Levels and isomer profiles of Dechlorane Plus in the surface soils from e-waste recycling areas and industrial areas in South China

Dechlorane Plus (DP) is a highly chlorinated flame retardant. Levels of DP were measured in surface soils from e-waste recycling areas and industrial areas in South China. Higher DP levels were found in e-waste recycling areas (undetectable–47.4 ng/g) than those in industrial areas (0.0336–4.65 ng/g) in South China. The highest DP concentration (3327 ng/g) was found at the e-waste recycling site in Qingyuan, while DP levels fell dramatically with increasing distance away from the recycling site, suggesting that the e-waste recycling activities are an important source of DP emissions. The mean ratios of anti-DP to total DP ( f anti ) for different sampling areas ranged from 0.58 to 0.76 and showed no significant difference from the ratio for the technical DP products ( t-test, p > 0.05). Further intensive studies are needed to investigate the process of DP degradation and its degradation products. High DP concentrations were found in the soils from e-waste recycling regions, and e-waste recycling was the major source of DP emissions in South China.