The Distribution of Insecticides, Pesticides and Polychlorinated Biphenyls in the Sediments of the Barents Sea

Current paper reviews the problem of the ecological sustainability of the Barents Sea. One of the most dangerous groups of anthropogenic pollutants in the Arctic seas is organochlorine compounds, represented by the following species: hexochlorocyclohexane (a-HCH, g-HCH), pesticides (DDT, DDD, DDE) and polychlorobiphenyls (PCB). Of this group of pollutants, polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs) are briefly reviewed. More than 70 thousand tons of PCBs have been discharged to the environment. Most of them are concentrated in the ocean waters. At the same time, the accumulation of this substance in the waters is 1.5 times higher than that in the continental ecosystems which makes ocean areas more vulnerable towards environmental pollution. The oceans can be considered as the ultimate reservoir for the accumulation of these pollutants. The paper briefly reports the main problems of the pollution by insecticides, pesticides and polychlorobiphenyls in the bottom sediments of the Barents Sea.