8.7 - POPS (persistent Organic Pollutants)

Question 1

POPS

Answer 1

• Persistent (long-lasting) Organic (carbon-based) Pollutants
• Synthetic (human-made) compounds that do not easily breakdown in the environment; accumulate and buildup in water & soil
• Fat-soluble, meaning they also accumulate and persist in animals’ fat tissue instead of passing through the body (don’t easily dissolve into blood/urine)
• Can slowly be released from fatty tissue into blood stream and impact brain & other organs over time (esp. reproductive system)

Question 2

Examples and sources of POPS

Answer 2

Examples:
- DDT (outdated insecticide)
- PCBs (plastic/paint additive)
- PBDEs (fire-proofing)
- BPA (plastic additive)
- Dioxins (fertilizer production & combustion of waste and biomass)
- Phthalates (Plastics)
- Perchlorates (rocket/missile fuel, fireworks)

Pesticides:
- DDT was widely used as an insecticide before phaseout in most dev. nations
- Still persists in soils & sediments in aq. ecosystems and builds up in food webs

Medications:
- Steroids, reproduct. hormones, antibiotics, that pass through human bodies & into sewage release from treatment plants
- Persist in streams/rivers & disrupt aq. organisms’ endocrine function

Dioxins:
- Byproduct of fertilizer production & burning of medical waste, FFs, biomass
- 90% of human dioxin exposure comes from animal fats (meat, dairy, fish) since dioxins buildup in animal fat tissue

Question 3

Examples and Transport of POPS

Answer 3

PCBS:
- Additives in paint and plastics, released into aquatic ecosystems by industrial wastewater\
- Toxic to fish, causing spawning failure and endocrine disrupt ion
- Reproductive failure & cancer in humans
- Human exposure comes through animal products

Perchlorates:
- Given off by rockets, missiles, and fireworks
- Especially common near military testing sites or rocket launch pads
- Remain in soil and can leach into groundwater or runoff into surface waters

Transport:
- POPs travel long distances through wind & water, impacting ecosystems far away
- Wastewater release from industrial processes, leachate from landfills or improperly buried industrial waste, fertilizer/pesticide production, emissions from burning waste/biomass
- Enter soil/water, eaten by animals, stored in their fat, eaten by humans or taken in via drinking water