| Kepone | |
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1,1a,3,3a,4,5,5,5a,5b,6-Decachlorooctahydro-2H-1,3,4-(methanetriyl)cyclobuta[cd]pentalen-2-one |
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Other names
Chlordecone |
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| Identifiers | |
| CAS number | 143-50-0 |
| PubChem | 299 |
| ChemSpider | 293 |
| UNII | RG5XJ88UDF |
| KEGG | C01792 |
| ChEBI | CHEBI:16548 |
| ChEMBL | CHEMBL462576 |
| Jmol-3D images | Image 1 |
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| Properties | |
| Molecular formula | C10Cl10O |
| Molar mass | 490.64 g mol−1 |
| Density | 1.6 g/cm3 |
| (verify) (what is: /?) Except where noted otherwise, data are given for materials in their standard state (at 25 °C, 100 kPa) |
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| Infobox references | |
Kepone, also known as chlordecone, is a carcinogenic[1] insecticide related to mirex, used between 1966 and 1975 in the USA for ant and roach baits.
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Chemically, kepone is a chlorinated polycyclic ketone insecticide and fungicide with the chemical formula C10Cl10O. The dry powder is readily absorbed through the skin and respiratory tract. Some unprotected production workers exposed to kepone powder suffered tremors, jerky eye movements, memory loss, headaches, slurred speech, unsteadiness, lack of coordination, loss of weight, rash, enlarged liver, decreased libido, sterility, chest pain, arthralgia, and the increased risk of developing cancer. Kepone persists in the environment, with a half-life of about 30 years.
Kepone was produced by Allied Signal Company in Hopewell, Virginia and caused a nationwide pollution controversy due to improper handling and dumping of the substance into the nearby James River.[2] In the United States, its use was banned in 1975. In 2009, kepone was included in the Stockholm Convention on persistent organic pollutants, which bans its production and use worldwide.[3]
In July 2003, a Richmond Magazine article chronicled the effects on Allied Signal employees and described how Dan Rather and CBS's 60 Minutes brought nationwide attention to the problem.[4]
Due to the pollution scare, many businesses and restaurants along the river suffered, and then-Governor Mills Godwin Jr. shut down the James River to fishing from Richmond to the Chesapeake Bay.
The French island of Martinique is heavily contaminated with kepone,[5] following years of unrestricted (including spray planes) use on banana plantations. Despite a 1990 ban of the substance by France, the island was, after intensive lobbying by the economically powerful Béké community, allowed to continue using kepone until 1993, under the since disputed argument that no alternative pesticide was available. Similarly, the nearby island of Guadeloupe is also contaminated, but to a lesser extent. Since 2003, the local authorities restricted cultivation of crops because the soil has been seriously contaminated by kepone. That may correlate with the fact that Guadeloupe has one of the highest prostate cancer rates in the world.[6]