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Organochlorine pesticides and polychlorinated biphenyls in surface water around Beijing

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Abstract

Contaminant concentrations, sources, seasonal variation, and eco-toxicological risk of organochlorine pesticides (OCPs) and polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs) in surface water around Beijing from summer to winter in 2015 and 2016 were investigated. The concentrations of ∑OCPs and ∑PCBs ranged from 9.81 to 32.1 ng L−1 (average 15.1 ± 7.78 ng L−1) and from 7.41 to 54.5 ng L−1 (average 21.3 ± 1.87 ng L−1), respectively. Hexachlorocyclohexane (HCHs) were the dominated contamination both in aqueous and particulate phase. For PCBs, lower chlorinated PCBs were the major contaminants. Compositions of HCHs, dichlorodiphenyltrichloroethane (DDTs), and PCBs indicated that the sources of OCPs and PCBs in water were due to historical usage in the study areas. For OCPs, there was an obvious variation among three seasons, while insignificant change was shown for PCBs. Water quality standards for China’s surface water were not exceeded in this study. Concentrations at Miyun Reservoir, the primary source of drinking water to Beijing, when compared to the USEPA’s criterion for cancer risk was below the level of risk.

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Acknowledgments

We are grateful to the co-workers in our laboratory for sample collection. We thank the financial supports from National Natural Science Foundation of China (Grant Nos. 11275216, 21407149, 11435002, 11575210, and 11375212), and Innovation Program of Institute of High Energy Physics, Chinese Academy of Sciences (Y451555), and the 2014 Beijing Natural Science Foundation-Beijing Institute of Science and Technology jointly funded projects (L140006).

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Division of Nuclear Technology and Applications, Institute of High Energy Physics, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Beijing, 100049, People’s Republic of China

    Yang Shao, Jie Ouyang, Guosheng Yang, Lingling Ma, Min Luo & Diandou Xu

  2. Beijing Engineering Research Center of Radiographic Techniques and Equipment, Beijing, 100049, People’s Republic of China

    Yang Shao, Jie Ouyang, Guosheng Yang, Lingling Ma, Min Luo & Diandou Xu

  3. Beijing Entry-Exit Inspection and Quarantine Bureau Technology Centre, Beijing, 100026, People’s Republic of China

    Shen Han & Weihua Liu

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  1. Yang Shao
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  2. Shen Han
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  3. Jie Ouyang
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  4. Guosheng Yang
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  5. Weihua Liu
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  6. Lingling Ma
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  7. Min Luo
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  8. Diandou Xu
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Correspondence to Diandou Xu.

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Responsible editor: Ester heath

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Shao, Y., Han, S., Ouyang, J. et al. Organochlorine pesticides and polychlorinated biphenyls in surface water around Beijing. Environ Sci Pollut Res 23, 24824–24833 (2016). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11356-016-7663-4

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