03.10.2023

In September 2023, the high-tech research laboratory of the RSE branch of the National Center for Expertise in the Karaganda region received 43 water samples for examination.

To determine the residual amount of organochlorine pesticides, specialists conducted 391 studies from water bodies in the settlements of Aksu-Ayuly, Akshatau, Ortau, Koktem Kol and Shetsky districts of the Karaganda region.

All tested samples complied with the standards of regulatory and technical documentation; no positive results were found.

In the laboratory, to detect the presence of organochlorine compounds (OCCs), one of the most popular and universal methods is used - gas-liquid chromatography.

According to experts, water bodies are polluted with organochlorine pesticides in the following ways:

• as a result of leaks from storage areas;
• washed away from agricultural land;
• fall with precipitation.

Depending on the form of the compound, pesticides can give water:

• the smell of rotten cabbage, earth, chlorine, mold;
• astringent taste;
• yellow-brown tint.

Pesticides that get into water remain in it for a week or a month, possibly for years. These substances are absorbed by organisms inhabiting water bodies and accumulate in them. Exceeding the concentration of COCs is one of the most dangerous types of water pollution.