Bioaccumulation

Japanese: 生物濃縮 - せいぶつのうしゅく

The phenomenon and process by which a certain substance accumulates in the body of an organism at a higher concentration than in the surrounding environment. Bioaccumulation often occurs through ingestion, and it is particularly problematic when harmful substances are highly concentrated in the bodies of predators higher up the food chain. Harmful substances discharged into the environment by humans, such as organochlorine compounds such as DDT and PCBs, can accumulate in high concentrations in seals, but this naturally causes great damage to humans, who are at the top of the predator chain. A frightening example of this is Minamata disease, which occurred when methylmercury in factory wastewater was concentrated and accumulated in fish and shellfish through the food chain. It is important to note that various harmful substances, such as radioactive substances, can pose great danger through this mechanism, even if they are discharged into the environment in low concentrations. In the major accident at Tokyo Electric Power Company's Fukushima Daiichi Nuclear Power Plant in March 2011, large amounts of highly radioactive contaminated water was released into the ocean, and TEPCO released large amounts of low-concentration contaminated water out of fear that the contaminated water accumulated on the site would become saturated. It is necessary to monitor how fish and shellfish are being concentrated and accumulated, not only domestically but also internationally.
→Related topicsMarine pollution | Garbage pollution

Source : Heibonsha Encyclopedia About MyPedia Information

Japanese:

生物の体内に，ある特定の物質が外囲環境より高濃度となって蓄積される現象，およびその過程。生物濃縮の経路は摂食により体内にとりこまれることが多く，有害物質が食物連鎖を通じてより上位の捕食者の体内により高度に濃縮されることがとくに問題となる。人間が環境に排出した有害物質は，こうしてたとえばDDTやPCBなどの有機塩素系化合物がアザラシなどに高濃度に蓄積されることにもなるが，捕食関係の最上位にいる人間に当然大きなダメージを与える。水俣病が，工場排水中のメチル水銀が食物連鎖を通じて魚貝に濃縮蓄積されたことにより発生したことは，そのおそるべき実例である。放射性物質など，さまざまな有害物質は，たとえ環境への排出が低濃度であっても，このメカニズムを通じて大きな危険をもたらす場合があることに注意する必要がある。2011年３月の東京電力福島第一原発の大事故で，高濃度の放射能汚染水が大量に海洋に流出，また敷地内にたまった汚染水が飽和状態になるのを恐れて，東電は大量の低濃度汚染水を放出した。魚貝類の濃縮蓄積がどのようになされるか，国内のみならず国際的な監視が必要とされている。
→関連項目海洋汚染｜ごみ公害

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