Polychlorinated Biphenyls and Chlorinated Pesticides in Soils of the Everglades National Park and Adjacent Agricultural Areas Adolfo G. Requejo”, Richard H. West, Patrick G. Hatcher, and Philip A. McGillivary National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration, Atlantic Oceanographic i 3 Meteorological Laboratories, Ocean Chemistry Laboratory, Miami, Fla. 33149
Soil samples collected from the eastern Everglades National Park and adjacent farmlands were analyzed for certain chlorinated pesticides and polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs). The results indicate that although concentrations of PCBs, 1,1,1-trichloro-2,2-bis(p-chlorophenyl)ethane (DDT), and chlordane are high a t the agricultural sites, little contamination of parklands has occurred. Pesticide concentrations decrease by two orders of magnitude (to unit parts per billion levels) within 2 km of the agricultural sites sampled. Individual contributions of four Aroclors (1242, 1248, 1254, and 1260), calculated using pattern recognition techniques, suggest that plastic sheeting used in agricultural fields is a local source of PCBs. A comparison of the results to those from other environments reveals that PCB and DDT concentrations found within the Park (
