Persistent organic pollutants (POPs) in the atmosphere of coastal areas of the Ross Sea, Antarctica: Indications for long-term downward trends.
Passive air samplers were used to evaluate long-term trends and spatial distribution of trace organic compounds in Antarctica. Duplicate PUF disk samplers were deployed at six automatic weather stations in the coastal area of the Ross sea (East Antarctica), between December 2010 and January 2011, during the XXVI Italian Scientific Research Expedition. Among the investigated persistent organic compounds, Hexachlorobenzene was the most abundant, with air concentrations ranging from 0.8 to 50 pg m-3. In general, the following decreasing concentration order was found for the air samples analyzed: HCB > PeCB > PCBs > DDTs > HCHs. While HCB concentrations were in the same range as those reported in the atmosphere of other Antarctic sampling areas and did not show a decline, HCHs and DDTs levels were lower or similar to those determined one or two decades ago. In general, the very low concentrations reflected the pristine state of the East Antarctica air. Backward trajectories indicated the prevalence of air masses coming from the Antarctic continent. Local contamination and volatilization from ice were suggested as potential sources for the presence of persistent organic pollutants in the atmosphere.
Department of Physical, Earth and Environmental Sciences, University of Siena, Siena, Italy; Masaryk University, Research Centre for Toxic Compounds in the Environment, Brno, Czech Republic; Facultad de Ciencias, Universidad Católica Santísima Concepción, Concepción, Chile.
Karla
K
Pozo
Department of Chemistry "Ugo Schiff", University of Florence, Sesto Fiorentino, Florence, Italy.
Tania
T
Martellini
Department of Physical, Earth and Environmental Sciences, University of Siena, Siena, Italy.
Simonetta
S
Corsolini
Air Quality Processes Research Section, Environment Canada, Toronto, Ontario, Canada.
Tom
T
Harner
Department of Physical, Earth and Environmental Sciences, University of Siena, Siena, Italy.
Victor
V
Estellano
Masaryk University, Research Centre for Toxic Compounds in the Environment, Brno, Czech Republic.
Petr
P
Kukučka
Masaryk University, Research Centre for Toxic Compounds in the Environment, Brno, Czech Republic.
Marie D
MD
Mulder
Masaryk University, Research Centre for Toxic Compounds in the Environment, Brno, Czech Republic; Max Planck Institute for Chemistry, Multiphase Chemistry Dept., Mainz, Germany.
Gerhard
G
Lammel
Department of Chemistry "Ugo Schiff", University of Florence, Sesto Fiorentino, Florence, Italy; Institute for the Dynamics of Environmental Processes, Italian National Research Council (IDPA-CNR), Dorsoduro, Venice, Italy. Electronic address: acincinelli@unifi.it.
Alessandra
A
Cincinelli
D000393:Air Pollutants / Q000032:analysis*; D000864:Antarctic Regions; D001272:Atmosphere / Q000032:analysis; D004784:Environmental Monitoring / Q000295:instrumentation / Q000379:methods*; D006581:Hexachlorobenzene / Q000032:analysis; D007558:Italy; D009930:Organic Chemicals / Q000032:analysis*; D011078:Polychlorinated Biphenyls / Q000032:analysis
D000393:Air Pollutants; D009930:Organic Chemicals; D006581:Hexachlorobenzene; D011078:Polychlorinated Biphenyls
Air; Antarctica; Backward trajectories; OCPs; PCBs; Passive air samplers; Ross sea