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Spatial distribution of polychlorinated dibenzo-p-dioxins and polychlorinated dibenzofurans in soil around a municipal solid waste incinerator

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Abstract

Municipal solid waste incinerators (MSWIs) are usually considered to be important sources of polychlorinated dibenzo-p-dioxins and polychlorinated dibenzofurans (PCDD/Fs). To examine the influence of PCDD/Fs emissions from a MSWI on the surrounding environment, 21 soil samples were collected from various sampling sites distributed at distances of 300–1,700 m away from the stack of a MSWI. International Toxic Equivalent (I-TEQ) concentrations ranged from 0.47 to 2.07 pg I-TEQ g−1, with average and median concentrations of 1.08 and 1.05 pg I-TEQ g−1, respectively. Comparison of the results presented herein with other worldwide studies suggested that the concentrations of PCDD/Fs in the ambient soil were relatively low, indicating a limited impact on the surrounding environment. The emission concentrations from the incinerator were the critical factor in generating an environmental impact on the surrounding environment. An exponential function was developed, indicating a slight decline in TEQs of PCDD/Fs with increasing distance from the MSWI stack. The ordinary kriging interpolation technique was selected to create a contour map, which intuitively showed that a limited surrounding area (≤1,000 m from the stack) was obviously influenced by the MSWI.

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Acknowledgments

This study was supported by the National 973 Program (2011CB201500), the Environmental Public Welfare Projects (201209019, 201109001), the National 863 Program (2012AA062803) and the National Natural Science Foundation of China (20977099, 21077121).

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. State Key Laboratory of Environmental Chemistry and Ecotoxicology, Research Center for Eco-Environmental Sciences, P.O. Box 2871, Beijing, 100085, China

    Wenbin Liu, Haifeng Li, Zhenyu Tian, Huiting Xie & Changliang Li

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  1. Wenbin Liu
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  2. Haifeng Li
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  3. Zhenyu Tian
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  4. Huiting Xie
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  5. Changliang Li
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Correspondence to Wenbin Liu.

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Liu, W., Li, H., Tian, Z. et al. Spatial distribution of polychlorinated dibenzo-p-dioxins and polychlorinated dibenzofurans in soil around a municipal solid waste incinerator. Environ Geochem Health 35, 605–611 (2013). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10653-013-9543-x

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10653-013-9543-x

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