STATUS AND TRENDS OF PERSISTENT ORGANIC POLLUTANTS IN THE GLOBAL ENVIRONMENT

摘要

Man-made chemicals such as chlorinated, brominated and fluorinated compounds are well known global environmental pollutants. The residues of these compounds are known/suspected to persist in the global environment for decades and even centuries. Since these compounds elicit chronic toxic effects in wildlife and humans, long-trend monitoring studies are essential in order to understand the status of environmental contamination by these compounds and to prevent further contamination and toxic health effects. Classical chlorinated compounds such as DDTs and PCBs contaminate the environment and then enter the food chain and it takes long time to reach highest trophic level organisms such as humans in the terrestrial environment and marine mammals in the aquatic environment. However, emerging new pollutants such as PBDEs, PFCs, pharmaceutical and personal care products, nanomaterials etc., the exposure pathway is different from organochlorines. Most emerging pollutants arise from materials that are being used indoor and human exposure to these compounds is direct and through food chain. This overview presents historical, present status and future trends of global environmental contamination by classical organochlorines and emerging new pollutants.