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Environmental risks of HBCDD from construction and demolition waste: a contemporary and future issue

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Abstract

Hexabromocyclododecane (HBCDD), as one of the most widely used brominated flame retardants (BFRs), is of great concern globally because of its persistence in the environment and negative impacts on humans and animals. HBCDD has been mainly used in flame-retarded expanded (EPS) and extruded (XPS) polystyrene foams for insulation in the construction industry. Most of these products will become a part of the construction and demolition (C&D) waste at the end of their life cycle (30–50 years) which is typically disposed of into landfills or incineration. However, the recycling of this material takes quite a low share compared with landfill and incineration. Consequently, high environmental risks will exist in these disposal approaches due to the HBCDD in C&D waste. Currently, XPS or EPS products containing HBCDD in the construction industry have not reached the end of their life cycle in most countries. Relatively little attention has been paid to this emergency issue by either the government or public. Furthermore, C&D waste is most likely disposed of by direct dumping, simple stacking, or open burning in developing countries. Therefore, this paper highlights the global environmental risks of HBCDD from C&D waste. Areas of research for key problems of HBCDD contained in C&D waste are suggested to help control and finally eliminate the impact.

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Acknowledgments

This research was supported by the National Natural Science Foundation of China (grant nos. 21407137, 41001329, 21377121, and 41201513) and the State Key Laboratory of Environmental Criteria and Risk Assessment, Chinese Research Academy of Environmental Sciences (SKLECRA 2015OFP01 and 2014OFP04).

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. State Key Laboratory of Environmental Criteria and Risk Assessment, Chinese Research Academy of Environmental Sciences, Beijing, 100012, China

    Zhiqiang Nie, Ziliang Yang, Yanyan Fang, Yufei Yang, Xingrun Wang, Qingqi Die, Xingbao Gao, Fengsong Zhang, Qi Wang & Qifei Huang

  2. MOE Key Laboratory of Regional Energy and Environmental Systems Optimization, Resources and Environmental Research Academy, North China Electric Power University, Beijing, 102206, China

    Zhenwu Tang

  3. College of Water Sciences, Beijing Normal University, Beijing, 100875, China

    Yanyan Fang & Qingqi Die

  4. Key Laboratory of Land Surface Pattern and Simulation, Institute of Geographic Sciences and Natural Resources Research, Chinese Academy of Sciences, 100101, Beijing, China

    Fengsong Zhang

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  1. Zhiqiang Nie
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  2. Ziliang Yang
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  4. Yufei Yang
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Correspondence to Zhenwu Tang or Qifei Huang.

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Nie, Z., Yang, Z., Fang, Y. et al. Environmental risks of HBCDD from construction and demolition waste: a contemporary and future issue. Environ Sci Pollut Res 22, 17249–17252 (2015). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11356-015-5487-2

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s11356-015-5487-2

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