Organic Pollution
Organic pollution is a type of chemical pollution caused by carbon pollutants, such as organic matter (liquid manure, sewage treatment sludge, etc.), organochlorides (DDT) or even polychlorinated biphenyls (PCB).
In the case of organic matter, pollutants can increase water turbidity and cause eutrophication with a decrease in the quantity of dissolved oxygen. These environmental modifications have major consequences on populations within an environment (disappearance of species, proliferation of other species).
The effects of other organic pollutants vary widely, depending on their nature: some are highly biodegradable (carbamates), others are persistent (doixins).
Amongst the latter, persistent organic pollutants (POP), such as PCB and DDT, are especially particularly toxic as they are lipophilic. There is therefore a bio-amplification of these pollutants at each level of the food chain, the last levels being the most contaminated. And man is at the top of the food chain...
DDT was widely used as an insecticide, before it was discovered to be a persistent organic pollutant. © USDA Forest Service - Region 8 Archive, USDA Forest Service, Bugwood.org CC by 3.0
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