Unveiling the impact of lipophilic brominated flame retardants in Danube River sediments: a deep dive into pollution sources and distribution

Occurrence, compositional profiles and possible sources of polybrominated diphenyl ethers in urban soils of Shanghai, China

First report on polybrominated diphenyl ethers in the Iranian Coral Islands: Concentrations, profiles, source apportionment, and ecological risk assessment

Contamination of polybrominated diphenyl ethers (PBDEs) in watershed sediments and plants adjacent to e-waste sites.

Polybrominated diphenyl ethers (PBDEs) are extensively used as flame retardants in many consumer products, and leachates from landfills have been identified as one of the possible sources of PBDEs in the environment. Meanwhile, the unprecedented economic and population growths of some Asian countries over the last decade have led to significant increases in the amount of waste containing PBDEs in that region. This study investigates the status of PBDEs in leachates from municipal solid waste dumping sites (MSWDS) in tropical Asian countries. A total of 46 PBDE congeners were measured, both in the adsorbed (n=24) and dissolved (n=16) phases, in leachate samples collected, from 2002 to 2010, from ten MSWDS distributed among the eight countries of Lao PDR, Cambodia, Vietnam, India, Indonesia, Thailand, the Philippines, and Malaysia. PBDEs were predominantly found in the adsorbed phase. Partitioning of PBDEs in the dissolved phase was associated with the presence of dissolved organic matter; the apparent organic carbon-normalized partition coefficients (K'oc) of the BDE congeners were lower by two to four orders of magnitude than the K oc predicted from the octanol-water partition coefficients (K ow). The total PBDE concentrations from mono- to deca-BDEs ranged from 3.7 to 133,000 ng/L, and showed a trend toward higher concentrations in the more populous and industrialized Asian countries. The congener profiles in the leachates basically reflected the composition of PBDE technical mixtures. The occurrence of congeners not contained, or in trace concentrations, in technical products (e.g., BDEs 208, 207, 206, 202, 188, 179, 49, 17/25, 8, 1) was observed in most of the leachate samples, suggesting the debromination of technical mixtures, including BDE-209, in the MSWDS of tropical Asian countries. Moreover, the temporal trend indicated the reduction of BDE-209 over time, with a corresponding increase in and/or emergence of lower brominated PBDE congeners. The results indicated that MSWDS of tropical Asian countries are potential sources of environmental PBDEs, which may be transported to the aquatic environment via dissolution with dissolved organic matter. MSWDS could be amplifiers of PBDE toxicity in the environment, possibly through debromination.

Occurrence, compositional patterns, and possible sources of polybrominated diphenyl ethers in agricultural soil of Shanghai, China

Determination of potential sources of PCBs and PBDEs in sediments of the Niagara River

Polybrominated diphenyl ethers in water, sediment, soil, and biological samples from different industrial areas in Zhejiang, China

Environmental context Polybrominated diphenyl ethers (PBDEs) are compounds that have previously been widely applied in many consumer and commercial products; their use is banned because of their toxicity but they remain a legacy environmental pollutant. This study provides concentrations of PBDEs in indoor and outdoor dust and soils. Relationships between their occurrence patterns and origins are established, which informs our understanding of threats to human health from soil and air exposure. Rationale The concentrations of 39 polybrominated diphenyl ether (PBDE) congeners were determined in soil and dust samples of a typical Nigerian city in order to evaluate the spatial patterns, sources, and ecosystem and human health risks. The findings afford the necessary data to evaluate the temporal status, determine compliance with globally banned persistent organic pollutants, and provide guidance for designing strategies for surveillance, source control, risk reduction and management of environmental quality. Methodology Samples of soil and dust (indoor and outdoor) were obtained from 20 sites within the city. The soil and dust samples were subjected to Soxhlet extraction with an acetone/DCM/n-hexane mixture and cleaned up. The PBDEs in the extracts were separated and quantified by gas chromatography–mass spectrometry. Results The Σ39 PBDE concentrations of these samples varied between 1.69 and 590 ng g−1 for soil, whereas those of indoor and outdoor dust ranged from 0.45 to 112 and 0.54 to 60.4 ng g−1 respectively. Discussion Despite PBDEs being primarily indoor pollutants, their concentrations in soils exceeded those detected in indoor and outdoor dust, which may be attributed to soil’s higher sorption capacity and anthropogenic activities. The composition patterns in these media showed dominance of penta-BDEs, and exposure to these penta-BDEs has potential ecological consequences. The occurrence patterns and potential sources of PBDEs in soil and dust were evaluated using principal component analysis (PCA) and hierarchical cluster analysis (HCA). The behaviours and sources of PBDEs in soil and outdoor dust were similar, but differ from those of indoor dust. The use of the penta-BDE technical formulation is the likely source of PBDEs in these matrices. Exposure to PBDEs in soils and dust from this area poses no serious health risk but could pose an ecological risk. Despite the low concentrations of PBDEs in these media, there is a need for continued surveillance and the implementation of regulatory frameworks for the control of these persistent pollutants.

