Phthalates Concentration In Leachate From Operating And Closed Municipal Landfills Of Central Poland

Phthalates (PAEs) are organic esters of phthalic acid used mainly as plasticizers in the production of PVC products, but also as additives in the production of paints and varnishes. The content of plasticizers in soft PVC products may reach up to 40-60%. With the global yearly production of phthalates estimated at approx. 5-8 million tons, large amounts of PAEs had to end up on the landfills and therefore can be found in high concentrations in the municipal landfills leachate. The landfills without proper environmental protection systems may pose a threat to the environment and human health. In this research two landfills with different "history and parameters" were studied. First landfill was closed in 2011 and a remediation process started in 1996, while the second one is currently under a closing process but is still in use. Those landfills were compared in terms of phthalates concentration in raw leachate. It was found that most of the PAEs concentrations were below LOQ, with an exception of DEHP, DBP and DIBP. The highest DEHP concentrations were detected on landfill 1 in 2015, in summer, ranging from 32.2 to 38.6 mu g/l, autumn 更多