Toxics in Our Waterways: 6PPD-quinone

Did you know that there are tens of thousands of tires in Puget Sound and its surrounding waterways? Some were illegally dumped, others were intentionally sunk, and still others were used for engineering purposes, like shoreline revetments.  

Read the full story below, written by Puget Soundkeeper’s Communications Manager Nicole Loeffler-Gladstone.

Photo: Tires used as an embankment along the Duwamish River. Courtesy Puget Soundkeeper

Did you know that there are tens of thousands of tires in Puget Sound and its surrounding waterways? Some were illegally dumped, others were intentionally sunk, and still others were used for engineering purposes, like shoreline revetments.  

The Washington Department of Natural Resources is poised to remove up to 14,969 1970s- and 1980s-era sunken tires from a total of 12.51 acres in Puget Sound’s subtidal zone. These tires were originally intended to create artificial reefs. Removals will take place at four State-owned Aquatic Lands sites: Tolmie State Park, Burfoot County Park, Frey Cove County Park in Thurston County, and Case Inlet in Mason County.  

What might have seemed like a good idea—innovative, even—40 years ago has turned into a costly and challenging cleanup process. Removing waste tires from our environment is an important step toward addressing and eventually controlling the presence of 6PPD-quinone in our waterways.  

Tires and 6PPD-quinone  

Every day, rain or shine, toxic pollutants collect on our streets. These pollutants include microplastics, heavy metals from industrial runoff, excessive nutrients from lawn fertilizers, trash, tire particles, and other sources.  

Local waterways often act as drainage for urban areas and when it rains, pollutants are washed into our waters. All pose environmental and public health threats, but in 2020 local researchers identified 6PPD-quinone from tire particles as the specific chemical killing coho.  

This chemical derives from 6PPD, a standard tire preservative, when it interacts with sunlight and air. 6PPD prolongs the life of a tire and research is underway in the tire manufacturing industry to find an alternative preservation method.  

Photo: Salmon in Longfellow Creek, where Puget Soundkeeper tracks coho salmon mortality. Courtesy Tom Reese. 

Public Health Concerns  

Chemicals tend to be approved for use in our homes, on our food, and throughout the ecosystem before they're shown to be safe. In fact, our systems often allow chemicals to be used even after they're shown to cause harm, like lead, PCBs, and PFAS.  

6PPD was recently designated as a priority chemical under Washington’s Safer Products for WA program and Toxic Pollution law. Safer Products for WA works to reduce the use of toxic chemicals in consumer products through restrictions, replacements, and pathways to keep chemicals out of the environment. Aligning 6PPD under this program means that the Department of Ecology can start its multi-phase regulatory process. 

Tracking Waste Tires  

Washington State deals with about 100,00 tons of waste tires annually, and many of these tires are illegally dumped in our waterways.  

Puget Soundkeeper became concerned about this issue after researching the secondary tire market. Tire rubber has many common secondary uses, like boat bumpers and turf for horse tracks. Secondary markets, extended use, and reuse often help reduce our waste footprint. But tire rubber continues to leak 6PPD-quinone into the environment as long as it remains exposed to air and sunlight. 

Washington lawmakers and agencies need more information about the secondary tire market in our state. Soundkeeper and our partners worked together during the 2024 legislative session to help secure funding for further study. This includes $300,000 to support the Department of Ecology’s review of waste tires in Washington:  

• Where these tires go after they come off vehicles 

• The current market for waste tires 

• State policies that impact this market 

• A description of which sectors and regions waste tires end up in 

• Alternatives to using tire-derived rubber. 

Soundkeeper was also able to work with Kenmore Air to successfully advocate for $300,000 in funding toward removing tire bumpers on floatplane docks on salmon-bearing waterways. This money will be administered by the Department of Natural Resources and will help reduce 6PPD-quinone point source pollution by supplementing existing tire removal. 

Legacy Debris  

Car tires are a great example of “legacy debris,” or large debris that stays in the environment for a long time. Legacy debris can also include things like appliances, tires, fishing gear, and construction waste. Legacy tire debris is often embedded in mud or other sediment. It can be difficult and dangerous to remove large debris, especially when it is embedded in sensitive habitat areas and/or toxic sediment.  

Puget Soundkeeper’s Salmon & Legacy Debris project, funded through a Washington Department of Ecology Public Participation Grant, deals with tires and other legacy debris in the Duwamish and Green River. Do you want to learn about legacy debris in your neighborhood? Check out our map, and report pollution. Need support disposing of tires? We compiled a list of helpful resources, including licensed waste haulers.  

From Anna Bachmann, Salmon & Legacy Debris project manager and Puget Soundkeeper Clean Water Program Director: “Legacy debris reminds us of a time when we treated our rivers like dumping grounds. Now, we have an opportunity to remedy that relationship by cleaning up the river and protecting it for generations to come.” 

Our neighborhoods and ecosystems should be healthy places to live, and our public spaces should be free of toxic pollution. Join us as we remove legacy debris today, for a more resilient future. 

The Fight to Finalize Washington Water Quality Standards

On May 13, 2020, the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) revoked its own rules when it reversed a 2016 decision that set strong water protection standards for toxic pollution in fish.

Read the full story below, written by Puget Soundkeeper’s Communications Manager Nicole Loeffler-Gladstone.

Photo: Lost Urban Creeks’ youth program engaging in water quality monitoring projects across Puget Sound. Courtesy Puget Soundkeeper.

