Organochlorine pesticides and triazines in the drinking water of Athens

A method for the simultaneous determination of 16 organochlorine pesticides and 3 triazines in drinking water is described. The method used solid-phase extraction on Sep-Pak cartridges and gas chromatography on DB-1 and DB-5 columns with electron capture detection for organochlorines and nitrogen-phosphorus detection for triazines. Mean recoveries of all organochlorine pesticides at the 0.1 ug per litre level in drinking water were 66-108 per cent, except for alpha-hexachlorocyclohexane (35 per cent) and endosulphan sulphate (117 per cent). The technique was used to analyse water samples from Athens, Greece. The concentration levels were much lower than the EEC maximum acceptable concentration of 0.1 ug per litre for both organochlorine pesticides and triazines.