Distribution and ecological risk of DDTs in sediments from Hormozgan Province, south of Iran

Organic pollutants have not been universally studied in Hormozgan Province, in spite of urbanization, industrial and agricultural development in recent years. In this paper, DDT and its isomers DDE and DDD were analyzed in surface sediments collected from fifteen stations of Hormozgan Province coastline. The sediments were sampled in September and March 2010. The concentration of ∑DDTs varied from ND to 45.88 ng/g dry weight. DDT showed the higher levels than its isomers DDD and DDE, offering the new source of DDT in the studied area. ∑DDTs showed homogeneous distribution along the Hormozgan province. Detected concentrations of DDTs exceed the NOAA sediment quality guiltiness.