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By Thomas Westerholm
Life & Trends Reporter
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Scientists have made the first documented airborne detection of a toxic chemical pollutant known as Medium Chain Chlorinated Paraffins (MCCPs) in the Western Hemisphere.
The findings, published in ACS Environmental Au, came during a month-long field campaign in Oklahoma by researchers from the University of Colorado Boulder, who used a high-resolution chemical ionization mass spectrometer designed to study how aerosol particles form in the atmosphere.
While the team expected to observe known compounds, the instruments instead registered isotopic patterns that led to the identification of MCCPs—pollutants previously detected in Asia and Antarctica, but never before in North American air.
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"When we first realized that we had measured MCCPs, we were intrigued and cautious," Ellie Browne, CU Boulder chemistry professor, CIRES Fellow, and co-author of the study, told Newsweek in an email.
"Since we had not planned on measuring these compounds, we first had to learn about them and also make sure that our measurements were of high-quality," Browne said.
"Once we determined that we indeed were detecting these compounds in the atmosphere, we recognized the importance of these measurements and were excited to contribute to the understanding of how these compounds move through the environment and ultimately impact peoples' lives."
Why It Matters
MCCPs are used in metalworking, PVC plastics and textiles.
"MCCP emissions occur across the entire lifecycle of those products including manufacture, use and disposal," Browne said.
Like their chemical cousins—short-chain chlorinated paraffins (SCCPs), which are already regulated—they resist degradation and can travel long distances in the environment.
Because SCCPs have been phased out under U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) and Stockholm Convention regulations, MCCPs have become more common.
Browne said MCCPs have previously been difficult to find in tests, even though researchers expected them to be present in North America.
"We always have these unintended consequences of regulation, where you regulate something and then there's still a need for the products that those were in," Browne said in a university release, "So they get replaced by something."
What To Know
Researchers suspect the MCCPs they found originated from biosolid fertilizers—waste byproducts from sewage treatment—applied to nearby farmland.
"While one exposure might not be harmful, because these chemicals can travel long distances and last a long-time in the environment and in living organisms, repeated and continued exposure becomes worrisome," Browne told Newsweek.
"Measurements such as ours are critical for evaluating and predicting how these chemicals move through and build-up in the environment. They also inform when and how people are exposed to them. This knowledge is then used to protect people and the environment."
While their presence was unexpected, MCCPs share structural traits with PFAS, or "forever chemicals", now banned in Oklahoma's biosolid fertilizers due to persistence and health risks.
What's Next
The team wants to continue studying how MCCPs end up in the atmosphere and where they are most prevalent, although future studies depend on funding, according to Browne.
"Understanding how our health is impacted by the air we breathe, the water we drink and the food we eat requires measuring what compounds are present in air, water and food," she told Newsweek.
"Our measurements enhance the understanding of how MCCPs move through the environment and how we may be exposed to these compounds, however, more measurements and investigations are required to understand the problem.
"We are excited to see how our measurements contribute to awareness of and investigation into MCCPs. It is important to remember that keeping our communities healthy requires investment in science funding so that studies such as this one can continue."
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