Chloropropanes in freshwater and marine water
Toxicant default guideline values for protecting aquatic ecosystems
October 2000
Extracted from Section 8.3.7 ‘Detailed descriptions of chemicals' of the ANZECC & ARMCANZ (2000) guidelines.
The default guideline values (previously known as ‘trigger values’) and associated information in this technical brief should be used in accordance with the detailed guidance provided in the Australian and New Zealand Guidelines for Fresh and Marine Water Quality.
Description of chemical
Chlorinated propanes (mostly 1,2-DCP) are low boiling volatile solvents used as soil and grain fumigants, in plastics, resins and rubbers, as degreasers and as chemical intermediates (HSDB 1996). They have log Kow values around 2 and water solubility around 2700-2900 mg/L.
Environmental fate
The primary mechanism for loss from water is by volatilisation (half-life <10 days) and photolysis (≤10 d to >23 d). They can be leached by rain. Bioconcentration is not significant.
Aquatic toxicology
There are very limited ecotoxicity data for chlorinated propanes, mostly acute (24-96-h LC50) data, and none from Australia or New Zealand.
| Chemical and CAS no. | 1,1-DCE (75-34-3) |
1,2-DCE (107-06-2) |
1,1,1-TCE (71-55-6) |
1,1,2-TCE (79-00-5) |
1,1,2,2-TeCE (79-34-5) |
PeCE (76-01-7) |
HCE (67-72-1) |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Freshwater | |||||||
| Fish | 202 (n=1) | 1.8-1200 (n=5) | 40-105 (n=2) | 31-89 (n=8) | 4.9-40 (n=5) | 7.2-7.5 (n=2) | 0.8-2.1 (n=6) |
| Crustaceans | 92 (n=1) | 45-1430 (n=1) | 58 (n=1) | 18-190 (n=7) | 9-62 (n=1) | 4.7-63 (n=1) | 1.8-10 (n=5) |
| Other Inverts | – | – | – | 147-320 (n=3) | – | – | 1.2-5.8 (n=2) |
| Algae or ciliate | – | – | – | 170 (n=1) | – | – | – |
| TV Fresh µg/L: Mod reliab. SD | – | – | – | 6500 | – | – | 290 B |
| TV Fresh µg/L: Low reliability | 90 (AF) | 1900 (SD; Q) | 270 (SD;Q) | – | 400 (SD;Q) | 80 (SD;Q) | – |
| Marine | |||||||
| Fish | 250-275 (n=1) | 115-180 (n=2) | 71 (n=1) | 34-125 (n=4) | 5-41 (n=2) | 116 (n=1) | 2.4-2.8(n=1) |
| Crustacean | – | 61-186 (n= x) | 31 (n=1) | 43-82 (n=5) | 3.5-9 (n=2) | 5.0 (n=1) | 0.9 (n=1) |
| Other inverts | – | Chronic | – | 110-500 (n=3) | – | – | 8.5-9.3 (n=1) |
| Algae | – | – | – | 60-260 (n=5) | 6.4 (n=1) | Chronic | – |
| TV Marine µg/L: Mod reliab. SD | – | – | – | 1900 | – | – | – |
| TV Marine µg/L: Low reliability | 250 (AF) | 1900 (f; Q) | 270 (f; Q) | – | 400 (f; Q) | 80 (f; Q) | 290 (f) |
HCE: amphibians, two species: 2.4–3.2 mg/L (96-h LC50); AF = assessment factor method; SD = statistical distribution method with 95% protection (recommended for slightly to moderately disturbed systems) for 1,1,2-TCE and 99% for HCE; B = bioaccumulator, 99% figure for slightly to moderately disturbed systems; Q = QSAR-derived; f = freshwater TV adopted.
1,1-Dichloropropane (CAS 78-99-8)
Freshwater crustacean: Daphnia magna 48-h LC50, 23 mg/L.
1,2-Dichloropropane (CAS 78-87-5)
Freshwater fish: one species, 48-96-h LC50, 140-194 mg/L and 32-d NOEC for growth and mortality between 6 and 11 mg/L.
Freshwater crustacean: one species, 48-48 h LC50, 52-99 mg/L.
Marine fish: two species, 96-h LC50 of 61-240 mg/L.
Marine mollusc: one species, 48-h LC50, 27-53 mg/L.
Marine alga: one species, 48-h EC50 (photosynthesis) 50 mg/L.
1,3-Dichloropropane (CAS 142-28-9)
Freshwater fish: one species, 48-96-h LC50 of 131 mg/L.
Marine fish: one species, 48-96-h LC50 of 87 mg/L.
Marine crustacean: one species, 96-h LC50 of 10.3 mg/L.
Factors that modify toxicity
No data are available. See chlorinated ethanes.
Guidelines
Low reliability freshwater trigger values, listed below, were derived using chronic QSARs and the experimental fish chronic data for 1,2-DCP. The default assessment factor (AF) of 10 was used. Marine low reliability trigger values were adopted from freshwater figures. Values listed below in µg/L (with % protection) should only be used as indicative interim working levels:
- 1,1-Dichloropropane: 300 (99%), 500 (95%), 700 (90%) and 1000 µg/L (80%)
- 1,2-Dichloropropane: 600 (99%), 900 (95%), 1200 (90%) and 1800 µg/L (80%)
- 1,3-Dichloropropane: 700 (99%), 1100 (95%), 1400 (90%) and 2000 µg/L (80%).
References
ANZECC & ARMCANZ 2000. Australian and New Zealand Guidelines for Fresh and Marine Water Quality, Australian and New Zealand Environment and Conservation Council and Agriculture and Resource Management Council of Australia and New Zealand, Canberra.
HSDB (Hazardous Substances Data Bank) 1996. Micromedex Inc. 31 July 1996.
