Concentrations of organic pollutants in the air and in precipitation have been measured at Enewetak Atoll in the North Pacific Ocean. These data from a site removed from industrial and human activity indicate the present concentrations of synthetic organic pollutants in the atmosphere and establish the long-range atmospheric transport of organic pollutants to remote marine areas. Hexachlorobenzene and hexachlorocyclohexane isomers are present in the remote marine atmosphere. Polychlorobiphenyls, total DDT, dieldrin, chlordane, and two phthalate ester plasticizers were also found in the samples. The concentrations of pollutants in the atmosphere remote from continental sources are good measures of the minimum concentrations of air pollutants on Earth.

Phthalate ester plasticizers have been detected in the open-ocean environment. Samples consisting of water, sediment, air, and biota from the Gulf of Mexico and of water and air from the North Atlantic were analyzed and found to contain two phthalate esters, di-(2-ethylhexyl) phthalate (DEHP) and di-n-dibutyl phthalate (DBP): the concentrations of polychlorinated biphenyls (PCB's) and DDT's (p,p'-DDT and p,p'-DDE) were also determined. Like the ubiquitous PCB's and DDT's, the phthalate plasticizers were found in almost all samples analyzed; DEHP was present at higher concentrations than the PCB's or DDT's in water and sediment. The environmental impact of the concentrations found in these studies, coupled with the continued high production and wise use of these plasticizers, requires assessment.

Laboratory studies have determined air-water partition coefficients and mass-transfer rates of predominant organic pollutants. Results demonstrate the rapid volatilization of certain high molecular weight organic compounds from distilled water and seawater solutions. Behavior of these compounds can be interpreted in terms of the Whitman resistance model of mass transfer across the air-water interface.

No abstract

Phthalate ester plasticizers have been detected in the open-ocean environment. Samples consisting of water, sediment, air, and biota from the Gulf of Mexico and of water and air from the North Atlantic were analyzed and found to contain two phthalate esters, di-(2-ethylhexyl) phthalate (DEHP) and di-n-dibutyl phthalate (DBP): the concentrations of polychlorinated biphenyls (PCB's) and DDT's (p,p'-DDT and p,p'-DDE) were also determined. Like the ubiquitous PCB's and DDT's, the phthalate plasticizers were found in almost all samples analyzed; DEHP was present at higher concentrations than the PCB's or DDT's in water and sediment. The environmental impact of the concentrations found in these studies, coupled with the continued high production and wise use of these plasticizers, requires assessment.