DDTs and HCHs in sediment cores from the Tibetan Plateau

• Published in: Chemosphere (Oxford) Vol. 94; pp. 183 - 189
• Main Authors: Cheng, Hairong, Lin, Tian, Zhang, Gan, Liu, Guoqing, Zhang, Weiling, Qi, Shihua, Jones, Kevin C., Zhang, Xuewen
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Kidlington Elsevier Ltd 01.01.2014; Elsevier
• Subjects: Applied sciences; basins; China; Climate warming; DDE (pesticide); DDT (pesticide); DDT - analysis; DDTs; Environmental Monitoring; Environmental Pollution - statistics & numerical data; Exact sciences and technology; frozen soils; Geologic Sediments - chemistry; glaciers; Global environmental pollution; global warming; HCH (pesticide); HCHs; lakes; Lindane - analysis; Pollution; Sediment core; sediments; snow; Soil - chemistry; Soil Pollutants - analysis; Tibet; Tibetan Plateau; Time trend; Tibet; Asia; China; DDTs; Tibetan Plateau; Time trend; Climate warming; Sediment core; HCHs; Insecticide; Soil water interface; Pesticides; HCH; Sediments; Organic chlorine compounds; Time variation; Dynamical climatology; Persistent organic pollutant; Transport process; Climate change; DDT; Organochlorine compounds
• ISSN: 0045-6535; 1879-1298; 1879-1298
• DOI: 10.1016/j.chemosphere.2013.10.012

•Sediment cores from five critical regions in the Tibetan Plateau were analysed for OCPs.•The recent increasing trends of OCPs are likely due to the greatest retreat of glaciers.•The recycling of OCPs in the plateau cryosphere is more sensitive monitor of climate warming. Sediment cores were collected from five critical regions in the Tibetan Plateau and were analysed for OCPs with the objective of examining the time trends and recycling of DDTs and HCHs in the cryogenic area. A concurrent increase of the DDT and HCH concentrations from the late 1980s in Lake Yamzho Yumco, Nam Co and Star Sea were observed. The increasing levels of DDE/DDTs (>0.4) suggested that DDT in the upper layers of the sediment cores may be recycled/“weathered” DDT. Regarding the acceleration of glacier retreat from the 1980s due to global warming, it is suggested that OCPs formerly trapped either in the snow/glacier or in the frozen soil land recently reclaimed in the processes of glacier retreat may have been flushed into the sedimentary basins. These findings demonstrate the potential impact of global warming on the recycling of POPs in the plateau cryosphere and indicate that the pristine Tibetan Plateau may serve as one of the key probes to the global trend of POPs.