Contamination Status and Characteristics of Persistent Organochlorine Pesticides in the Saemangeum Environment

To assess the contamination status of organochlorine pesticides in the marine environment of Saemangeum, surface seawater and sediments were collected and analyzed. Organochlorine pesticides were widely distributed in the Saemangeum environment, with DDT, HCH and endosulfan II contamination being particularly prevalent. The overall concentrations of DDTs, HCHs, and endosulfan II in surface seawater were in the rage of 0.03-0.65 ng/l (mean value: 0.36 ng/l), 1.31-4.54 ng/l (2.63 ng/l), and not detected (ND)-0.96 ng/l (0.49 ng/l), respectively. Among the target organochlorine pesticides, endosulfan II showed the highest level at the river mouth flowing into the Saemangeum. Additionally, its negative gradient from the rivers to the outside and a good correlation with NO super(-) sub(3) indicate that endosulfan II inflows to the Saemangeum through the river; this conclusion is also supported by the elevated levels of endosulfan II in sediments at the river mouth. In sediment, the concentration of DDTs, HCHs, CHLs, and endosulfan II were in the range of 0.05-1.96 ng/g, 0.03-0.31 ng/g, 0.01-0.13 ng/g, and ND-0.62 ng/g, respectively. Levels of contamination in Saemangeum are relatively lower than the median concentrations previously observed at the Korean coastal regions and sediment quality guidelines suggested by NOAA (Long et al. 1995).