Influence of a municipal waste landfill on the spatial distribution of polychlorinated dibenzo-p-dioxins and dibenzofurans (PCDDs/Fs) in the natural environment

• The PCDDs/Fs level in soil, plants and groundwater around MSW landfill was examined.
• The studies have confirmed that PCDDs/Fs accumulate mainly in the topsoil horizon.
• The MSW landfill has no impact on the PCDDs/Fs concentration in groundwater.
• PCDDs/Fs compounds in analyzed plant material were in trace amounts.
• The main source of PCDDs/Fs in study area is atmospheric deposition, not landfill.

The paper presents the influence of a municipal waste landfill on the pollution of soil, plants and groundwater by polychlorinated dibenzo-p-dioxins and dibenzofurans (PCDDs/Fs). Analysis of their migration in the environment was made in relation to the direction of groundwater flow in the study area. Determination of PCDDs/Fs was performed by isotope dilution high resolution chromatography/tandem mass spectrometry (ID-HRGC/MS–MS) on a Thermo Scientific GCQ-1100/Trace2000 system equipped with an Xcalibur data acquisition and analysis software.The content in soil was in the range of 0.04–27.3 pg I-TEQ g−1 of soil dry mass and decreased with depth. Similar values were obtained for plants: in Solidago virgaurea L. there were 0.13–1.9 pg I-TEQ g−1 dry mass and in grass from the Family Poaceae – 0.12–3.18 pg I-TEQ g−1 dry mass. The concentration in groundwater reached 1.16–6.6 pg I-TEQ dm−3; the highest concentration was obtained in water samples collected from a ditch collecting leachates from the landfill. The study has shown that the analyzed object is not responsible for PCDDs/Fs emission to the environment. The increased concentration of these compounds in the topsoil may be influenced by processes linked with waste management (transportation and unloading) and other localized sources of low emission located beyond the landfill.