Toxaphene environmental

Wilson and co-workers [332, 333] have discussed the determination of aldrin, chlordane, dieldrin, endrin, lindane, o,p and p,p isomers of DDT and its metabolites, mirex, and toxaphene in seawater and molluscs. The US environmental Protection Agency has also published methods for organochlo-rine pesticides in water and wastewater. The Food and Drug Administration (USA) [334] has conducted a collaborative study of a method for multiple organochlorine insecticides in fish. Earlier work by Wilson et al. [333, 335] in 1968 indicated that organochlorine pesticides were not stable in seawater. 

Swackhammer, D.L., M.J. Charles, and R.A. Hites. 1987. Quantitation of toxaphene in environmental samples using negative ion chemical ionization mass spectrometry. Anal. Chem. 59 913-917. 

Toxaphene partitions to the atmosphere, surface and groundwaters, soil and sediment particulates, and adipose tissue. As a result of its volatility and resistance to photolytic transformation, toxaphene has been transported over long distances in the atmosphere (USPHS 1994). Toxaphene residues have been detected in various environmental compartments hundreds of kilometers distant... 

Toxaphene is persistent in soils, water, and other environmental compartments, with residence times measured in years. 

In water, the concentration of toxaphene considered safe for protection of freshwater life is conservatively estimated to lie between 0.008 and 0.013 pg/L for marine life, it is 0.07 pg/L. This is in sharp contrast to the current recommended drinking water criterion for human health protection of 5.0 to 8.8 pg/L. Similarly, residues in fish tissue in excess of 0.4 to 0.6 mg/kg wet weight may be hazardous to fish health and should be considered as presumptive evidence of significant environmental contamination, although fish may contain up to 5.0 mg/kg before they are considered hazardous to human consumers. Toxaphene criteria for human health protection — which range in various foods from 0.1 mg/kg for sunflower seeds to 7.0 mg/kg in meat, fats, and citrus fruits — also appear adequate to safeguard sensitive species of wildlife. 

Saleh, M.A. 1991. Toxaphene chemistry, biochemistry, toxicity and environmental fate. Rev. Environ. Contam. Toxicol. 118 1-85. 

U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (USEPA). 1980a. Ambient Water Quality Criteria for Toxaphene. U.S. Environ. Protection Agency Rep. 440/5-80-076. 113 pp. 

EC, especially when combined with GC-MS, is widespread in monitoring environmental pollutants such as toxaphene, [72] dioxins, [74,79,82,84] pesticides, [79] halogenated metabolites, [71] DNA adducts, [78] explosives, [66,85,86] and others. [68,69,87,88]... 

Fowler, B. The Determination of Toxaphene in Environmental Samples by Negative Ion Electron Capture (EC) HR-MS. Chemosphere 2000,41,487-492. 

Note No definitive structure can be illustrated. Toxaphene is a complex mixture of at least 175 chlorinated camphenes of this number, less than 10 structures are known (Casida et ah, 1974). The following congeners were isolated from environmental samples 2 exo, i endo,5-evo,9,9,10,10-heptachlorobornane, 3-e sro,5-enr/o,6-ej o,8,8,10,10-heptachlorobornane 2 endo, 3-e o,5-e/3c/o,6-e o,8,8,10,10-octachlorobornane, and 2-exo,3-endo,5-exo,6-endo,9,9,l0,l0-octa-chlorobornane (Vetter et al, 2000). According to Pollock and Kilgore (1978), the average chlorine content is 67 to 69%. 

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