Bromocyclen contamination of surface water, waste water and fish from Northern Germany, and gas chromatographic chiral separation

The concentrations of bromocyclen were determined in the water and muscle tissue of trout and bream from the river Stör (northern Germany), to locate the source of this contaminant. The concentrations in water varied between n.d. and 261 pg/L, while in the fish samples concentrations between 0.01 and 0.24 mg/kg fat were determined. In addition, remarkably high concentrations of bromocyclen were found in waste water from sewage plants discharging into the river Stör and at the city of Hamburg. Sewage plants can be, therefore, assumed to be the main source of bromocyclen contamination. This is the first report about the contamination of river water and waste water with bromocyclen. Determination by chiral capillary gas chromatography using a modified cyclodextrin phase showed no significant enantiomeric excess in the water samples, but a preferential degradation of (+)-bromocyclen in the fish muscle tissue of breams.