Keywords
Persistent organic pollutants (POPs) · Bioremediation · Adsorption · Membrane
technology · Reverse osmosis · Advanced oxidation processes (AOPs)
8.1
Introduction: Persistent Organic Pollutants (POPs)
The global industrialization has resulted in the manufacturing of various chemicals
including dyes, food items, pesticides, medicines, cosmetic products, and many
more (Arslan et al. 2017). These chemicals apart from their benefits are found to
be harmful for environment and human health. Among these harmful chemicals,
persistent organic pollutants (POPs) are of greater concern due to their toxic,
persistent, carcinogenic, hydrophobic, and lipophilic nature, ability of long-range
transport, long half-lives, and bioaccumulation in food chain (Baqar et al. 2017).
These pollutants have strong tendency to change into gaseous form under prime
environmental conditions such as temperature rendering them to transport to larger
distances thus often found in the environments of the areas where these chemicals
have never been used. As most of these compounds are composed of strong carbonhalogen bonds, they cannot be easily hydrolyzed or degraded and hence persist in the
environment (Ministry of Environment and Water 2006). Another important fact
about these persistent pollutants is their bioaccumulation potential in the living
organisms due to the lipophilic and resistant nature to the metabolism resulting in
transportation of these pollutants in food webs (Kelly et al. 2007).
These pollutants are now considered as contaminants of emerging concern (CEC)
both in terms of their biological and economic benefits and their perilous health
impacts and endocrine disrupting characteristics (Clara et al. 2005). The effects of
these pollutants on the environment and living organisms were first reported by
Racheal Carson in the book Silent Spring in 1960 in which the issue of premature
deaths of several birds, due to consumption of contaminated food with
dichlorodiphenyltrichloroethane (DDT), was highlighted (Carson et al. 1962). Several research studies observed that these persistent pollutants are presenting major
threats to the environment, humans, and food webs at each trophic level. Due to the
critical environmental and health impacts being caused by POPs, United Nations
Environment Program (UNEP) in 2001 conducted a Stockholm Convention on
Persistent Organic Pollutants (POPs), for reduction and ultimately elimination of
production and use of these persistent compounds. Initially in 2001, 12 compounds
were banned known as dirty dozen, then in 2009 nine other compounds were added
to the list, and in 2011 and 2013, two more compounds were added to the list by
Conference of the Parties (COP) to Stockholm Convention (Fiedler et al. 2019).
Despite of the ban imposed on the use and production of POPs they are still in use in
various parts of the world. Their historical as well as present inputs into different
environmental compartments are leading to severe ecological damage arising the
need of their remediation.
214
A. B. T. Akhtar et al.
Persistent organic pollutants (POPs) · Bioremediation · Adsorption · Membrane
technology · Reverse osmosis · Advanced oxidation processes (AOPs)
8.1
Introduction: Persistent Organic Pollutants (POPs)
The global industrialization has resulted in the manufacturing of various chemicals
including dyes, food items, pesticides, medicines, cosmetic products, and many
more (Arslan et al. 2017). These chemicals apart from their benefits are found to
be harmful for environment and human health. Among these harmful chemicals,
persistent organic pollutants (POPs) are of greater concern due to their toxic,
persistent, carcinogenic, hydrophobic, and lipophilic nature, ability of long-range
transport, long half-lives, and bioaccumulation in food chain (Baqar et al. 2017).
These pollutants have strong tendency to change into gaseous form under prime
environmental conditions such as temperature rendering them to transport to larger
distances thus often found in the environments of the areas where these chemicals
have never been used. As most of these compounds are composed of strong carbonhalogen bonds, they cannot be easily hydrolyzed or degraded and hence persist in the
environment (Ministry of Environment and Water 2006). Another important fact
about these persistent pollutants is their bioaccumulation potential in the living
organisms due to the lipophilic and resistant nature to the metabolism resulting in
transportation of these pollutants in food webs (Kelly et al. 2007).
These pollutants are now considered as contaminants of emerging concern (CEC)
both in terms of their biological and economic benefits and their perilous health
impacts and endocrine disrupting characteristics (Clara et al. 2005). The effects of
these pollutants on the environment and living organisms were first reported by
Racheal Carson in the book Silent Spring in 1960 in which the issue of premature
deaths of several birds, due to consumption of contaminated food with
dichlorodiphenyltrichloroethane (DDT), was highlighted (Carson et al. 1962). Several research studies observed that these persistent pollutants are presenting major
threats to the environment, humans, and food webs at each trophic level. Due to the
critical environmental and health impacts being caused by POPs, United Nations
Environment Program (UNEP) in 2001 conducted a Stockholm Convention on
Persistent Organic Pollutants (POPs), for reduction and ultimately elimination of
production and use of these persistent compounds. Initially in 2001, 12 compounds
were banned known as dirty dozen, then in 2009 nine other compounds were added
to the list, and in 2011 and 2013, two more compounds were added to the list by
Conference of the Parties (COP) to Stockholm Convention (Fiedler et al. 2019).
Despite of the ban imposed on the use and production of POPs they are still in use in
various parts of the world. Their historical as well as present inputs into different
environmental compartments are leading to severe ecological damage arising the
need of their remediation.
214
A. B. T. Akhtar et al.