Pesticides and Bioaccumulation

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Pesticides and Bioaccumulation
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• Certain substances in the environment are harmful
  when absorbed in high concentrations.

• Pesticides, radioactive isotopes, heavy metals,
  industrial chemicals (eg PCBs) can be taken up
  via food or simply absorbed.

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Toxicity

• A measure of how poisonous the chemical is to
  both target and non-target organisms.

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Specificity

• How selective it is in targeting a pest.

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Persistence

• How long it remains in the environment.

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Biodegradable

• Capable of being broken down into constituents by
  the natural activities of living organisms.

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Bioaccumulation(Biological magnification)

• Toxins stored in fatty tissues and their
  progressive concentration with increasing trophic
  level.

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