Local organochlorine pesticide concentrations in soil put into a global perspective

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Authors

In this work, agricultural and background soil concentrations of p,p'-DDT, p,p'-DDE, HCB, α-, β- and γ-HCH from 1993 to 2012 were collected from 73 peer-reviewed publications, and analysed statistically. For the period 2003-2012 and for all chemicals, the mean concentration in agricultural soil is significantly higher than the concentration in background soil. In addition to the statistical analysis, concentrations of p,p'-DDT and α-HCH in soils were calculated with a global environmental fate and transport model. A decrease in the mean soil concentration from the first decade to the second was observed with the model, but this decrease is not visible in the measured concentrations, which could result from ongoing use of p,p'-DDT and α-HCH Furthermore, modelled background soil concentrations are generally lower than measurements. This implies that background soil may have received p,p'-DDT and α-HCH through additional routes not described by the model such as spray drift.

Original languageEnglish
JournalEnvironmental Pollution
Volume217
Pages (from-to)11-18
Number of pages8
ISSN0269-7491
DOIs
Publication statusPublished - 01.10.2016

    Research areas

  • Chemistry - Pesticides, POPs, Soil, Stockholm convention, Time trend