Towards integrating toxicity characterization into environmental studies: case study of bromine in soils Tatiana Bratec, Nienke Kirchhübel, Natalia Baranovskaya, Bertrand Laratte, Olivier Jolliet, Leonid Rikhvanov, Peter Fantke To cite this version: Tatiana Bratec, Nienke Kirchhübel, Natalia Baranovskaya, Bertrand Laratte, Olivier Jolliet, et al.. Towards integrating toxicity characterization into environmental studies: case study of bromine in soils. Environmental Science and Pollution Research, Springer Verlag, 2019, 26 (19), pp.19814-19827. 10.1007/s11356-019-05244-5. hal-02143914 HAL Id: hal-02143914 https://hal.archives-ouvertes.fr/hal-02143914 Submitted on 29 May 2019 HAL is a multi-disciplinary open access L’archive ouverte pluridisciplinaire HAL, est archive for the deposit and dissemination of sci- destinée au dépôt et à la diffusion de documents entific research documents, whether they are pub- scientifiques de niveau recherche, publiés ou non, lished or not. The documents may come from émanant des établissements d’enseignement et de teaching and research institutions in France or recherche français ou étrangers, des laboratoires abroad, or from public or private research centers. publics ou privés. Towards integrating toxicity characterization into environmental studies: case study of bromine in soils Tatiana Bratec1,2 & Nienke Kirchhübel3 & Natalia Baranovskaya2 & Bertrand Laratte1,4,5 & Olivier Jolliet6 & Leonid Rikhvanov2 & Peter Fantke3 Pollution from bromine and some of its related compounds is currently unregulated in soil from Russia and other countries, and tools for sound assessment of environmental impacts of bromine contamination are largely missing. Hence, assessing potential implications for humans and ecosystems of bromine soil contamination is urgently needed, which requires the combi- nation of measured soil concentrations from environmental studies and quantified potential toxicity impacts. To address this need, we used data from an experimental study assessing bromine in soils (384 samples) of Tomsk oblast, Russia, starting from measured concentrations obtained by Instrumental Neutron Activation Analysis in an earlier study. From these data, we calcu- lated the bromine mass in soils and used these as starting point to characterize related cumulative impacts on human health and ecosystems in the Tomsk region, using a global scientific consensus model for screening-level comparative toxicity character- ization of chemical emissions. Results show that the combination of sampling methodology with toxicity characterization techniques presents a new approach to be used in environmental studies aimed at environmental assessment and analysis of a territory. Our results indicate that it is important to account for substance-specific chemical reaction pathways and transfer processes, as well as to consider region-specific environmental characteristics. Our approach will help complement environmen- tal assessment results with environmental sustainability elements, to consider potential tradeoffs in impacts, related to soil pollution, in support of improved emission and pollution reduction strategies. Keywords Bromine contamination . Tomsk oblast . Characterization factors . USEtox . Human toxicity . Freshwater ecotoxicity Introduction element and its major sources are mostly natural: seawater, salt lakes and lake brines, highly mineralized reservoir waters, Bromine (Br), a chemical element belonging to the group of and the waters of oil deposits (Vinogradov 1939; Chemical halogens, has the atomic number of 35. Br is a typical trace Encyclopedia 1988;Emsley1989). However, bromine https://doi.org/10.1007/s11356-019-05244-5 * Tatiana Bratec 3 Quantitative Sustainability Assessment, Department of Technology, [email protected] Management and Economics, Technical University of Denmark, Produktionstorvet 424, 2800 Kgs. Lyngby, Denmark 4 1 Research Centre for Environmental Studies and Sustainability, Arts et Métiers ParisTech, I2M, UMR 5295, University of Technology of Troyes, CNRS, ICD, 12 Rue Marie F-33400 Talence, France Curie CS 42060, F-10004 Troyes Cedex, France 5 APESA-Innovation, Pôle Territorial de coopération économique social et environnemental, 23 Rue Hélène Boucher, 2 Division for Geology, School of Earth Sciences and Engineering, 40220 Tarnos, France National Research Tomsk Polytechnic University, 30 Lenin Avenue, 6 Environmental Health Sciences, University of Michigan, 1415 634050 Tomsk, Russia Washington Heights, Ann Arbor, MI 48109-2029, USA contamination could appear due to human activities as far as the element in soils can be found in the form of various ions: bromine and its compounds are used in numerous areas such Br− (the most widespread form), BrO−, BrO3−, BrO4−,aswell as