Polybrominated diphenyl ethers (PBDEs) in surface water and fish tissues from Sundays and Swartkops Estuaries, Eastern Cape Province, South Africa: Levels, spatial distribution, seasonal variation and health implications

Polybrominated diphenyl ethers (PBDEs) in marine sediments from industrialized bays of Korea

Polybrominated diphenyl ethers (PBDEs) were measured in soil and three plant species samples taken at different land use areas in Shenzhen China. The concentrations of Σ(7)BDEs (BDE-28, BDE-47, BDE-99, BDE-100, BDE-153, BDE-154, and BDE-183) and BDE-209 in the surface soils ranged from 0.23 to 271 and 8.9 to 5,956 ng/g dry weight (dw), respectively. These figures are comparable to that in the soils of electronic waste dismantling sites. BDE-209 was the predominant congener (contributes 85-99% of Σ(8)PBDEs (Σ(7)PBDEs plus BDE-209)) in soils. The regression slopes of total organic carbon and individual BDE congeners were rather gentle, indicating that factors other than soil organic matter regulated the soil concentrations. Proximity to sources of deposition processes might be the major factors. In the plant leaves, Σ(7)BDEs and BDE-209 concentrations ranged from 1.29 to 5.91 and 5.49 to 28.2 ng/g dw, respectively. BDE-209 is also the dominant component, but the contribution was much lower compared with that in soils. Bauhinia purpurea Linn. and Michelia alba DC. show some similarities on the uptake of PBDEs, while Ficus microcarpa var. pusillifolia is different from them. The correlations between plant leaf concentrations and predicted gaseous concentrations were moderate, indicating that gaseous concentration did not influence the leaf concentration significantly.

Polybrominated diphenyl ethers (PBDEs) were determined in blubber samples of 54 stranded adult beluga whales (Delphinapterus leucas) collected between 1988 and 1999 in the St. Lawrence Estuary (SLE), Quebec, Canada. Summed concentrations of 10 PBDE congeners (sigmaPBDEs) measured in beluga samples varied between 20 and almost 1000 ng/g wet weight. According to the PBDE concentrations in marine mammals reported in the scientific literature, SLE belugas appear to be relatively lightly contaminated. Only a few predominant congeners (namely, PBDE-47, -99, and -100) represent on average more than 75% of sigmaPBDEs in SLE belugas. The accumulation of sigmaPBDEs in both male and female belugas showed significant exponential increase throughout the 1988-1999 time period. The time necessary for beluga to double their blubber concentration of the most prevalent PBDE congeners was no longer than 3 years. The PBDE temporal changes reported in this study are generally faster but in agreement with the trend observed in other organisms collected in Canada, such as lake trout (Salvelinus namaycush) from the Great Lakes, ringed seal (Phoca hispida), and beluga whale from the Canadian Arctic. Some changes in the pattern of PBDEs in belugas were also observed during the time period investigated. The recent and important increase of PBDE levels in SLE belugas could explain the unexpected lack of statistical difference in PBDE contamination between males and females. This suggests that to date PBDEs tend to be accumulated by both male and female belugas, masking the elimination of PBDEs by females through post-natal transfer to their offspring. This study confirms that the growing use of PBDEs as flame retardants has resulted in rising contamination of Canadian aquatic environments. Additional studies are needed to assess the toxicological implications of the PBDE tissue levels found in SLE belugas.

Temporal trend, spatial distribution, and terrestrial sources of PBDEs and PCBs in Masan Bay, Korea

Polybrominated diphenyl ethers (PBDEs) concentrations in soil and plants around municipal dumpsites in Abuja, Nigeria.

Polybrominated diphenyl ethers (PBDEs) were measured in surface sediments from 121 locations within the Southern California Bight. Site selection was based on a probabilistic approach to determine the spatial extent and magnitude of PBDE concentrations with known confidence intervals. Coastal embayments (including estuaries, marinas, ports, and bays) and the continental shelf out to the lower slope were sampled. Thirteen PBDEs were detected at 92 of the sites, with a geometric mean and maximum of 4.7 and 560 ng/g dry weight (sum of 13 congeners), respectively. The PBDE concentrations were higher in coastal embayments than in offshore locations. Embayments had an area-weighted geometric mean total PBDE concentration of 12 (95% confidence interval, 8.0-17) ng/g dry weight and a total PBDE mass of 110 (77-160) kg. The offshore stratum, which is 99% of the total area, had an area-weighted geometric mean total PBDE concentration of 2.0 (1.6-2.5) ng/g dry weight and a total PBDE mass of 860 (700-1,100) kg. The five highest PBDE concentrations were associated with the mouths of urban rivers, indicating that urban runoff is likely a major input of PBDEs to these coastal marine waters. The outfalls of wastewater treatment plants were not observed to be major sources.