Optimizing chlordecone reduction in soils of the French West Indies using biodegradation coupled to in situ chemical reduction
Résumé
Soil, surface water and groundwater in Martinique and Guadeloupe (French West Indies) are contaminated with chlordecone (CLD; C10Cl10O), a very persistent organochlorine pesticide. In soils, its persistence is estimated as several decades in nitisols, centuries in ferralsols and half a millennium in andosols. CLD accumulates in food chains. Long-term chronic exposure to CLD through food and drinking water can have consequences for human health.