chemical and food industries, medicine, pharmaceutics, ag- as organic compounds (Konarbaeva 2008). A major contribu- riculture, and nuclear industry (Filov 1988; Greenwood and tion to studying Br in soils was made by Vinogradov (1957), Ershno 2008; Yoffe et al. 2013). If not specified otherwise, we Yamada (1968), Yuita (1983), Yuita et al. (1982), Konarbaeva use the term Bbromine^ to refer to the element in its various (2008), and Kabata-Pendias (2010). forms including related compounds. In the present paper, the area of interest is Tomsk oblast, an Bromine is considered as one of the essential elements administrative region of the Russian Federation, where chem- (McCall et al. 2014). However, there is considerable data in- ical and oil industries, together with agriculture, are among the dicating its toxic effects. Since bromine can be emitted to the main contributors to chemical pollution of soils (Banks et al. environment in the form of different ions or compounds, re- 2000;Zhornyaketal.2016). A recent study (Perminova et al. lated toxic effects could vary significantly from one 2017) showed that among 26 chemicals identified in the soils compound/form to another. The literature data on toxicity pre- of Tomsk oblast, bromine concentrations are significantly sented hereafter describe the toxicity of bromide (Br-)thatis higher compared with background soil concentrations from the anion of the element bromine (Br2). In some cases, bro- local park areas and levels found in soils of other regions of mide could provoke phytotoxicity, since it could replace chlo- Russia. However, the mechanisms behind bromine contamina- rine and affect changes in cell membrane permeability (Nazer tion in soils of Tomsk oblast, along with the associated impacts et al. 1982; Kabata-Pendias 2010). Likewise, animal studies on human and environmental health, are still largely unclear. describe bromide as toxic at varying dose levels (van In response, we propose to use a modeling approach helping Leeuwen et al. 1983; World Health Organization 1988; to determine current bromine soil contamination patterns in IUCLID 2000). Tomsk oblast and to screen potential related negative impacts With respect to effects on human health, bromine is report- on humans and the environment in order to better understand ed to play an important role in the appearance and develop- and mitigate bromine-related emissions and impacts. Measured ment of various diseases (Valdés et al. 2012). Elevated bro- bromine concentrations in our case are not bromine emitted itself, mine contents have been found in the heart tissue of patients but the total possible bromine found in soils in different forms. suffering from uremia (Pehrsson and Lins 1983), dilated car- Since bromine could originate from different sources in various diomyopathy (Bumbalova et al. 1991), and sickle-cell anemia, forms or/and being presented as a compound, it is important to and also in cancerous breast tissue and in the brain of patients account for the correct emission forms that will ultimately be with Alzheimer’s disease (Ehmann and Vance 1996), and present in the environment. However, there is currently no others. screening-level modeling framework available for assessing the The widespread use of bromine today and the potential fate and exposure of inorganic substances that are not metal ions danger caused by anthropogenic entry of the element and its (Kirchhübel and Fantke, 2019). To demonstrate this issue, we are compounds into the environment, as well as its negative impact testing in the present study different modeling assumptions in a on living organisms, determine the existence of the regulatory global scientific consensus model for screening-level characteri- standards in some countries. For example, in Russia, elemental zation of fate, exposure, and effects of chemical emissions bromine and its several compounds are standardized (i.e., max- (Rosenbaum et al. 2008; Henderson et al. 2011). More specifi- imum permissible concentrations are set) in workplaces air cally, we will model bromine compound emissions on the one (GN 2.2.5.1313-03 2003) and ambient air in public areas hand in the same way as metal ions are modeled, and on the other (GN 2.1.6.1338-03 2003). According to these standards, bro- hand in the same way as organic substances are modeled. This mine presents a class II danger, i.e., is highly dangerous. There allows us to contrast the different assumptions and provide some are also established hygienic standards for bromide in water in input for developing new methods for consistently assessing fate, Russia (GN 2.1.5.1315-03 2003). There are no limit values for exposure, and effects of inorganic substances other than metal bromide in water, established by the WHO, according