PARTITIONING OF CHLORPYRIFOS BETWEEN WATER AND AN AQUATIC MACROPHYTE (ELODEA-DENSA)

Chlorpyrifos is a widely used organophosphate (OP) insecticide. As suc h, the potential for off-site migration exists. This research was cond ucted to determine the ability of plant material (Elodea densa) to acc umulate chlorpyrifos from the water column. Our system consisted of on e hundred Elodea densa stems in a 38 L glass tank in moderately-hard w ater (80g CaCO3/L H2O). Water and plant samples were collected prior t o fortification and in intervals from 1 hour to 14 days after onset of the experiment. Chlorpyrifos was shown to dissipate over a 2-week per iod in the aqueous phase and accumulate in Elodea densa. From our stud ies, it is apparent that these aquatic macrophytes have the ability to sorb organic compounds, such as chlorpyrifos, and assist in removing them from the aqueous environment. (C) 1998 Elsevier Science Ltd. All rights reserved.