Occurrence and assessment of perfluorinated chemicals in wild fish from Northern Germany

Residues of the perfluorinated chemicals perfluorooctanesulfonate (PFOS) and perfluorooctanoicacid (PFOA) were investigated in wild fish caught from different German waters including the North and the Baltic Sea, Lake Storkow in Brandenburg, several rivers in Lower Saxony, and rivers and lakes in the city of Berlin. The sample locations represent waters with no, low, medium and high portions of treated municipal sewage discharges. The investigated fish filet samples included 51 wild eels, 44 bream, 5 herring, 5 mackerel, 3 carp and 4 trout. PFOA was not found in any of the investigated samples above the limit of quantitation of 0.27 μg kg−1 fresh weight (fw.), whereas PFOS was detected with concentrations up to 225 μg kg−1 fw. PFOS was found in the filet samples caught from densely populated regions at levels between 8.2 and 225 μg kg−1 fw. In samples from marine or remote locations, PFOS was not detected or only detected at levels up to 50.8 μg kg−1 fw. To date, a tolerable daily intake (TDI) for PFOS and PFOA has or could not finally be fixed by any official national or international organization. A provisional TDI of 150 μg kg−1 body weight per day has, however, been proposed by the European Food Safety Authority to be used for a provisional risk assessment. Thus, the detected residues of PFOS found in 33 out of 112 examined fish samples might be classified as potential risks for the health of consumers with elevated fish consumption.