Impact of persistent organic pollutants sources on the ecological state of the environment

Abstract

The article studies the impact of persistent organic pollutants (POPs) on the environment. POPs are artificial substances for the environment. Nowadays, scientists have created more than 18 million chemical compounds, almost 100 000 of which are used in industry. It is widely understood that the pollution of the environment by persistent organic pollutants is due to their constant movement between the natural envelopes. Environmental studies show that regardless of sources (POPs) all the components of the biosphere are under their negative influence: surface water and groundwater, atmosphere, soil ecosystems, flora, and fauna. Measures that can be taken to prevent and reduce the impact of POPs on human health are conventionally divided into measures applied at the state level, and measures for the health maintenance, which should be used by each person, possessing certain knowledge about potential sources and properties of persistent organic pollutants. Considering the fact that POPs can remain in the environment for a long time, there is only one way to protect ourselves and future generations – it is to stop the production and use of POPs and to stop those production processes that use POPs. But this requires the efforts of the world community.