case study of pahs, me-pahs, pcbs,phthalates and pesticides contamination in the somme river water, france

surface waters, especially natural rivers always act as receiving waters for various kinds oforganic contaminants from municipal and industrial wastewaters, agricultural activities, organic chemicals inuse, non-point source pollutions. due to their toxicity, persistency and wide diffusion, polychlorinatedbiphenyls (pcbs), pesticides, phthalates, polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (pah) and their alkylatedhomologues (me-pahs) are among the organic contaminants the most often monitored in the environment.determination of the contamination level is the crucial first step of environmental research. field investigationshave clearly demonstrated their importance on various studies on the contamination levels, the origin, andimpact of contaminants in the aquatic ecosystems. the present paper is an effort on the field studies focusingon persistent organic pollutants: pcbs, pahs and me-pahs, phthalates and pesticides in somme river waterlocated on northern france. the sampling zone is characterized by fields of agriculture surrounding urbanizedand industrialized areas and constitutes a place embedded with strong fishing activities. however, the riversection of interest is also known for the high levels of pcb in sediments. the water were analyzed for 28pcbs, 16 pahs and 18 me-pahs, 6 phthalates and 28 pesticides with the aim to determine the dispersiontrend and the water quality of the sampled water.