Perfluorooctane sulfonate and perfluorooctanoate contamination of riparian wetlands of the Eerste, Diep and Salt Rivers

Mudumbi, John-Baptist Nzukizi

Perfluorooctane sulfonate and perfluorooctanoate contamination of riparian wetlands of the Eerste, Diep and Salt Rivers

Author(s)

Mudumbi, John-Baptist Nzukizi

Date Issued

2012

Type

Thesis

Publisher

Cape Peninsula University of Technology

Abstract

Perfluorinated compounds (PFCs), in particular perfluorooctane sulfonate (PFOS)
and perfluorooctanoate (PFOA) have been found in aquatic environments throughout the
world. Recent studies have reported that owing to their bioaccumulative nature, PFCs may
also be present in various water sources, resulting in human and wild-life exposure.
Although, these PFCs usually occur at low concentration levels, their presence in the
environment has nevertheless been a concern in both developed and developing countries,
since water remains an important natural resource for most living species. Water and
sediment from rivers are one of the matrices in which PFC contamination is studied, since
rivers receive water from various sources. However, limited studies have been conducted in
South Africa on PFC contamination of river water and sediments. Although PFCs are
sometimes unintentionally released into the environment, the concentration and type of PFCs
that contaminate water sources vary among countries and depend on the types of industry
releasing them into the environment, suggesting that PFC contamination patterns can be
expected to differ from country to country, with PFOA and PFOS being the predominant
perfluorinated contaminants. The aim of this study was therefore to determine the
concentration of PFOS and PFOA in riparian wetlands of the Western Cape, focusing on the
Eerste, Diep and Salt rivers, which are the primary rivers in the largest catchment areas of
the Western Cape, South Africa.

Additional information

Thesis (MTech (Environmental Management))--Cape Peninsula University of Technology, 2012.

Subjects

Eerste River (South A...

Diep River (South Afr...

Salt River (South Afr...

Chemical pollutants -...

Perfluorooctanoic aci...

Fluorocarbons -- Envi...

Water quality -- Effe...

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