Chlorine and compounds: Environmental effects
Description
Chlorine persists for only minutes in the air, water, or land environments. Both chlorine itself, and some of its reaction products, are very harmful to the biota. These effects range from causing death to a range of sub-lethal effects including deformities and reproductive damage.
Entering the environment
Chlorine is carried in the air, where it rapidly reacts to form other compounds (see chemical properties). In water, it also reacts rapidly leading to a variety of organochlorine compounds, some of which are hazardous to the biota.
Where it ends up
Chlorine absorbs some wavelengths of ultraviolet and visible sunlight and undergoes rapid chemical reactions in the atmosphere. The atmospheric half-life and lifetime of chlorine due to these reactions is estimated to be about 10 minutes and 14 minutes, respectively. The chlorine atoms produced will then react with organic compounds (mainly alkanes in polluted urban areas) to form hydrogen chloride and organochlorine compounds.
Environmental guidelines
No national guidelines.
Key
Links to an another web site
Opens a pop-up window
