Sunscreen contaminant was discovered in the North Pole
The sunscreen pollutant was first detected in the Arctic.
An international team of researchers found traces of sunscreen pollutants in the glaciers of the Svalbard archipelago.
According to Isna, citing IA, for the first time, chemical pollutants left over from personal hygiene and care products, including sunscreen, have been found in the snows of the North.
An international team of researchers found traces of sunscreen agents in the glaciers of the Svalbard archipelago.
Svalbard or Svalbard (Svalbard) means cold shore, is an archipelago in the Arctic region located in the Arctic Ocean, the northernmost region under the control of Norway. To the north of Svalbard is the Arctic Ocean and to the south is the Barnet Sea.
This study sheds light on the pervasive influence of personal care products in remote areas of the Arctic.
They measured the concentration of pollutants accumulated in the arctic winter.
These snow samples were collected from five glaciers on Brggerhalvya Peninsula in April and May 2021. These locations were selected from a combination of nearby human settlements and more isolated and distant locations.
The researchers examined the collected samples for the presence of emerging contaminants, which are substances that are currently in use but are being intensively studied for their potential environmental impacts.
“Many of the pollutants we analyzed, such as benzophenone-3, octocrylene, ethylhexyl methoxycinnamate, and ethylhexyl salicylate, have never been detected before in the environment,” said Mariana D'Amico, PhD student in polar sciences at Ca' Foscari University in Venice, Italy, and lead author of the study. Arctic snows were not identified.
Snow sample analysis
According to the statement of this research team, the distribution pattern of some pollutants changes with increasing altitude.
Most of these chemicals were found in greater amounts at lower altitudes. However, an exception is made for octocrylene and 3-benzophenone, two UV light filtering agents commonly found in sunscreens.
Surprisingly, these particular compounds are more abundant on top of glaciers.
The team suggests that they probably traveled from lower latitudes to higher altitudes, facilitated by atmospheric circulation.
Analytical chemistry researcher at Ca' Foscari University and one of the authors of this article, Marco Vecchioto explained that the results show that the presence of emerging pollutants in remote areas can be attributed to the role of long-range atmospheric circulation.
He added: In fact, the highest concentration was observed in winter precipitation, because at the end of winter, the masses of polluted air from Eurasia reach the North Pole more easily.
This research is of great importance to ongoing monitoring initiatives in this area and is critical to protecting the health of the local ecosystem. The identified pollutants have the potential to affect the health of aquatic organisms and cause changes in the functioning of endocrine and hormonal systems.
Researchers from Ca' Foscari University of Venice and the Institute of Polar Sciences of the Italian National Research Council (CNR-ISP) collaborated with Svalbard University Center in this project.
These findings were published in the journal Science of the Total Environment.
