Kepone and other selected chlorinated hydrocarbon pesticides and PCBS behavior during hydraulic dredging of the James River near Hopewell, Virginia

Abstract

Field and laboratory studies were conducted on the behavior of Kepone and fifteen other chlorinated hydrocarbon pesticides and PCBs during the dredging of the James River, Virginia near Windmill Point. Over a period of six hours, water samples were collected from an area extending three miles up and downstream from the end of the dredge discharge pipe outfall. Laboratory experiments involved mixing sediment and water samples at a 1:4 ratio for 30 minutes and separation of the aqueous phase by cen‐trifugation (elutriate test). Data on field samples showed that the “release”; of chlorinated organic residues, including Kepone, was mainly associated with the colloidal and particulate matter. The elutriated test results indicated a slight tendency for release of chlorinated organic residues in the soluble and colloidal fraction. In samples collected from the contaminated Bailey Creek area, higher concentrations of Kepone were detected in the soluble or colloidal fraction than found from sediments collected in the nearby James River. Data on Kepone in water and sediment suggest that the compound exhibits a behavior different from the other common chlorinated organic residues.

Key words:

• Kepone
• chlorinated hydrocarbon pesticides
• dredging
• sediment

Notes

Present address: Department of Chemistry, Texas A&M University, College Station, Texas 77843.

Corresponding author.