Distribution of organochlorine pesticides in seawater of the Bering and Chukchi Sea

Organochlorine pesticides (OCPs) in the seawater collected in the Bering and Chukchi Seas during the First Chinese Arctic Research Expedition were confirmed by gas chromatography–mass spectrometry (GC–MS) and analyzed by capillary gas chromatography with micro-electron capture detector (GC-μECD). The average of hexachlorocyclohexanes (HCHs; sum of isomers α-, β-, γ-, δ-) was nearly equal in the Bering Sea (mean concentration 412.7 pg/l) and in the Chukchi Sea (mean concentration 445.8 pg/l), which showed no obvious latitudinal difference of these two regions. Compared with previously reported studies, concentrations of OCPs in these regions were much lower than the levels in the last decades. The ratio of α:γ HCH was 5.0 and 3.4 for the Bering and Chukchi sea, respectively, which indicated the different pesticide composition in these two regions. Many other OCPs with different residue patterns were also found for the first time in the investigation regions. Heptachlor epoxide (in the Bering Sea) and heptachlor (in the Chukchi Sea) were main OCPs contaminants besides HCHs.