Degradation
Breakdown in soil and groundwater: Dicofol is moderately persistent in soil, with a half-life of 60 days. Dicofol is susceptible to chemical breakdown in moist soils. It is also subject to degradation by UV light. In a silty loam soil, its photodegradation half-life was 30 days. Under anaerobic soil conditions, the half-life for dicofol was 15.9 days.
Dicofol is practically insoluble in water and adsorbs very strongly to soil particles. It is therefore nearly immobile in soils and unlikely to infiltrate groundwater. Even in sandy soil, dicofol was not detected below the top 3 inches (76 mm) in standard soil column tests. It is possible for dicofol to enter surface waters when soil erosion occurs.
Breakdown in water: Dicofol degrades in water or when exposed to UV light at pH levels above 7. Its half-life in solution at pH 5 is 47 to 85 days. Because of its very high absorption coefficient (Koc), dicofol is expected to adsorb to sediment when released into open waters.
Breakdown in vegetation: In a number of studies, dicofol residues on treated plant tissues have been shown to remain unchanged for up to 2 years.
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