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DISTRIBUTION OF RESIDENTIAL ORGANOCHLORINE PESTICIDE RESIDUALS ALONG THE ARIZONA/MEXICO BORDER
Citation:
Robertson, G L., M. Lebowitz, L. Needham, M. K. O'Rourke, S. R. Rogan, J. Petty, AND J. Huckins. DISTRIBUTION OF RESIDENTIAL ORGANOCHLORINE PESTICIDE RESIDUALS ALONG THE ARIZONA/MEXICO BORDER. Presented at Indoor Air 2002, Monterey, CA, June 30-July 5, 2002.
Impact/Purpose:
The primary objective of the NAFTA Border study was to determine if the population of the U.S./Mexico Border area of Arizona are more highly exposed to environmental contaminants than the residents of the state of Arizona as a whole. The NAFTA Border Study will also demonstrate the feasibility of using these measurement processes in future multimedia-multipathway studies along the U.S./Mexico Border.
Description:
The use of DDT has been banned for many years in the United States. Mexico began a 10-year phase out of DDT in 1997. DDT was banned in the U.S. primarily because of its environmental persistence. Thus, DDT is still found in the outdoor and indoor environment. We report the results from samples collected in 83 homes in Arizona along the Arizona/Mexico border. The media sampled included indoor air, floor dust, dermal wipes, and blood serum. 4,4'-DDT was detected in 62% of the floor dust samples, 19% of the indoor air samples, and 31% of the dermal wipes. This may be from spray residuals in older housing stock, recent use of chemicals obtained in Mexico, track-in from outdoor usage, or other sources. We report on the concentrations found, examine the distributions of occurrence of DDT analogs in the various media and discuss possible sources of these occurrences.
This work has been funded wholly or in part by the United States Environmental Protection Agency and has been approved for publication. Mention of trade names or commercial products does not constitute endorsement or recommendation for use.