Biomonitoring of Environmental Status and Trends (BEST) Program: Environmental Contaminants, Health Indicators, and Reproductive Biomarkers in Fish from the Mobile, Apalachicola-Chattahoochee-Flint, Savannah, and Pee Dee River Basins Scientific Investigations Report 2007–5176 U.S. Department of the Interior U.S. Geological Survey Cover. The U.S. map shows the Mobile, Apalachicola-Chattahoochee-Flint, Savannah, and Pee Dee River Basins (green) and stations sampled during this study (orange). Shown in gray are the major river basins and stations in the United States sampled during Biomonitoring of Environmental Status and Trends (BEST) investigations. Biomonitoring of Environmental Status and Trends (BEST) Program: Environmental Contaminants, Health Indicators, and Reproductive Biomarkers in Fish from the Mobile, Apalachicola-Chattahoochee-Flint, Savannah, and Pee Dee River Basins By Jo Ellen Hinck, Vicki S. Blazer, Nancy D. Denslow, Kathy R. Echols, Robert W. Gale, Tom W. May, Rachael Claunch, Carla Wieser, Patrick J. Anderson, James J. Coyle, Timothy S. Gross, and Donald E. Tillitt Scientific Investigations Report 2007–5176 U.S. Department of the Interior U.S. Geological Survey U.S. Department of the Interior DIRK KEMPTHORNE, Secretary U.S. Geological Survey Mark D. Myers, Director U.S. Geological Survey, Reston, Virginia: 2007 For product and ordering information: World Wide Web: http://www.usgs.gov/pubprod Telephone: 1-888-ASK-USGS For more information on the USGS--the Federal source for science about the Earth, its natural and living resources, natural hazards, and the environment: World Wide Web: http://www.usgs.gov Telephone: 1-888-ASK-USGS Any use of trade, product, or firm names is for descriptive purposes only and does not imply endorsement by the U.S. Government. Although this report is in the public domain, permission must be secured from the individual copyright owners to reproduce any copyrighted materials contained within this report. Suggested citation: Hinck, J.E., Blazer, V.S., Denslow, N.D., Echols, K.R., Gale, R.W., May, T.W., Claunch, R., Wieser, C., Anderson, P.J., Coyle, J.J., Gross, T.S., and Tillitt, D.E., 2007, Biomonitoring of Environmental Status and Trends (BEST) Program: Environmental contaminants, health indicators, and reproductive biomarkers in fish from the Mobile, Apalachicola- Chattahoochee-Flint, Savannah, and Pee Dee River Basins: U.S. Geological Survey Scientific Investigations Report 2007–5176, 114 p. iii Preface This study was conducted as part of the U.S. Geological Survey (USGS) Biomonitoring of Envi- ronmental Status and Trends (BEST) Program’s Large River Monitoring Network (LRMN). BEST evolved from previous Federal monitoring programs including the National Pesticide Monitor- ing Program (NPMP) of the 1960s, renamed the National Contaminant Biomonitoring Program (NCBP) in the early 1970s, which also screened for elemental contaminants. The U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (USFWS) participated in the NPMP and maintained the NCBP by monitoring concentrations of persistent contaminants in freshwater fish and avian wildlife through 1986 (Schmitt and others, 1999). The BEST program was initiated in the 1990s to build on informa- tion produced by these earlier programs and to provide more biologically relevant information regarding potential contaminant effects on lands and species under USFWS management. The program was transferred to the National Biological Survey in 1993 and ultimately to USGS in 1996. The LRMN has principal emphasis to identify, monitor, and assess the effects of chemical contaminants on the fish health in the nation’s large rivers. This study was one in a series of BEST-LRMN Program monitoring investigations. Previous studies include the Mississippi River Basin in 1995, the Columbia River and Rio Grande Basins in 1997, the Yukon River Basin in 2002, and the Colorado River Basin in 2003. iv Acknowledgments Staff from the U.S. Fish and Wildlife Service (USFWS) office in Daphne, Alabama (P. Tuttle, S. Floyd, A. Ford), D. Wilkins from the South Carolina Aquarium, and L. Dorsey from the North Caro- lina Wildlife Resources Commission: Division of Inland Fisheries participated in fish collections. J. Isley and T. Grabowski of the USGS-South Carolina Fish and Wildlife Research Unit at Clem- son University, Clemson, South Carolina also collected and aged the fish. D. Cartwright (Leetown Science Center; LSC), A. Donahue (Columbia Environmental Research Center; CERC), A. Griffin (LSC), A. Fazio (Florida Integrated Science Center; FISC), J. Jeran (LSC), R. Lipkin (CERC), J. Scarborough (FISC), and T. Smith (FISC) participated in field dissections. Chemical analyses were conducted by CERC Environmental Chemistry laboratories (B. Brumbaugh, K. Feltz, J. Meadows, M. Tanner, G. Tegerdine, and M. Walther). Laboratory analyses for biomarkers were performed by D. Nicks (CERC), D. Bowling (LSC), and K. Kroll (University of Florida, Gainesville, Florida). D. Bowling (LSC) and K. Spring (LSC) assisted in the histology slide preparation, and B. Martin (LSC) assisted with the macrophage aggregate evaluation. R. Lipkin and K. Chojnacki (CERC) prepared the maps. W. Bryant (USGS), S. Finger (CERC), A. Ford (USFWS), and P. Tuttle (USFWS) reviewed the report and provided additional information. v Contents Preface ...........................................................................................................................................................iii Acknowledgments ........................................................................................................................................iv Abstract ...........................................................................................................................................................1 Introduction.....................................................................................................................................................2 Southeast River Basins Overview ......................................................................................................2 Hydrology and Environmental Setting ......................................................................................2 Urban Areas and Economy ........................................................................................................4 Landownership and Land Use ...................................................................................................5 Dams ..............................................................................................................................................6 Water Quality Impairments and Fish Consumption Advisories ............................................6 Primary Sources of Contaminants to the MORB, ARB, SRB, and PDRB .....................................9 Agriculture ....................................................................................................................................9 Mining and Extractive Industries ..............................................................................................9 Industrial and Municipal Sources .............................................................................................9 Extant Sources of Information on Contaminants in the Southeast River Basins .....................11 Materials and Methods...............................................................................................................................16 Monitoring Methods Overview .........................................................................................................16 Sampling and Field Procedures .......................................................................................................20 Laboratory Analysis ............................................................................................................................20 Composite Sample Preparation ...............................................................................................21 Elemental Contaminants and Moisture Content ...................................................................21 Organochlorine Contaminants and Lipid Content ................................................................22 H4IIE Rat Hepatoma Cell Bioassay .........................................................................................22 Hepatic EROD Activity ...............................................................................................................23 Fish Health Indicators ........................................................................................................................23 General Histopathological Analyses ......................................................................................23 Quantitative Organism-Level Indicators ................................................................................23 Macrophage Aggregates .........................................................................................................23 Reproductive Biomarkers .................................................................................................................23 Gonadal Histopathology ...........................................................................................................23 Vitellogenin .................................................................................................................................24 Sex Steroid Hormones ..............................................................................................................24