Dioxin in the agricultural foodchain

Conference · Fri Jan 01 00:00:00 EST 1988

OSTI ID:6943250

Stevens, J B ^[1]

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1. Univ. of Minnesota, Minneapolis, MN (US)

Incineration of municipal solid waste is becoming an increasingly attractive alternative to the current practice of landfilling our garbage. However, the impact of this new practice on human health and the environment is not yet known. Emissions from MSW incinerators have been shown to contain numerous hazardous substances, including polychlorinated dibenzo-p-dioxins (PCDDs), polychlorinated dibenzofurans (PCDFs), polynuclear aromatic hydrocarbons and toxic metals. Of these emissions, 2,3,7,8-tetrachlorodibenzo-p-dioxin (TCDD) is viewed as the most toxic. Because of its lipophilic nature and environmental persistence, TCDD would be expected to biomagnify in food chains. Because many MSW incinerators are located in rural agricultural areas, it is thus very important to address the magnitude of human exposure to TCDD incinerator emissions from the agricultural food chain, i.e. ingestion by humans of garden produce, milk, beef, pork, lamb, chicken and eggs originating from the impact zone of the facility. This paper discusses this investigation the purpose of which was twofold: to quantify the food chain dose of TCDD relative to a commonly evaluated exposure pathway in risk assessment, inhalation of contaminated air; and to identify the major agricultural food chain sources of human exposure to TCDD.

• OSTI ID: 6943250
• Report Number(s): CONF-880679-
• Resource Relation: Conference: 81. annual meeting of Air Pollution Control Association, Dallas, TX (USA), 19-24 Jun 1988; Other Information: Report 88-118.2; Related Information: Volume 7
• Country of Publication: United States
• Language: English

Related Subjects

54 ENVIRONMENTAL SCIENCES
29 ENERGY PLANNING
POLICY AND ECONOMY
60 APPLIED LIFE SCIENCES
63 RADIATION, THERMAL, AND OTHER ENVIRON. POLLUTANT EFFECTS ON LIVING ORGS. AND BIOL. MAT.
CHLORINATED AROMATIC HYDROCARBONS
AIR POLLUTION MONITORING
FOOD CHAINS
CONTAMINATION
INCINERATORS
ENVIRONMENTAL IMPACTS
MUNICIPAL WASTES
AIR QUALITY
DIOXIN
ENVIRONMENTAL EXPOSURE PATHWAY
FURANS
HAZARDOUS MATERIALS
HEALTH HAZARDS
HUMAN POPULATIONS
PUBLIC HEALTH
RISK ASSESSMENT
RURAL AREAS
AROMATICS
ENVIRONMENTAL QUALITY
HALOGENATED AROMATIC HYDROCARBONS
HAZARDS
HETEROCYCLIC COMPOUNDS
MATERIALS
ORGANIC CHLORINE COMPOUNDS
ORGANIC COMPOUNDS
ORGANIC HALOGEN COMPOUNDS
ORGANIC OXYGEN COMPOUNDS
POPULATIONS
WASTES
540120* - Environment
Atmospheric- Chemicals Monitoring & Transport- (1990-)
290300 - Energy Planning & Policy- Environment
Health
& Safety
553000 - Agriculture & Food Technology
560300 - Chemicals Metabolism & Toxicology