Human Health Risk Assessment of Environmental Exposure to Organochlorine Compounds in the Catalan Stretch of the Ebro River, Spain

Abstract

In this study, the environmental impact and human health risks associated with exposure to organochlorine compounds (OCs) through soils and tap water in the Catalan stretch of the Ebro River, Spain, were investigated. The concentrations of polychlorinated biphenyls, hexachlorocyclohexanes, as well as DDT and derivates, were determined. Relatively low levels of these pollutants were observed, with mean concentrations ranging between 0.51-315.8 lg/kg and 0.05-74.6 ng/L in soil and tap water, respectively. These values are similar to those found in a number of recent surveys over the world. In spite of the presence of a chlor-alkali plant located upstream the Ebro River, which could mean a potential source of pollution, the current levels of OCs should not mean significant additional health risks for the local population.

Assessment of organochlorine pesticides contamination in underground rivers in Chongqing, Southwest China

“…Due to limited research data on this topic in the world, carcinogenic and noncarcinogenic risks of OCPs were compared with some rivers in the world, e.g. Huaihe River, surface water in Hanzhou, Jiulong River Estuary in China (Sun et al, 2006;Wang et al, 2009a;Zhang et al, 2002), surface water in northeastern Greece (Vryzas et al, 2009) and Ebro River in Spain (Ferré-Huguet et al, 2009). From Table 5, we can see that the carcinogenic risk of total HCHs in the studied area was slightly higher, while the carcinogenic risk of total DDTs was lower.…”

“…Individuals can be exposed to OCPs through several pathways, but oral exposure route is considered to be the most important (Ferré-Huguet et al, 2009;Li et al, 2010;Phan et al, 2010). In this study, a health risk assessment model derived from USEPA (IRIS, 2005) is applied to estimate the carcinogenic and non-carcinogenic risks for adults and children consuming underground river water as their water source.…”

Human health risk assessment of environmental and dietary exposure to natural radionuclides in the Catalan stretch of the Ebro River, Spain

“…In consequence, the concentrations of the analyzed radioisotopes do not pose either non-carcinogenic or carcinogenic risks for the residents living by the Ebro River in Catalonia. However, it is important to note that the present study is only a part of a more extensive environmental surveillance program carried out in the lower part of the Ebro River, where the risks derived from exposure to a series of chemical pollutants were also assessed (Ferre-Huguet et al 2008, 2009aNadal et al 2008). Consequently, the impact of selected radionuclides, such as 210 Pb and 210 Po, for human health should be added to those of metals and organochlorine compounds.…”

Sources of Human Exposure

“…When assessing exposure to organic pollutants through the dermal pathway, two different subroutes must be considered, as dermal contact may be relevant for chemicals contained in both water and soil (Ferré-Huguet et al 2009;U.S. EPA 2009a).…”