Lindane
(endorsed 2011)
Guideline
Based on human health concerns, lindane in drinking water should not exceed 0.01 mg/L.
Related chemicals
Lindane (CAS 58-89-9) belongs to the cyclodiene organochlorine class of chemicals. Another pesticide in this class is endosulfan. Lindane exists in a number of isomeric forms – lindane technical is the gamma stereoisomer; however it contains 0.5% as the alpha, beta, and delta isomers (Tomlin 2006).
Human risk statement
With good water quality management practices, the exposure of the general population is expected to be well below levels that may cause health concerns.
If present in drinking water as a result of a spillage or through misuse, lindane would not be a health concern unless the concentration exceeded 0.01 mg/L. Excursions above this level even for a relatively short period are of concern, as the health-based guideline is based on effects observed in a 3-month dietary study.
With good water quality management practices, pesticides should not be detected in source waters used for drinking water supplies. Persistent detection of pesticides may indicate inappropriate use or accidental spillage, and investigation is required in line with established procedures in the risk management plan for the particular water source.
General description
Uses: Lindane is an insecticide for the control of grubs and symphylids in pineapple plantations.
There is at least one registered product containing lindane in Australia. Lindane products are intended for professional use and are available as a pre- and post-emergent insecticide on pineapple crops. They are to be diluted and applied to soil using ground or aerial spray, or by soil fumigation. Data on currently registered products are available from the Australian Pesticides and Veterinary Medicines Authority.
Exposure sources: The main source of public exposure to lindane and its metabolites is residues in pineapples. Residue levels in food produced according to good agricultural practice are generally low.
Agricultural use of lindane may potentially lead to contamination of source waters through processes such as run-off, spray drift or entry into groundwater.
Typical values in Australian drinking water
Lindane has been occasionally reported in Australian drinking waters in concentrations of less than 1 mg/L. Lindane has been detected indrinking water at similar concentrations in many other parts of the world (Aydin and Yurdun 1999, Badach et al. 2000, Na et al. 2006, Badach et al. 2007, Thacker et al. 2008).
Treatment of drinking water
No specific data on the treatment of lindane in drinking water have been identified.
Measurement
Lindane may be measured in drinking waters by gas chromatography–mass spectrometry, with a limit of detection 0.01 μg/L (WHO 2004, Van Hoof et al. 2001). Alternatively, extraction from water may be undertaken using solid phase micro-extraction (Arrebola et al. 2004).
History of the health values
The current acceptable daily intake (ADI) for lindane is 0.003 mg per kg of bodyweight (mg/kg bw), based on a no-observed-effect level (NOEL) of 0.31 mg/kg bw/day from a short-term (3-month) dietary study in rats. The NOEL is based on kidney tubule distension, nephritis, increased liver weight and centrilobular hypertrophy. The ADI incorporates a safety factor of 100, and was established in 1986.
The previous ADI of 0.01 mg/kg bw was established in 1975, based on a NOEL of 1.25 mg/kg bw/day from a long-term study in rats. The ADI was amended after submission of a three-month dietary study in rats that demonstrated a lower overall NOEL.
The previous health value was 0.02 mg/L (NHMRC and NRMMC 2004).
Health considerations
Metabolism: Lindane is rapidly absorbed from the gastrointestinal tract of rats, with wide distribution to tissues and moderate accumulation in fats. Metabolism is extensive, with hydroxylation and conjugation being the main pathways in humans and other mammals. Excretion is mostly through urine.
Acute effects: Lindane has high acute oral toxicity and moderate dermal toxicity. It is not a skin sensitiser in humans or guinea pigs.
Short-term effects: A 3-month oral study in rats reported kidney tubule distension, nephritis, increased liver weight and centrilobular hypertrophy at 1.6 mg/kg bw/day. Liver lesions were fully recovered and kidney lesions partially recovered after 6 weeks. The overall NOEL was 0.31 mg/kg bw/day and this NOEL is the basis for the current ADI.
Long-term effects: Long-term dietary studies were conducted in mice, rats and dogs. No adverse effects were reported in mice up to 10 mg/kg bw/day. Liver toxicity in the form of hepatocyte hypertrophy, fatty infiltration, and necrosis was reported in rats at doses of 2 mg/kg bw/day, and cerebellar vacuolisation, nephritis and glomerular fibrosis at 6 mg/kg bw/day. Fibrosis in liver and kidney tissue was reported at doses of 3.75 mg/kg bw/day and increased liver weight at 15 mg/kg bw/day in dogs.
