Atrazine, triketone herbicides, and their degradation products in sediment, soil and surface water samples in Poland

The aim of this study was to monitor the sediment, soil and surface water contamination with selected popular triketone herbicides (mesotrione (MES) and sulcotrione(SUL)), atrazine (ATR) classified as a possible carcinogen and endocrine disrupting chemical, as well as their degradation products, in Silesia (Poland). Seventeen sediment samples, 24 soil samples, and 64 surface water samples collected in 2014 were studied. After solid-liquid extraction (SLE) and solid phase extraction (SPE), analytes were determined by high-performance liquid chromatography (HPLC) with diode array detection (DAD). Ten years after the withdrawal from the use, ATR was not detected in any of the collected samples; however, its degradation products are still present in 41 % of sediment, 71 % of soil, and 8 % of surface water samples. SUL was determined in 85 % of soil samples; its degradation product (2-chloro-4-(methylosulfonyl) benzoic acid (CMBA)) was present in 43 % of soil samples. In 17 % of sediment samples, CMBA was detected. Triketones were detected occasionally in surface water samples. The chemometric analysis (clustering analysis (CA), single-factor analysis of variance (ANOVA), N-Way ANOVA) was applied to find relations between selected soil and sediment parameters and herbicides concentration. In neither of the studied cases a statistically significant relationship between the concentrations of examined herbicides, their degradation products and soil parameters (organic carbon (OC), pH) was observed.