Per-and polyfluoroalkyl substances, also known as PFAS or 'forever chemicals', have emerged as a threat to the health of both people and the environment. PFAS are synthetic chemicals found in a wide variety of oil and water resistant consumer products as well as firefighting foam. The ubiquity of PFAS in the environment and their solubility in water has resulted in the exposure of aquatic organisms. Bioaccumulation and biomagnification of PFAS in fish and invertebrates in freshwater ecosystems have been studied but far less is known about PFAS in marine food webs.
Celia Chen, Research Professor in the Department of Biological Sciences at Dartmouth College, and her team will investigate PFAS in the different life stages of the American Lobster (Homarus americanus), a commercially important species in the Gulf of Maine. This study will examine the fate and effects of PFAS in lobsters both inside of the Great Bay Estuary where known sources of PFAS contamination exist, and offshore in the Gulf of Maine. The results of this work will provide stakeholders with a better understanding of how PFAS impacts this crucial fishery to the region.
Principle Investigator
Celia Chen, Ph.D.
Research Professor, Department of Biological Sciences, Dartmouth College and
Co-Director, Center for Mercury Studies, Biodiversity Research Institute
celia.y.chen@dartmouth.edu
Co-Investigators
Jason Goldstein, Ph.D.
Research Director, Wells National Estuarine Research Reserve
jgoldstein@wellsnerr.org
Project Funding Cycle
2026-2027 NH Sea Grant Biennial Research Funding
Project Abstract
The overall goal of this proposed two-year study is to investigate the pattern and profiles of per-and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) bioaccumulated in different life stages of the American Lobster (Homarus americanus), an important fisheries species in the Gulf of Maine. The proposed approach will utilize field studies in Great Bay Estuary (GBE), a system that has been contaminated with PFAS from the former Pease Air Force Base, and at relatively pristine sites adjacent to Great Bay in the Gulf of Maine. The two objectives of this study will require both field and laboratory studies to investigate the fate and effects of PFAS in lobster populations inside and outside of Great Bay, NH and will include the following two objectives: Objective 1: Determine PFAS exposure and compound profiles in lobster adults and juveniles in Great Bay and offshore in the Gulf of Maine; and Objective 2: Examine impacts of PFAS on 1) survival; 2) swimming behavior (larvae only); and 3) bioaccumulation in American lobster eggs, larvae, and juveniles. These proposed studies will provide benefits to the State of New Hampshire (NH), the NH Sea Grant stakeholder community, and the scientific community by providing a more comprehensive understanding of PFAS impacts on the important lobster fishery in the region.
