Occurrence of organic biocides in the air and dust at the Natural History Museum of Rouen, France

Using over 100 years of biocides for preservation of collections of natural history museums has led to significant pollution of specimens and the environment of museums. Staff may be exposed to these substances as well by skin contact or by breathing dust and volatiles compounds. In this work, we present the results of a screening of volatile and semi-volatile organic compounds in the air and dust from the Natural History Museum of Rouen (Normandy, France). It is shown that the concentration in the air of the different substances is acceptable and below regulatory limits. Nevertheless, concentrations in dust especially for DDT and DDD are high and require special precautions and a regular dusting.