An Analysis of the Situation of Persistent Organic Pollutants in Ukraine (by the Example of Odessa)

Abstract

Persistent organic pollutants (POPs) are chemicals of global concern due to their ability to bio-magnify and bio-accumulate in ecosystems, persistence in the environment, potential for long-range transport, as well as their significant negative effects on human health and the environment. Ukraine is a part of Stockholm Convention on Persistent Organic Pollutants witch control the environmental pollution by these substances on international level. That is why Ukraine must take measures to regulate production of persistent organic pollutants accordingly to requirements of the Convention. Purpose. The full analyses of the current state of the POPs problem in Ukraine, by the example of Odessa in the following areas: analysis of the legislative framework and monitoring system of POPs; estimation of the use of equipment containing PCBs; identification of sources of unintentional formation of POPs, calculation of POPs production volumes using the most modern European methods; identification of priority sources of POPs release into the environment; general conclusions on the situation with POPs in Ukraine. Results. Conclusions regarding the legislative framework and monitoring system of the POPs in Ukraine were made, for the first time the volumes of unintentional formation of POPs in Odessa were calculated, the main sources of unintentional formation of these substances were established and ranked, the full analyses and general conclusions on the situation with POPs in Ukraine were made. Conclusions. In Ukraine, there is no separate legislative framework and monitoring system for POPs, which does not meet the requirements of the Stockholm Convention. The basic sources of unintentional formation of POPs are established in the work, such as: burning of organic fuel, construction, waste dumps, sewerage, smoking cigarettes, crematoria and smokehouses. The main source of PCDD/F into the environment is the dump of solid household waste in landfills, and the main source of PCB and HCB is the incineration of organic fuels by stationary sources. The existing methods do not give an opportunity to fully assess the negative impact of POPs on the environment.