High Concentrations of Organic Contaminants in Air from Ship Breaking Activities in Chittagong, Bangladesh.
The beaches on the coast of Chittagong in Bangladesh are one of the most intense ship breaking areas in the world. The aim of the study was to measure the concentrations of organic contaminants in the air in the city of Chittagong, including the surrounding ship breaking areas using passive air samplers (N = 25). The compounds detected in the highest amounts were the polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) and short-chain chlorinated paraffins (SCCPs), whereas dichlorodiphenyltrichloroethanes (DDTs), hexachlorobenzene (HCB), and polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs) were several orders of magnitude lower in comparison. PCBs, PAHs, and HCB were highest at sites near the ship breaking activities, whereas DDTs and SCCPs were higher in the urban areas. Ship breaking activities likely act as atmospheric emission sources of PCBs, PAHs, and HCB, thus adding to the international emphasis on responsible recycling of ships. Concentrations of PAHs, PCBs, DDTs, HCB, and SCCPs in ambient air in Chittagong are high in comparison to those found in similar studies performed in other parts of Asia. Estimated toxic equivalent quotients indicate elevated human health risks caused by inhalation of PAHs at most sites.
FRAM Centre, NILU-Norwegian Institute for Air Research , P.O. Box 6606 Langnes, 9296 Tromsø, Norway.
Therese H
TH
Nøst
NILU-Norwegian Institute for Air Research , P.O. Box 100, 2027 Kjeller, Norway.
Anne K
AK
Halse
NILU-Norwegian Institute for Air Research , P.O. Box 100, 2027 Kjeller, Norway.|Division of Environment, Economics and Planning, COWI AS , P.O. Box 123, 1601 Fredrikstad, Norway.
Scott
S
Randall
NILU-Norwegian Institute for Air Research , P.O. Box 100, 2027 Kjeller, Norway.
Anders R
AR
Borgen
NILU-Norwegian Institute for Air Research , P.O. Box 100, 2027 Kjeller, Norway.
Martin
M
Schlabach
Department of Geography and Environmental Studies, University of Chittagong , 4331 Chittagong, Bangladesh.
Alak
A
Paul
Department of Geography and Environmental Studies, University of Chittagong , 4331 Chittagong, Bangladesh.|Nanjing University of Information Science and Technology , School of Atmospheric Physics & Atmospheric Environment, 210044 Nanjing, China.
Atiqur
A
Rahman
NILU-Norwegian Institute for Air Research , P.O. Box 100, 2027 Kjeller, Norway.|Department of Chemistry, University of Oslo , P.O. Box 1033, 0315 Oslo, Norway.
Knut
K
Breivik
D000395:Air Pollutants, Occupational / Q000032:analysis*; D001208:Asia; D001459:Bangladesh; D003634:DDT / Q000032:analysis; D004784:Environmental Monitoring / Q000379:methods*; D006581:Hexachlorobenzene / Q000032:analysis; D006801:Humans; D007221:Industry; D011078:Polychlorinated Biphenyls / Q000032:analysis; D011084:Polycyclic Aromatic Hydrocarbons / Q000032:analysis; D011634:Public Health; D012307:Risk Factors; D012767:Ships
D000395:Air Pollutants, Occupational; D011084:Polycyclic Aromatic Hydrocarbons; D006581:Hexachlorobenzene; D003634:DDT; D011078:Polychlorinated Biphenyls