Review: Environmental pollution by chlorinated hydrocarbons in the Antarctic

Abstract

Papers published in 1966-1979 on the environmental pollution by chlorinated hydrocarbons in the Antarctic are reviewed and the investigation plan on the environmental pollution of the 22th Japanese Antarctic Research Expedition (JARE-22) 1980-1982 is introduced. The relevant original papers of eighteen have been published since 1966,which were pertinent to residual analyses of wildlife in the Antarctic, except three papers on analyses of the Antarctic snow. The studies so far were undertaken mostly by the expeditions of the United States, United Kingdom and New Zealand. There is only one paper on Syowa Station, which dealt with PCB's in an Adelie penguin and a Weddell seal. JARE-22 will attempt to collect the environmental materials around Syowa Station in the Antarctic, including air, snow, sea water, sediment, soil, plankton, fishes, penguins and seals. Their chlorinated hydrocarbon analysis will be expected to make clear the environmental concentrations, global distribution and transport, and pollution dynamics in the Antarctic food webs.