ABSTRACT
This chapter provides a comprehensive review of intentional POPs (IPOPs) and unintentional POPs (UPOPs) and their effects on the atmosphere and on terrestrial and aquatic ecosystems. IPOPs and UPOPs are listed in Annexes A and C of the Stockholm Convention, 2009. Industrial chemicals and organochlorine pesticides such as DDT, Aldrin, Dieldrin, Endrin, Heptachlor, α-HCH, β-HCH, δ-HCH, Mirex, Toxaphene, Chlordecone, pentachlorophenol, α-Endosulfan, β-Endosulfan, and Dicofol are categorized as IPOPs. In contrast, polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs), polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs), pentachlorobenzene (PCB), dioxin, furan, and perfluorooctanesulfonic acid (PFOS) have been classified as UPOPs. IPOPs have been used in various manufacturing processes and agricultural practices such as insecticides, herbicides and rodenticides. At the same time, unintentional POPs were produced during the Industrial Revolution, while some are generated as by-products. Direct inhalation, dermal exposure, consumption of leafy vegetables, meat, fish, and dairy products, and volatilization during application are the primary sources of human exposure to intentional and unintentional POPs. Acute exposure to POPs exacerbates nausea, headache, hyperpigmentation, ocular secretion, reduced body weight, and hepatotoxicity. Chronic exposure reduces lymphocytes and causes hormonal imbalance, directly or indirectly affecting the digestive, autonomic, nervous, and reproductive systems.
Moreover, there is a direct relationship between the concentration of POPs and their impacts on climate change, which directly and indirectly affects Earth’s hydrological cycle and heat budget. Additionally, uneven distribution of solar radiation, precipitation, sea-surface temperature, and enhanced levels of CO2 play a significant role in the distribution of POPs into remote areas where they have never been used. Apart from that, physicochemical characteristics and meteorological elements such as relative humidity, wind speed, wind direction, and mixing heights produced uncertainty in the distribution of POPs in a remote area. Several receptor models, along with emission inventories, have been used to resolve the uncertainty of the distribution of POPs.
