Persistent organic pollutants in Lithuania: Assessment of air and soil contamination

Milukaitė, A.

doi:10.3952/lithjphys.48406

Cited by 8 publications

(4 citation statements)

References 25 publications

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“…Previously published studies are limited to investigations of BaP concentrations at a background station located on the Baltic sea coast and levels of 16 PAHs in the air (using passive sampling on PUF type samplers) and soil at five sites in the country. 35,36 The outdoor PAH concentrations measured at the two sampling locations in this study are presented in Fig. 1.…”

Section: Pahsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Indoor and outdoor concentrations of fine particles, particle-bound PAHs and volatile organic compounds in Kaunas, Lithuania

et al. 2011

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This complex study presents indoor and outdoor levels of air-borne fine particles, particle-bound PAHs and VOCs at two urban locations in the city of Kaunas, Lithuania, and considers possible sources of pollution. Two sampling campaigns were performed in January-February and March-April 2009. The mean outdoor PM(2.5) concentration at Location 1 in winter was 34.5 ± 15.2 µg m(-3) while in spring it was 24.7 ± 12.2 µg m(-3); at Location 2 the corresponding values were 36.7 ± 21.7 and 22.4 ± 19.4 µg m(-3), respectively. In general there was little difference between the PM concentrations at Locations 1 and 2. PM(2.5) concentrations were lower during the spring sampling campaign. These PM concentrations were similar to those in many other European cities; however, the levels of most PAHs analysed were notably higher. The mean sum PAH concentrations at Locations 1 and 2 in the winter campaign were 75.1 ± 32.7 and 32.7 ± 11.8 ng m(-3), respectively. These differences are greater than expected from the difference in traffic intensity at the two sites, suggesting that there is another significant source of PAH emissions at Location 1 in addition to the traffic. The low observed indoor/outdoor (I/O) ratios indicate that PAH emissions at the locations studied arise primarily from outdoor sources. The buildings at both locations have old windows with wooden frames that are fairly permissive in terms of air circulation. VOC concentrations were mostly low and comparable to those reported from Sweden. The mean outdoor concentrations of VOC's were: 0.7 ± 0.2, 3.0 ± 0.8, 0.5 ± 0.2, 3.5 ± 0.3, and 0.2 ± 0.1 µg m(-3), for benzene, toluene, ethylbenzene, sum of m-, p-, o-xylenes, and naphthalene, respectively. Higher concentrations of VOCs were observed during the winter campaign, possibly due to slower dispersion, slower chemical transformations and/or the lengthy "cold start" period required by vehicles in the wintertime. A trajectory analysis showed that air masses coming from Eastern Europe carried significantly higher levels of PM(2.5) compared to masses from other regions, but the PAHs within the PM(2.5) are of local origin. It has been suggested that street dust, widely used for winter sanding activities in Eastern and Central European countries, may act not only as a source of PM, but also as source of particle-bound PAHs. Other potential sources include vehicle exhaust, domestic heating and long-range transport.

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Section: Pahsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Indoor and outdoor concentrations of fine particles, particle-bound PAHs and volatile organic compounds in Kaunas, Lithuania

et al. 2011

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“…The range of total PCBs in soil samples is at the low end of the mean PCB levels (1-10 ng/g) observed in background soils around the world (Holoubek et al 2007;Ruzickova et al 2008;Meijer et al 2003;Heywood et al 2006;Milukaite et al 2008). The source of PCBs in the soil may be directly from the STTP (gaseous emissions from the STTP stack, deposition of ash, volatilization from old equipment, etc.)…”

Section: Resultsmentioning

confidence: 96%

A preliminary investigation of the environmental impact of a thermal power plant in relation to PCB contamination

Gedik

İmamoğlu

2011

Environ Sci Pollut Res

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Since there are no other sources of PCBs in the region and the identity of PCB sources estimated by the CMB model mirrors PCB mixtures contained in transformers formerly used in the plant, the environmental contamination observed especially in sediments is attributed to the power plant. Release of PCBs over time, as indicated by the significant concentrations observed even in surface samples, emphasizes the importance of the need for better environmental management.

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“…More detailed specification of sampling and sample analysis methods, limits of quantifications (for PCBs and OCPs 0.1 ng/PUF per disk), quality assurance/ quality control methods, and the use of field blanks are presented in (Jaward et al, 2004a(Jaward et al, , 2004bSchleicher et al, 2004aSchleicher et al, , 2004bSchleicher et al, , 2005Gioia et al, 2007;Roots and Sweetman, 2007;Miluskaite et al, 2008;Klánová et al, 2009;Roots et al, 2010;Halse et al, 2011;Pribylova et al, 2012). The analytical procedures were monitored using NS/EN ISO/IEC 17025 accredited routines (Klánová et al, 2009;Halse et al, 2011).…”

Section: Quality Assurance and Quality Controlmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Although concentrations of different POPs in Estonian ambient air were very low, they allowed tracking transboundary air pollution carried to Estonia from outside the country (Roots, 1992;Agrell et al, 2001). As the availability of data on the environmental levels of POPs in the ambient air is generally limited in Estonia (Nordic, 1999;Agrell et al, 2001;Schleicher et al, 2004aSchleicher et al, , 2004bSchleicher et al, , 2005Roots and Sweetman, 2007;Roots et al, 2008Roots et al, , 2010Roots et al, , 2011 as well as in the whole of Central and Eastern Europe (CEE) (Nordic, 1999;Agrell et al, 2001;Lassen et al, 2003;Klánová et al, 2006Klánová et al, , 2009Škarek et al, 2007;Miluskaite et al, 2008;Bartoš et al, 2009;Dvorská et al, 2009;Pribylova et al, 2012), the aim of this article is to provide information on ambient air pollution with persistent organic pollutants and changes in their emission levels in Estonia from 1990 to 2013. Another aim is to analyse the potential of the Lahemaa station as a background station for monitoring POPs in the European area.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Measurements of persistent organic pollutants in Estonian ambient air (1990–2013)

Roots¹,

Lukki²,

Příbylová³

et al. 2015

Proc. Estonian Acad. Sci.

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Central and Eastern Europe is a region that is expected to need more data on the concentrations of persistent organic pollutants (POPs) in the ambient air in the future. Passive air sampling is a cheap screening method for comparison of contamination on various sites or for verification of information obtained by active samplers. Passive air samplers are sensitive enough to mirror even small-scale differences, which makes them capable of monitoring spatial, seasonal, and temporal variations. Different passive air samplers were employed between 1990 and 2013 from time to time in six Estonian air monitoring stations. The concentrations of PCB and its congeners, HCB, PeCB, HCH, and DDT (the same for PBDE, PCN, PCDD/F) in Estonian ambient air were very low, but they allow tracking transboundary air pollution. The main aim of this article is analysis of changes in the ambient air pollution in Estonia during a long period of time . Also, selection of Lahemaa background station for monitoring POPs in the European area is addressed.

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Persistent organic pollutants in Lithuania: Assessment of air and soil contamination

Cited by 8 publications

References 25 publications

Indoor and outdoor concentrations of fine particles, particle-bound PAHs and volatile organic compounds in Kaunas, Lithuania

Indoor and outdoor concentrations of fine particles, particle-bound PAHs and volatile organic compounds in Kaunas, Lithuania

A preliminary investigation of the environmental impact of a thermal power plant in relation to PCB contamination

Measurements of persistent organic pollutants in Estonian ambient air (1990–2013)

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