Publications

#### Conclusions

The concentrations of FACs in the bile from harbor seals indicated varying degrees of exposure of these animals to ACs typical of petroleum, whereas the concentrations of FACs in bile from Steller sea lions indicated modest exposure. The highest concentrations of FACs in harbor seals were found in bile of visibly oiled animals from heavily oiled areas of PWS in 1989. Blubber from four harbor seals from PWS was moderately contaminated with ACs (concentrations ranged from 130 ng/g to 810 ng/g), blubber from 12 harbor seals was minimally contaminated (<100 ng/g) with ACs, and blubber from the other 15 harbor seals was not contaminated with ACs. The blubber from sea lions was not contaminated with ACs except for one sample that contained only 17 ng/g. Most of the muscle, liver, and kidney samples analyzed from harbor seals and Steller sea lions were not contaminated with ACs. 

Most invertebrates from the 22 village areas (ca. 80 sampling stations) and the two reference areas, Angoon and Yakutat, were not contaminated or were minimally contaminated with ACs. However, several of the mollusc samples from some stations at Chenega Bay, Windy Bay, Kodiak, and Old Harbor sampling areas were in category 3 and 4 (moderately to highly contaminated (>100 ng/g)). Mollusc samples from four stations in the Chenega Bay sampling area and three stations at Windy Bay were moderately or highly contaminated with ACs and the GC-MS patterns were indicative of petroleum. The pattern of ACs in a mollusc sample from a different station at Chenega Bay (CHE7) suggested that the main source of ACs may not have been from petroleum. Aromatic compounds present in samples from two Kodiak Island stations were indicative of petroleum exposure, but no time related decline suggested the source of exposure may not have been from the Exxon Valdez spill. 

Tissue samples from several species of marine invertebrates from the vicinity of the spill were moderately or highly contaminated with ACs similar to those in petroleum. However, these elevated concentrations of ACs in invertebrate samples were substantially lower than the concentrations of ACs in a sample of smoked salmon obtained from a resident at Tatitlek (23,000 ng/g).

We thank our colleagues in the National Marine Fisheries Service (NMFS) and National Ocean Service (NOS), NOAA, who provided valuable assistance and support in organizing this joint NOAA/Exxon study, including Dr. Charles Ehler, Director, Office of Oceanography and Marine Assessment (OMA/NOS), and John Robinson, Director, Hazardous Materials Response Branch (HazMat) of OMA/NOS. Other HazMat members who provided valuable liaison include Lew Consiglieri, Ann Hayward-Walker, Gary Shigenaka, and Joe Talbot. We appreciate the assistance of Dr. Richard Berry, Director, Northwest Fisheries Science Center (NWFSC/NMFS) and Dr. Tom Nighswander, Chair, Oil Spill Health Task Force. We thank Dave Schmidt, Dave Erikson, and the field biologists from Dames and Moore for field sampling. We also appreciate the support and assistance of several scientists from Alaska's Department of Fish and Game's Division of Subsistence including Dr. James Fall, Regional Program Manager, Pippa Coiley and Rita Miraglia, Oil Spill Coordinators, and Lisa Scarbrough, Chraig Mishler, Ron Stanek, and Lee Stratton who assisted in field collections. Tim Reilly of RPI International, Inc. also assisted with sample collections. Judy Meidinger and Steve Lewis, Exxon Community Liaisons, also provided valuable assistance to the sampling program. Sharon Giese and Barbara Bennett of the NWFSC publications unit provided expert review of this manuscript. The following EC Division scientists ably assisted this study in the sample analyses and the data management: Nicolaus Adams, Jill Andrews, Stacie Aspey, Lynn Berggren, Lisa Bogatzki Richard Boyer, Kristin Bryant, Todd Crawford, Tho Dang, Jennifer Fisher, Barbara French, Rebecca Hastings, Deborah Holstad, Stephanie Johansen, Thomas Merculief, Ronald Modjeski, Hannah Morris, Andrew Nalin, David Rees, Eunice Schnell, John Shields, Sylvester Spencer, Phoung Troung, and Dana Whitney.

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