Abstract
The Stockholm Convention on persistent organic pollutants (2001). banned a number of organochlorine pesticides (OCPs) which are persistent and still detected in human milk. Levels of OCPs in breast milk were assessed to understand the trends over time in Armenia. Breast milk samples (N = 627) were collected from randomly selected mothers in Aragatsotn Province of Armenia between 1993 and 2012. OCPs: gamma-hexachlorocyclohexane (γ-HCH), dichlorodiphenyltrichloroethane (DDT), dichlorodiphenyldichloroethylene (DDE) and dichlorodiphenyldichloroethane (DDD) were determined by gas-liquid chromatography with electron capture detector and expressed as µg/L of whole milk. The results were compared for two periods: before the adoption of new legal framework on pesticides management (1993–2002) and after its establishment (2003–2012). Concentrations of individual OCPs and total sums of DDT and OCPs for 1993–2012 decreased over time. In the first period concentrations of DDE were up to 24 times higher than that of γ-HCH, but in the second γ-HCH reached equal or higher levels. In the second period the simultaneous presence of four OCPs increased sharply up to 89%. A significant decrease was observed for DDE, as well as for both total sum of DDT and OCPs in the second period, mainly due to decrease of DDE. At the same time, the mean levels γ-HCH did not differ between the two periods. The detection of OCPs residues indicates their continued circulation in the environment and suggests possible ongoing agricultural use of banned pesticides. Educational campaigns are needed to improve current practice of pesticide application in Armenia.