Canadian Journal of Pure & Applied Sciences

Abstract: Pakistan has a great variety of natural and manmade wetlands, and 19 Ramsar Sites are designated as internationally important wetlands, with a unique variety of aquatic and bird biodiversity. In the present study, a baseline study was conducted for the evaluation of estrogenic activities in the waters of three Ramsar Sites and one Creek areas. Among the selected study points of Indus Dolphin Wetland (study point1), Indus Dolphin (study point 2), Kinjhar Wetland (study point1), Kinjhar Wetland (study point 2), Haleji Wetland (study point 1), Haleji Wetland (study point 2), Creek areas (study point1) and Creek area (study point 2). During the study, selected points were surveyed two times i.e. in summer and winter, and water samples were collected in the 2nd week of November 2006 and 3rd week of May 2007. In-Vitro Yeast Estrogenic Screen (YES) assays techniques were used to evaluate the estrogenic activities in the water samples. Estrogenic activity recorded in the November 2006 samples of the Indus Dolphin Wetland (study point 1) was 9.31 ng/L estradiol equivalents and of the Kinjhar (study Point1) was 2.77 ng/L estradiol equivalents. In the samples collected in May 2007, the estrogenic activity found in the Indus Dolphin Wetland (study point1) was 3.14 ng/L estradiol equivalents, in the Indus Dolphin (study point 2) was 4.54 ng/L estradiol equivalents, in the Haleji Wetland (study pont1) was 1.4 ng/L estradiol equivalents, while in the Creek areas (study point1) was 7.89 ng/L estradiol equivalents and in the Creek areas (study point 2) was 2.93 ng/L estradiol equivalents. Results of this baseline study have indicated that the wetlands under study are more polluted in summer than in winter.