title: PCDD, PCDF, dl-PCB and organochlorine pesticides monitoring in São Paulo City using passive air sampler as part of the Global Monitoring Plan.
abstract: The persistent organic pollutants (POPs), such as organochlorine pesticides and PCBs, are ordinarily monitored in the aquatic environment or in soil in the environmental quality monitoring programs in São Paulo, Brazil. One of the core matrices proposed in the POPs Global Monitoring Plan (GMP) from the Stockholm Convention list is the ambient air, which is not a usual matrix for POPs monitoring in the country. In this study POP levels were evaluated in the air samples from an urban site in São Paulo City over five years, starting in 2010 as a capacity building project for Latin America and the Caribbean region for POP monitoring in ambient air using passive samplers. Furthermore, after the end of the Project in 2012, the monitoring continued in the same sampling site as means to improving the analytical capacity building and contribute to the GMP data. The POPs monitored were 17 congeners of 2,3,7,8 chloro-substituted PCDDs and PCDFs, dioxin-like PCBs, indicator PCBs, organochlorine pesticides and toxaphene. The results show a slight decrease in PCDD/F, dl-PCBs and indicator PCBs levels along the five years. The organochlorine pesticide endosulfan was present at its highest concentration at the beginning of the monitoring period, but it was below detection level in the last year of the monitoring. Some other organochlorine pesticides were detected close to or below quantitation limits. The compounds identified were dieldrin, chlordane, α-HCH, γ-HCH, heptachlor, heptachlor epoxide, hexachlorobenzene and DDTs. Toxaphene congeners were not detected. These results have confirmed the efficacy of passive sampling for POP monitoring and the capacity building for POP analysis and monitoring was established. However more needs to be done, including expansion of sampling sites, new POPs and studies on sampling rates to be considered in calculating the concentration of POPs in ambient air using a passive sampler.
authors.affiliation: Physical-Chemical Analysis Division, São Paulo State Environmental Company (CETESB), Brazil. Electronic address: mytominaga@sp.gov.br.
authors.forename: M Y
authors.initials: MY
authors.lastname: Tominaga
authors.affiliation: Organic Chemistry Section, São Paulo State Environmental Company (CETESB), Brazil.
authors.forename: C R
authors.initials: CR
authors.lastname: Silva
authors.affiliation: Organic Chemistry Section, São Paulo State Environmental Company (CETESB), Brazil.
authors.forename: J P
authors.initials: JP
authors.lastname: Melo
authors.affiliation: Organic Chemistry Section, São Paulo State Environmental Company (CETESB), Brazil.
authors.forename: N A
authors.initials: NA
authors.lastname: Niwa
authors.affiliation: Organic Chemistry Section, São Paulo State Environmental Company (CETESB), Brazil.
authors.forename: D
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Plascak
authors.affiliation: Organic Chemistry Section, São Paulo State Environmental Company (CETESB), Brazil.
authors.forename: C A M
authors.initials: CA
authors.lastname: Souza
authors.affiliation: Environmental Analysis Department, São Paulo State Environmental Company (CETESB), Brazil.
authors.forename: M I Z
authors.initials: MI
authors.lastname: Sato
mesh_terms: D000393:Air Pollutants / Q000032:analysis*; D001938:Brazil; D002947:Cities; D000072316:Dioxins and Dioxin-like Compounds / Q000032:analysis*; D004784:Environmental Monitoring / Q000379:methods*; D006843:Hydrocarbons, Chlorinated / Q000032:analysis*; D010575:Pesticides / Q000032:analysis
chemical_list: D000393:Air Pollutants; D000072316:Dioxins and Dioxin-like Compounds; D006843:Hydrocarbons, Chlorinated; D010575:Pesticides
keywords: Organochlorine pesticides; PCDD/Fs; Passive sampling; dl-PCBs