Massive PCDD/F contamination at the Khimprom organochlorine plant in Ufa--a review and recommendations for future management.

The Khimprom plant in Ufa was one of the largest organochlorine production facilities in Russia. This paper summarises the residual pollution of the site with polychlorinated dibenzo-p-dioxins and dibenzofurans (PCDD/Fs) and highlights the current and future challenges in relation to remediation of the site. Preliminary assessment of the pollution shows large-scale PCDD/F contamination at the site from half a century production of organochlorine pesticides and solvents. This contamination is affecting the city, and 2500 residents live within 3 km with a further 350,000 living within 7 km of the factory. The current PCDD/F pollution of the site and the continuing releases highlight the urgent need for further investigations, for the site to be secured and for the contamination to be remediated. The production history of the plant means that also other unintentionally POPs, mercury and chlorinated solvents need to be considered. The current regulatory framework for PCDD/F-contaminated soil and for defining hazardous waste in the Russian Federation is not appropriate for the management of PCDD/F-contaminated sites. It is therefore suggested that a science-based regulatory framework should be developed. The Russian Federation recently ratified the Stockholm Convention providing a foundation for the development of appropriate regulations and for further assessment, securing and remediation of the site. The impacts of pollution from the Khimprom plant demonstrate that the assessment and management of the organochlorine production sites should be a priority in the implementation of the Stockholm Convention by the Russian Federation and other countries.

Sex ratios of children of Russian pesticide producers exposed to dioxin.

We investigated the sex ratio of children of pesticide workers who produced the biocide trichlorophenol and the herbicide 2,4,5-trichlorophenoxy acetic acid from 1961 to 1988 in the city of Ufa, Bashkortostan, Russia. We measured exposure of the two related cohorts to 2,3,7,8-tetrachlorodibenzo-p-dioxin (TCDD) and other dioxins by analyzing 84 blood samples, which produced median TCDD toxic equivalents blood lipid values of 240 ng/kg, which are more than 30 times higher than background or normal exposure from the region. The sex ratio (fraction male) of the combined cohort of 227 children from 150 male and 48 female workers was 0.40, significantly lower (z-test for proportions = 3.21; p < 0.001) than those for the city of Ufa (0.512) and elsewhere worldwide. When we analyzed the sex ratio of the children according to maternal or paternal exposure, we observed a decrease in the number of boys (ratio 0.38) for fathers and a normal number (ratio 0.51) for the mothers. Human exposure of these pesticide producers to high levels of dioxins is associated with the birth of more girls, but only for paternal exposures.