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In the 1980s, there were anecdotal reports of something fishy afoot: coho salmon near cities in the Pacific northwest were dying off at higher rates than salmon farther from the city. Since then, scientists have suspected that urban runoff was to blame, and a study published in Science last week (December 3) supports their hypothesis. Urban watersheds contain a chemical called 6PPD-quinone, which is a derivative of tire rubber and toxic to coho salmon.
The Scientist spoke with University of Washington chemical engineer Edward Kolodziej, a coauthor of the study, about the findings.
Edward Kolodziej: Anecdotal reports that urban stormwater killed coho salmon have been around since the 1980s. Beginning in the 1990s in the Seattle area, much more extensive documentation of these annual mortality phenomena started to occur. There was a research team led by Jay Davis, Nat Scholz, and Jen McIntyre, who are all coauthors ...