Carcinogenicity: The liver tumours noted at high dose levels in mice were not considered relevant to humans at the normal levels of exposure. There was no evidence of carcinogenicity for lindane based on a 2-year dietary study in rats.
Genotoxicity: Lindane is not considered to be genotoxic, based on in vitro and in vivo short-term studies.
Reproductive and developmental effects: A 3-generation reproduction study in rats and developmental studies in rats, mice and rabbits did not produce any evidence for effects on reproductive parameters or foetal development.
Poisons Schedule: Lindane is included in Schedule 2, 4, 5, and 6 of the Standard for the Uniform Scheduling of Medicines and Poisons No.1, 2010 (the Poisons Standard)(DoHA 2010), depending on its concentration and use. Current versions of the Poisons Standard should be consulted for further information.
Derivation of the health-based guideline
The health-based guideline of 0.01 mg/L for lindane was determined as follows:
where:
0.31 mg/kg bw/day is the NOEL based on a medium-term (3-month) dietary study in rats.
70 kg is taken as the average weight of an adult.
0.1 is a proportionality factor based on the assumption that 10% of the ADI will arise from the consumption of drinking water.
2 L/day is the estimated maximum amount of water consumed by an adult.
100 is the safety factor applied to the NOEL derived from animal studies. This safety factor incorporates a factor of 10 for interspecies extrapolation and 10 for intraspecies variation.
The World Health Organization has a health-based guideline value of 0.002 mg/L for lindane (WHO 2004).
References
NOTE: The toxicological information used in developing this fact sheet is from reports and data held by the Department of Health, Office of Chemical Safety.
Arrebola FJ, Aguado SC, Sanchez-Morito N, Frenich AG, Vidal JLM (2004). Pesticide residue analysis in waters by solid-phase microextraction coupled to gas chromatography-tandem mass spectrometry. Analytical Letters, 37(1):99-117.
Aydin A, Yurdun T (1999). Residues of organochlorine pesticides in water sources of Istanbul. Water, Air, and Soil Pollution, 111(1-4):385-398.
Badach H, Nazimek T, Kaminska IA (2007). Pesticide content in drinking water samples collected from orchard areas in Central Poland. Annals of Agricultural and Environmental Medicine, 14(1):109-114.
Badach H, Nazimek T, Kaminski R, TurskiWA (2000). Organochlorine pesticides concentration in the drinking water from regions of extensive agriculture in Poland. Annals of Agricultural and Environmental Medicine, 7(1):25-28.
DoHA (2010) The Poisons Standard; Schedule 1-Standard for the Uniform Scheduling of Medicines and Poisons, Department of Health and Ageing, Commonwealth of Australia, Canberra.
Na T, Fang Z, Zhanqi G, Ming Z, Cheng S (2006). The status of pesticide residues in the drinking water sources in Meiliangwan Bay, Taihu Lake of China. Environmental Monitoring and Assessment, 123(1-3), 351-370.
NHMRC (National Health and Medical Research Council), NRMMC (Natural Resources Management Ministerial Council) (2004). Australian Drinking Water Guidelines. National Water Quality Management Strategy, Paper 6. NHMRC and NRMMC.
Thacker N, Bassin J, Deshpande V, Devotta S (2008). Trends of organochlorine pesticides in drinking water supplies. Environmental Monitoring and Assessment, 137(1-3):295-299.
Tomlin CD (ed) (2006). The Pesticide Manual: a world compendium, 14th edition, British Crop Production Council, UK.
Van Hoof F, Van Wiele P, Bruchet A, Schmitz I, Bobeldiji I, Sacher F, Ventura F, Marti I, Do Monte MHM, Da Costa MS (2001). Multiresidue determination of pesticides in drinking and related waters by gas chromatography/mass spectrometry after solid-phase extraction: Interlaboratory study. Journal of AOAC. International, 84(5):1420-1429.
WHO (World Health Organization) (2004). Guidelines for Drinking-water Quality. 3rd Edition, WHO, Geneva, Switzerland.
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