Pesticide-Originated Persistent Organic Pollutants in Agricultural Waterways in Chungcheong Province, Korea

Persistent organic pollutants (POPs) including banned organochlorine pesticides, are found in Korean agricultural environments. Their translocation from agricultural environment to major crops has been reported. In this study, the POPs in 15 different agricultural waters of the Chungchung Province were monitored and all samples were prepared, followed by liquid- liquid fractionation and column chromatography prior to analysis using gas chromatography. Among pesticide-originated persistent organic pollutants, α-endosulfan was determined in the range of 0.01 to 1.13 ng/mL. β-Endosulfan was determined in the range of 0.01 to 0.55 ng/mL, and endosulfan sulfate was ranged from 0.13 to 1.13 ng/mL. The total sum of endosulfans reached the range of 0.38 to 1.18 ng/mL. Three pesticides being used currently were also found in samples as 2.03−2.05 ng/mL for triadimefon, 0.26− 0.33 ng/mL for tolyfluanid, and 1.34−3.85 ng/mL for chlorpyrifos. Taken together, endosulfans were introduced in the agricultural waters and their fates need continuous monitoring.