| dc.description.abstract |
Contamination of persistent organochlorines (OCs) such as PCBs (polychlorinated biphenyls),
DDT and its metabolites (DDTs), HCH (hexachlorocyclohexane) isomers (HCHs), chlordane compounds
(CHLs), and HCB (hexachlorobenzene) were examined in mussels collected from coastal waters of Asian
countries such as Cambodia, China, Hong Kong, India, Indonesia, Japan, Korea, Malaysia, Philippines, Far
East Russia, Singapore, and Vietnam in 1994, 1997, 1998, 1999, and 2001 to elucidate the contamination
status, distribution and possible pollution sources and to assess the risks on aquatic organisms and human.
OCs were detected in all mussels collected from all the sampling sites investigated. Considerable residue
levels of p,p?-DDT and ?-HCH were found in mussels and the concentrations of DDTs and HCHs found in
mussels from Asian developing countries were higher than those in developed nations suggesting present
usage of DDTs and HCHs along the coastal waters of Asian developing countries. On the other hand, lower
concentrations of PCBs detected in mussels from Asian developing countries than those in developed
countries indicate that PCBs contamination in mussels is strongly related to industrial and activities. To our
knowledge, this is a first comprehensive report on monitoring OCs pollution in the Asia-Pacific region. ??
2002 Elsevier Science Ltd. All rights reserved. |
vi |