Distribution and Risk Assessment of Triazine Herbicides in the Estuary of the Yangtze River Delta

Triazine herbicides are commonly used and highly effective herbicides. In recent years, many studies have focused on the detection of triazine herbicide residues in the water environment in China and abroad. However, the distribution of triazine herbicides in western Pacific estuaries has not been reported. Therefore, this study utilized high flux solid-phase extraction technology to evaluate the residues of 13 triazine herbicides in the coastal estuaries of the Yangtze River Delta. High-throughput organic analyses combined with high volume solid-phase extraction showed that 11 of the 13 tested triazine herbicides were detected in estuaries along the Yangtze River Delta, namely, atrazine-desethyl, simazine, atrazine, desmetryn, metribuzin, ametryn, prometryn, terbutryn, hexazinone, atratone, and terbuthylazine. The concentration of hexazinone was the highest. To prevent risks to marine aquatic life, policymakers should adopt measures aimed at reducing the entry of triazine herbicides from urban and agricultural sources into the ocean.