Fire Retardants, their Occurrence in Environment and Methods of Measurement

Abstract

The paper describes the occurrence, possible routes of the exposure and analyses of the flame retardants in various components of the environment, focusing on the most frequently occurring types based on brominated and organophosphate compounds and mapping their presence in the country. Czech Republic is committed to do the monitoring within the frames of the obligations under the Stockholm Convention. Although these compounds are produced and incorporated into products for decades and are present in all components of the environment, not all mechanisms of their migration are fully explained. A quantitative detection of them is necessary to identify all the human exposure pathways and to make a qualified decision of how to substitute them by new substances.