Problem of disposal of unwanted pesticides deposited in concrete tombs

Abstract

The contents of a selected dual-chamber tomb containing pesticide wastes were investigated. Organochlorine pesticides constituted 30% of the buried waste and DDT constituted 50% of the chlorinated hydrocarbons. The investigated tomb also contained about 8.2 kg of mercury in organic and inorganic compounds and 600 kg of explosive nitrophenols. Because the bituminous coatings on the concrete walls of the tomb may be destroyed by oil-water emulsions and/or organic solvents from solvent-based preparations deposited in the tomb, it is possible that the unprotected concrete walls will be corroded and that toxic chemicals may subsequently migrate to the surrounding area. The exact composition of each tomb chamber is unknown, therefore the processing technology needs to be flexible enough to cope with the different properties and concentrations of the deposited chemicals.