Int. J. Environ. Res. Public Health 2010, 7 3621 (1) Since the early 1980s, the central government-level agency (i.e., COA) began monitoring the residual concentrations of common OCPs in agricultural soils every 10 years. The survey data in 2004 showed that the majority of monitoring concentrations varied in the range from 0.19 to 340 ng/g-dw [8]. Analyzing the monitoring data in the soil samples, it also indicated a declining trend over the past decades. (2) The surveys on bottom sediments from principal rivers by EPA were conducted from 2002 to 2006 [8], showing that the majority of monitoring data for common OCPs (i.e., aldrin, chlordane, DDT, dieldrin, endrin, heptachlor, hexachlorobenzene, and lindane) and their metabolites were less than detectable limits, and have been diminishing gradually. (3) One study reported the environmental level of OCPs in river sediments (40 samples) collected from Oct. 1997 to Apr. 1998 [7]. The concentrations of OCPs in sediments were in the ranges of 0.57–14.1 ng/g-dw for HCH, 0.05–0.15 ng/g-dw for aldrin, 0.12–5.8 ng/g-dw for dieldrin, 0.22–0.64 ng/g-dw for endrin, and 0.21–8.81 ng/g-dw for DDT. It also showed that DDT, dieldrin and β-HCH were in abundance. Based on the abovementioned results, the monitoring of the residues of OCPs in agricultural environment including soil, water, and sediment was completed in the three past decades. The residual levels of OCPs in the agricultural environment of Taiwan were in the range of traces to a few ppb, indicating that the relevant regulations for banning the use of OCPs have resulted in better environmental quality. 4. Regulatory System of Controlling Pesticides-POPs in Taiwan In the past decades, the public concern about POPs in the environment has been rising and there is a push towards promulgating legislative frameworks for controlling/restricting their uses and distribution based on the environmental and health risks posed by these chemicals. Therefore, the central competent authorities began revising and strengthening existing laws and regulations, and even adding new management regulations for controlling pesticide-POPs in recent years, which were in accordance with the Stockholm Convention on POPs [13]. Table 4 shows the status of these pesticide-POPs with regards to the relevant laws/acts in Taiwan. Table 5 summarizes the environmental standards/limits of pesticide-POPs under the authorizations of the allied regulations, including the Water Pollution Control Act (WPCA), the Soil and Groundwater Pollution Remediation Act (SGPRA), the Drinking Water Management Act (DWMA), the Marine Pollution Control Act (MPCA), the Feeds Control Act (FCA), and the Labor Safety and Health Law (LSHL). Table 4. Control/restriction regulations governing persistent organic pollutants (POPs) in Taiwan a. POPs Aldrin Chlordane Chlordecone DDT Dieldrin DWMA EACA ● ● ● ● EPA MPCA ● ● ● SGPRA ● ● ● ● TCSCA ● ● ● ● WPCA ● ● ● COA PMA FCA ● ● ● DOH CLA FSMA LSHL ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ● ●