervous system, immune system, 

thyroid, and reproductive organs are still developing 

in the fetus and child, the effects of PCBs on these 

target systems may be more profound after 

exposure during the prenatal and neonatal periods, 

making fetuses and children more susceptible to 

PCBs than adults. 

DEPARTMENT of HEALTH AND HUMAN SERVICES, Public Health Service
 

Agency for Toxic Substances and Disease Registry 

www.atsdr.cdc.gov/ Telephone: 1-888-422-8737 Fax: 770-488-4178 E-Mail: atsdric@cdc.gov 
 

 

 

 

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PUBLIC HEALTH STATEMENT 

POLYCHLORINATED BIPHENYLS (PCBS) 

Division of Toxicology November 2000 

1.7 HOW CAN FAMILIES REDUCE THEIR 

RISK OF EXPSOURE TO 

POLYCHLORINATED BIPHENYLS (PCBs)? 

If your doctor finds that you have been exposed to 

significant amounts of polychlorinated biphenyls, 

ask whether your children might also be exposed. 

Your doctor might need to ask your state health 

department to investigate. 

You and your children may be exposed to PCBs by 

eating fish or wildlife caught from contaminated 

locations. Certain states, Native American tribes, 

and U.S. territories have issued fish and wildlife 

advisories to warn people about PCB-contaminated 

fish and fish-eating wildlife. These advisories will 

tell you what types and sizes of fish and game 

animals are of concern. An advisory may 

completely ban eating fish or game or tell you to 

limit your meals of a certain fish or game type. For 

example, an advisory may tell you not to eat a 

certain type of fish or game more than once a 

month. The advisory may tell you only to eat certain 

parts of the fish or game and how to prepare or cook 

the fish or game to decrease your exposure to PCBs. 

The fish or wildlife advisory may have special 

restrictions to protect pregnant women, nursing 

mothers, and young children. To reduce your 

children’s exposure to PCBs, obey these advisories. 

Additional information on fish and wildlife 

advisories for PCBs, including states that have 

advisories, is provided in Chapter 6 (Section 6.7) 

and Chapter 8 of the toxicological profile. You can 

consult your local and state health departments or 

state natural resources department on how to obtain 

PCB advisories, as well as other important 

information, such as types of fish and wildlife and 

the locations that the advisories apply to. 

Children should be told that they should not play 

with old appliances, electrical equipment, or 

transformers, since they may contain PCBs. 

Children who live near hazardous waste sites should 

be discouraged from playing in the dirt near these 

sites and should not play in areas where there was a 

transformer fire. In addition, children should be 

discouraged from eating dirt, and careful 

handwashing practices should be followed. 

As mentioned in Section 1.3 of the profile, 

workplace exposure to PCBs can still occur during 

repair and maintenance of old PCB transformers; 

accidents, fires, or spills involving these 

transformers or other PCB-containing items; and 

disposal of PCB materials. If you are exposed to 

PCBs in the workplace, it may be possible to carry 

them home from work. Your occupational health 

and safety officer at work can tell you whether the 

chemicals you work with may contain PCBs and are 

likely to be carried home on your clothes, body, or 

tools. If this is the case, you should shower and 

change clothing before leaving work, and your work 

clothes should be kept separate from other clothes 

and laundered separately. 

1.8 IS THERE A MEDICAL TEST TO 

DETERMINE WHETHER I HAVE BEEN 

EXPOSED TO POLYCHLORINATED 

BIPHENYLS (PCBs)? 

Levels of PCBs in the environment were zero 

before PCBs were manufactured. Now, all people in 

industrial countries have some PCBs in their bodies. 

There are tests to determine whether PCBs are in 

the blood, body fat, and breast milk. These are not 

regular or routine clinical tests, such as the one for 

DEPARTMENT of HEALTH AND HUMAN SERVICES, Public Health Service
 

Agency for Toxic Substances and Disease Registry 

www.atsdr.cdc.gov/ Telephone: 1-888-422-8737 Fax: 770-488-4178 E-Mail: atsdric@cdc.gov 
 

 

 

 

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PUBLIC HEALTH STATEMENT 

POLYCHLORINATED BIPHENYLS (PCBS) 

Division of Toxicology November 2000 

cholesterol, but could be ordered by a doctor to 

detect PCBs in people exposed to them in the 

environment and at work. If your PCB levels are 

higher than the background levels, this will show 

that you have been exposed to high levels of PCBs. 

However, these measurements cannot determine the 

exact amount or type of PCBs that you have been 

exposed to, or how long you have been exposed. 

Although these tests can indicate whether you have 

been exposed to PCBs to a greater extent than the 

general population, they do not predict whether you 

will develop harmful health effects. Blood tests are 

the easiest, safest, and probably the best method for 

detecting recent exposures to large amounts of 

PCBs. Results of such tests should be reviewed and 

carefully interpreted by physicians with a 

background in environmental and occupational 

medicine. Nearly everyone has been exposed to 

PCBs because they are found throughout the 

environment, and people are likely to have 

detectable amounts of PCBs in their blood, fat, and 

breast milk. Recent studies have shown that PCB 

levels in tissues from United States population are 

now declining. 

