PCBs: exposures, effects, remediation, and regulation with special emphasis on PCBs in schools.

The Eighth International PCB Workshop: PCBs in Schools was held in Woods Hole, MA, October 5-9, 2014, and was attended by more than 130 scientists and other interested persons, including citizen’s groups and concerned parents. The program included a wide range of thematic areas. Presentations addressed essential questions and progress toward understanding mechanisms of PCB toxication and risks of PCB exposure. Presentations were also held illuminating several key PCB contamination problems. The scientific program was kicked off Sunday evening by a fascinating historical narrative presented by John Farrington, Dean and Sr. Scientist Emeritus at the Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution, entitled “PCBs in New Bedford Harbor and Buzzards Bay: An Historical Perspective from 1970 to present” This presentation outlined the sources, discovery and distribution of the extraordinary contamination in New Bedford Harbor. There are several sources of the PCBs, as well as sources of a serious heavy metal problem in the harbor, and much litigation. The talk emphasized the interactions between Massachusetts and US federal agencies, in addressing the problem. There has been extensive work over the past 40 years to understand the effects of these PCBs, and efforts at remediation of the worst areas, which has been only partly successful. New Bedford Harbor is a good example of the persisting complexities regarding PCB contamination.