On May 13, 2020, the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) revoked its own rules when it reversed a 2016 decision that set strong water protection standards for toxic pollution in fish.

EPA’s about-face on water quality standards was the latest in a long string of Trump Administration attacks on the Clean Water Act and other regional and national environmental protections. It would have gutted Washington’s existing standards and paved the way for industry to discharge higher levels of toxic pollution into state waters, threatening communities that rely on locally caught fish, and the salmon and Southern Resident orcas that rely on clean water to survive.

Background

The Clean Water Act is intended to eliminate pollution discharges into waterways and provide a federal backstop for states’ water quality standards. These protections include “fishable” waters and, subsequently, the health of people who eat fish and shellfish. Water quality standards are a critical tool at the state level for reducing pollution and protecting public health.

In November 2016, after years of research, engagement from Tribal nations, and public comment—and ultimately compelled by court order—EPA finalized a set of updated water quality standards. EPA found these standards necessary to protect all Washington residents from multiple toxics that accumulate in fish tissue, including mercury, arsenic, PCBs, lead, and various industrial chemicals, many of which are known carcinogens.

EPA’s rule on levels of toxic pollution in fish was particularly impactful for Tribal members and other Indigenous people who are often the highest consumers of local fish and shellfish.

Industry Pushback

In 2017, groups representing pulp and paper manufacturers, the Washington Farm Bureau, and Boeing, filed a petition with the Trump Administration to rescind these protective standards. The 2020 rollback on Washington State’s water quality standards was the administration’s response.

In June 2020, the Makah Tribe, Columbia Riverkeeper, Puget Soundkeeper, RE Sources, Spokane Riverkeeper, Pacific Coast Federation of Fishermen’s Associations, and the Institute for Fisheries Resources, represented by Earthjustice, sued the Trump administration’s EPA for issuing a final rule imposing significantly less protective water quality standards.

“The degradation of water quality standards is a direct assault on the Makah Tribe’s rights reserved under the 1855 Treaty of Neah Bay and constitutes a direct attack on our sovereign interests and our way of life,” Makah Tribal Council Chairman T.J. Greene, Sr. said at the time. “Fish and other seafoods have always been fundamental to our diet, economy and culture. Our people require safe water and seafood to survive. We absolutely oppose the EPA’s actions and the agency’s failure to meaningfully consult with the Tribe in its decisions.”

Photos: Lost Urban Creeks’ youth program engaging in water quality monitoring projects across Puget Sound. Courtesy Puget Soundkeeper.

Stronger Water Quality Rule Instated—But Not Strong Enough

In 2022, the EPA issued a final rule on Washington Water Quality Standards and returned to the 2016 standards intended to protect people from toxic pollution.

The final rule is based on solid science, but the work to protect Washington’s fishable waters and the communities that depend on fish and shellfish is far from over. EPA must continue with separate and prompt action to establish criteria for Perfluorooctanesulfonic acid (PFOS) and Perfluorooctanoic acid (PFOA), especially if Washington’s Department of Ecology fails to quickly address these toxic, bioacumulative pollutants.

Fishable Waters and Environmental Justice

Tribal members, Asian and Pacific Islanders, and recreational fishers in Washington eat significantly higher amounts of fish and shellfish compared to other populations. Commercial fishing families also eat higher-than-average amounts of seafood. These groups are more at risk when water quality standards are laxed.

In Washington, harvesting and eating fish is a “designated use” of our waters. This means it must be protected by water quality standards under the federal Clean Water Act. Washington State’s history, culture, and character are deeply connected to salmon and salmon fishing, resident fisheries, and shellfish harvest. EPA’s finalized rule for Washington water quality and human health reflects standards based on local use, local pollution issues, and local fish consumption.

Bioaccumulation vs. Biomagnification

Continuing with our previous post, “toxics vs. toxins”, Orca Action Month will be focusing today on bioaccumulation vs. biomagnification, and the difference between the two.

Read the full story below, written by Orca Month designer Rosemary Connelli.

Photo: Bioaccumulation of toxics in Southern Resident Orcas ©Defenders of Wildlife.

Bioaccumulation

Bioaccumulation occurs when pollutants enter the food web and build up in organisms over time. For example, a fish living in a polluted lake will absorb that pollution from the water and the chemicals will accumulate in the fish’s tissue.

Biomagnification

Biomagnification occurs when pollutants move up the food chain and become increasingly concentrated in organisms at higher trophic levels. Top predators like Southern Residents eat large amounts of prey, many of which have already accumulated pollutants. The more contaminated prey an orca eats, the more pollutants it will have in its body. 

In both processes, chemical concentration increases because organisms cannot break down or excrete these persistent substances as quickly as they are absorbed.

To also learn more about contaminants of concern, check out Defenders of Wildlife’s article “Clean Water, Healthy Futures: Why Saving Orcas Means Saving Us”: https://defenders.org/blog/2024/04/clean-water-healthy-futures-why-saving-orcas-means-saving-us

Sources:

• https://www.acs.org/education/whatischemistry/landmarks/rachel-carson-silent-spring/rachel-carson-poster.html#:~:text=Bioaccumulation%20is%20the%20buildup%20of,organism%20up%20the%20food%20chain.

• https://www.epa.gov/sites/default/files/documents/bioaccumulationbiomagnificationeffects.pdf 

• https://www.fisheries.noaa.gov/feature-story/toxic-killer-whales