Elucidation of widespread contamination status and bioaccumulation features of emerging persistent organic pollutants and assessment of their ecological effects

2018 Fiscal Year Final Research Report

• Project/Area Number: 16H01784
• Research Category: Grant-in-Aid for Scientific Research (A)
• Allocation Type: Single-year Grants
• Section: 一般
• Research Field: Environmental impact assessment
• Research Institution: Ehime University
• Principal Investigator: Tanabe Shinsuke 愛媛大学, 沿岸環境科学研究センター, 特別栄誉教授 (60116952)
• Co-Investigator(Kenkyū-buntansha): 国末 達也 愛媛大学, 沿岸環境科学研究センター, 教授 (90380287) ; 岩田 久人 愛媛大学, 沿岸環境科学研究センター, 教授 (10271652) ; 野見山 桂 愛媛大学, 沿岸環境科学研究センター, 准教授 (30512686)
• Project Period (FY): 2016-04-01 – 2019-03-31
• Keywords: 新規残留性有機汚染物質 / 生物蓄積 / 環境動態 / 生態影響 / リスク評価

Outline of Final Research Achievements

Widespread contamination status, bioaccumulation features, and temporal trends of persistent organic pollutants (POPs) and their candidate substances were determined. It was revealed that freshwater (brackish-water) fish, tilapia, collected from various areas in Asian countries have been widely exposed not only to POPs but also to a candidate substance, and in Japan, contamination of hexabromocyclododecanes (HBCDs) registered recently on the POPs convention was dominant and this new POP was bioaccumulated in various wild birds. When the temporal trends of POPs were analyzed in a pelagic whale species, HBCD levels increased significantly even in recent years. In addition, in vitro assay analysis indicated the presence of unknown aryl hydrocarbon receptor (AhR) aganists in the liver of wild avian species and instrumental analysis revealed the secondary formation of mixed halogenated dibenzofurans and dipheyl ethers in a developing country e-waste site.

Free Research Field

環境化学

Academic Significance and Societal Importance of the Research Achievements

アジア太平洋地域に生息する野生生物を対象に新規POPsとして知られるヘキサブロモシクロドデカン(HBCDs)やPOPs代替物質のモニタリング事例はきわめて少なく、本研究で得られた成果は、POPs条約の有効性評価や対象物質の追加について重要な基礎的知見となり得る。また、電気・電子機器廃棄物(e-waste)の不適切なリサイクル処理による化学物質汚染は、既知のPOPsだけでなく多様な有害化学物質の二次生成も関与していることを初めて突き止めた本研究成果は、現地での廃棄物処理に関わる規制の整備が急務であることに加え、資源循環と越境移動の適正化を目指す国際的な枠組みを制定する必要性を強調するものである。