Rotenone formulation fate in Lake Davis following the 2007 treatment

In September 2007, Lake Davis (near Portola, California) was treated by the California Department of Fish and Game with CFT Legumine, a rotenone formulation, to eradicate the invasive northern pike (Esox lucius). The objective of this report is to describe the fate of the five major formulation constituents—rotenone, rotenolone, methyl pyrrolidone (MP), diethylene glycol monethyl ether (DEGEE), and Fennedefo 99—in water, sediment, and brown bullhead catfish (Ameiurus nebulosus; a rotenone-resistant species) by determination of their half-lives (t1/2) and pseudo first-order dissipation rate constants (k). The respective t1/2 values in water for rotenone, rotenolone, MP, DEGEE, and Fennedefo 99 were 5.6, 11.1, 4.6, 7.7, and 13.5 d; in sediments they were 31.1, 31.8, 10.0, not able to calculate, and 48.5 d; and in tissues were 6.1, 12.7, 3.7, 3.2, and 10.4 d, respectively. Components possessing low water solubility values (rotenone and rotenolone) persisted longer in sediments (not detectable after 157 d) and tissues (<212 d) compared with water, whereas the water-miscible components (MP and DEGEE) dissipated more quickly from all matrices, except for Fennedefo 99, which was the most persistent in water (83 d). None of the constituents was found to bioaccumulate in tissues as a result of treatment. In essence, the physicochemical properties of the chemical constituents effectively dictated their fate in the lake following treatment. Environ. Toxicol. Chem. 2012; 31: 1032–1041. © 2012 SETAC