1.9 WHAT RECOMMENDATIONS HAS THE 

FEDERAL GOVERNMENT MADE TO 

PROTECT HUMAN HEALTH? 

The federal government develops regulations and 

recommendations to protect public health . 

Regulations can be enforced by law. Federal 

agencies that develop regulations for toxic 

substances include the Environmental Protection 

Agency (EPA), the Occupational Safety and Health 

Administration (OSHA), and the Food and Drug 

Administration (FDA). Recommendations provide 

valuable guidelines to protect public health but 

cannot be enforced by law. Federal organizations 

that develop recommendations for toxic substances 

include the Agency for Toxic Substances and 

Disease Registry (ATSDR) and the National 

Institute for Occupational Safety and Health 

(NIOSH). 

Regulations and recommendations can be expressed 

in not-to-exceed levels in air, water, soil, or food 

that are usually based on levels that affect animals; 

then they are adjusted to help protect people. 

Sometimes these not-to-exceed levels differ among 

federal organizations because of different exposure 

times (an 8-hour workday or a 24-hour day), the use 

of different animal studies, or other factors. 

Recommendations and regulations are periodically 

updated as more information becomes available. 

For the most current information, check with the 

federal agency or organization that provides it. 

Some regulations and recommendations for PCBs 

include the following: 

The EPA standard for PCBs in drinking water is 0.5 

parts of PCBs per billion parts (ppb) of water. For 

the protection of human health from the possible 

effects of drinking the water or eating the fish or 

shellfish from lakes and streams that are 

contaminated with PCBs, the EPA regulates that the 

level of PCBs in these waters be no greater than 

0.17 parts of PCBs per trillion parts (ppt) of water. 

States with fish and wildlife consumption advisories 

for PCBs are identified in Chapter 6 (Section 6.7) 

and Chapter 8 of the toxicological profile. 

The FDA has set residue limits for PCBs in various 

foods to protect from harmful health effects. FDA 

required limits include 0.2 parts of PCBs per 

million parts (ppm) in infant and junior foods, 0.3 

ppm in eggs, 1.5 ppm in milk and other dairy 

DEPARTMENT of HEALTH AND HUMAN SERVICES, Public Health Service
 

Agency for Toxic Substances and Disease Registry 

www.atsdr.cdc.gov/ Telephone: 1-888-422-8737 Fax: 770-488-4178 E-Mail: atsdric@cdc.gov 
 

 

 

 

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PUBLIC HEALTH STATEMENT 

POLYCHLORINATED BIPHENYLS (PCBS) 

Division of Toxicology November 2000 

products (fat basis), 2 ppm in fish and shellfish 

(edible portions), and 3 ppm in poultry and red meat 

(fat basis). 

OSHA regulates that workers not be exposed by 

inhalation over a period of 8 hours for 5 days per 

week to more than 1 milligram per cubic meter of 

air (mg/m3) for 42% chlorine PCBs, or to 0.5 mg/m3 

for 54% chlorine PCBs. 

NIOSH recommends that workers not breathe air 

containing 42 or 54% chlorine PCB levels higher 

than 1 microgram per cubic meter of air (μg/m3) for 

a 10-hour workday, 40-hour workweek. 

EPA requires that companies that transport, store, or 

dispose of PCBs follow the rules and regulations of 

the federal hazardous waste management program. 

EPA also limits the amount of PCBs put into 

publicly owned waste water treatment plants. To 

minimize exposure of people to PCBs, EPA 

requires that industry tell the National Response 

Center each time 1 pound or more of PCBs have 

been released to the environment. 

1.10 WHERE CAN I GET MORE 

INFORMATION? 

If you have any more questions or concerns, please 

contact your community or state health or 

environmental quality department or: 

Agency for Toxic Substances and Disease Registry 

Division of Toxicology 

1600 Clifton Road NE, Mailstop F-32 

Atlanta, GA 30333 

Information line and technical assistance: 

Phone: 888-422-8737 

FAX: (770)-488-4178 

ATSDR can also tell you the location of 

occupational and environmental health clinics. 

These clinics specialize in recognizing, evaluating, 

and treating illnesses resulting from exposure to 

hazardous substances. 

To order toxicological profiles, contact: 

National Technical Information Service 

5285 Port Royal Road 

Springfield, VA 22161 

Phone: 800-553-6847 or 703-605-6000 

Reference 

Agency for Toxic Substances and Disease Registry 

(ATSDR). 2000. Toxicological profile for 

polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs). Atlanta, GA: 

U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, 

Public Health Service. 

DEPARTMENT of HEALTH AND HUMAN SERVICES, Public Health Service
 

Agency for Toxic Substances and Disease Registry 

www.atsdr.cdc.gov/ Telephone: 1-888-422-8737 Fax: 770-488-4178 E-Mail: atsdric@cdc.gov