Occurrence and distribution of the cyclodiene-type organochlorine pesticides in soils of Vojvodina Province, Serbia

Abstract

Aldrin, endrin and dieldrin are highly toxic and persistent cyclodienetype organochlorine pesticides. Although these compounds have been banned over the last few decades in many countries, they can still be found in the environment, especially in the agricultural soil. In order to determine the residue levels of cyclodiene-type organochlorine pesticides in soils of Vojvodina Province, and to obtain detailed information on their spatial distribution, 1370 soil samples under different land uses were collected from Vojvodina Province and analyzed for the presence of aldrin, dieldrin and endrin. The residues of those pesticides were detected in the soils of Vojvodina in measurable concentrations and dieldrin was the most dominant compound in the soil. However, the concentrations of analysed cyclodiene-type organochlorine pesticides in the most soil samples from Vojvodina province were lower than Dutch target values for soil quality. Soil organic matter and clay content were found to be positively associated with aldrin content while clay content was found to be negatively associated with endrin.