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DDT residues are rapidly passed through food chain causing biomagnification because DDT is
A
Water soluble
B
Lipo soluble
C
Moderately toxic
D
Non-toxic to aquatic animals
Detailed Solution
Biomagnification is the increase in concentration of a toxicant at successive trophic levels.
It happens because the toxic substance accumulated by an organism cannot be metabolised or excreted, and is passed on to the next higher trophic level.
DDT is insoluble in water but soluble in fats (lipo-soluble); it is stored in the body fat of organisms and is not broken down.
So its concentration rises at each step: for example, from 0.003 ppb in water to 25 ppm in fish-eating birds.
Hence DDT is biomagnified because it is lipo soluble.
It happens because the toxic substance accumulated by an organism cannot be metabolised or excreted, and is passed on to the next higher trophic level.
DDT is insoluble in water but soluble in fats (lipo-soluble); it is stored in the body fat of organisms and is not broken down.
So its concentration rises at each step: for example, from 0.003 ppb in water to 25 ppm in fish-eating birds.
Hence DDT is biomagnified because it is lipo soluble.