Persistent Organic Pollutants In Asia

Large amounts of data obtained through environmental monitoring of persistent organic pollutants (POPs) in 10 Asian countries and Australia have been compiled and explored using principles of environmental chemistry, toxicology, and risk assessment. This book also includes descriptions and discussions of current governmental policies, monitoring and surveillance programs, history of manufacturing and applications, emission sources, impacts on human health, and cross-boundary transport of POPs in these countries. * Compiles up-to-date sources, distributions, transport, and fates of highly concerned persistent organic pollutants (POPs) * Presents exploratory examinations of the data guided by the principles of environmental chemistry, toxicology, and risk assessment * Includes important context and insight regarding government policies, monitoring and surveillance programs, history of manufacturing and applications, emission sources, impact on human health, and cross-boundary transport of POPs

A variety of chemical compounds has been released into water from industrial and agricultural activities and urban wastes. Some of those chemicals are harmful to living organisms and are resistant to degradation, thus named persistent organic pollutants (POPs). In efforts to manage chemical pollutants such as POPs in Asia, the United Nations University (UNU) and Shimadzu Corporation established a pilot project in 1996, “Environmental Monitoring and Analysis in the East Asian Region”, to aid developing Asian countries with the knowledge and technology to analyse and monitor such pollutants in the environment. This book summarizes some highlights of monitoring results obtained by the project’s activities for 15 years, and reports the present status of the project, touching on the future development of the project by analysing challenges ahead of the project.

In efforts to manage chemical pollutants such as POPs in Asia, the UN University (UNU) and Shimadzu Corporation established a pilot project in 1996 to aid developing Asian countries with the knowledge and technology to analyse and monitor such pollutants in the environment. This book summarizes some highlights of monitoring results obtained by the project's activities and reports the present status of the project.

Persistent Organic Pollutants (POPs) are chemicals that resist environmental degradation and cause deleterious effects on the environment and human wellbeing. Once released into the environment they can travel long distances and persist for longer duration. This book highlights the complex area of POPs in simple language and deals with the fundamentals of the chemicals, their sources, and impacts on human health. The book also unfolds several other aspects like new and advanced analytical detection methods, gaps in management, effectiveness of the Stockholm convention, and the role of the global monitoring plan on POPs for crucial and holistic understanding about POPs. It also investigates how to minimize the impact of POPs and the major gaps and challenges in sound management of POPs. With its comprehensive approach, this book is an indispensable source of knowledge for those studying and working to mitigate the effect of POPs in the environment.

This open access book reviews the trends of persistent organic pollutants (POPs) in human milk and discusses the main findings of five global surveys that were coordinated by the World Health Organization (WHO) and the United Nations Environment Programme (UNEP) from 2000 to 2019. Human milk was selected as core matrix for human exposure under the Global Monitoring Plan for effectiveness evaluation of the Stockholm Convention on Persistent Organic Pollutants. Milk from well-defined groups of mothers was collected and mixed to form a representative sample per country. Datasets collected represent the largest global human tissues survey with a harmonized protocol, carried out in a uniform format for more than two decades. Altogether 69 countries participated in these studies between 2000 and 2015, and more than 40 countries participated in the study from 2016 to 2019. Divided into 5 parts, the book offers an authoritative overview of human milk biomonitoring; collates the harmonized sampling requirements and analytical methods for the identification and quantification of contaminants in human milk; examines the results of the WHO/UNEP-coordinated exposure studies, including the identification of selected chlorinated pesticides, dioxin-like compounds, industrial chemicals like polychlorinated biphenyls (PCB) and chlorinated paraffins, polybrominated POPs and PFAS, among others; and traces geographic, temporal and cross-substance trends and correlations, and human health risks. The book finishes by providing the reader with the summary of the main findings and outlook from these studies, in which the comparison of concentrations found for the wide range of POPs listed in the Stockholm Convention allowed the identification of possible needs for actions and follow-ups in different countries/regions. This book contributes to the understanding of exposure to hazardous chemicals and pollution as addressed by the UN Sustainable Development Goals on Good Health and Well-being (SDG 3) and will appeal to environmental and analytical chemists, researchers, professionals, and policymakers interested in learning more about contaminants in human milk. Given its breadth, this book will also appeal to a broader audience interested in maternal and child health.

Persistent Organic Pollutants (POPs) are toxic, resistant to degradation, bioaccumulative, and display wide spatial distribution. They accumulate in humans and wildlife, and have been linked to cancer, as well as reproductive and immunological disorders. In 2001 a global treaty on POPs was agreed, to minimise and ultimately eliminate the release of POPs into the environment. The Stockholm Convention lists 12 groups of chemicals, and as of late 2008, a further 12 chemicals are under consideration for inclusion. This book addresses all of these chemicals, but focuses particularly on currently listed POPs that are still of major concern (e.g. polychlorinated biphenyls - PCBs), as well as new and emerging POPs that have been the subject of an explosion of scientific interest in the last decade, i.e. brominated flame retardants (BFRs) and perfluorinated chemicals (PFCs). Other chapters address the challenges posed by the presence of POPs in the developing world; how the properties of chiral POPs can provide unique insights into their environmental sources, fate and behaviour; and issues arising from the presence of POPs in urban and indoor environments. Persistent Organic Pollutants provides a much-anticipated reference source for a wide audience including academics, industrial scientists and regulators.

In East Asia, the economics and industrial outputs of Japan, China, Korea and Russia have developed rapidly in recent decades. Together, these countries account for more than a quarter of the worlds energy consumption. The primary energy consumption of China has especially increased drastically. The main energy sources in these countries are oil in Japan and Korea, coal in China and natural gas in Russia (additionally, coal is harvested in Far Eastern Russia). The burning of these fuels and biomass releases many kinds of pollutants including gases and particulates into the atmosphere. From 1970-1980, acid rain/snow was a typical trans-boundary form of environmental pollution not only in Eastern Europe and North America, but also in North East Asia. Acid rain/snow was observed on the Sea of Japan coastline of the Japanese islands during the winter. It was caused by sulfur dioxide emitted from the combustion of a large amount of coal in China. "Yellow sand" is also observed in various parts of Japan during the spring. It is caused by dust storms generated in deserts such as the Takramakan in China and transported at long ranges to Japan via microorganisms. Recently, a high concentration of PM2.5 in the urban atmosphere has become a large problem in China. PM2.5 as an originated form of fossil fuel combustion and biomass combustion contains many polycyslic aromatic hydrocarbons, which exhibit carcinogenic and/or mutagenic, endocrine disrupting and reactive oxygen species producing activities. A part of PM2.5 emitted in China has been transported at long ranges to Japan. These pollutans cause respiratory and circulatory diseases. On the other hand, in 1997, enormous amounts of oil spilled from an old Russian tanker which caused a serious pollution problem in the Sea of Japan. Backbone bending in fish was reported in several marine areas polluted with the spilled oil. From these view points, trans-boundary pollution attracts much attention from environmental and health science fields. This book will focus on the trans-boundary pollutants observed in North East Asia with recent research results.