2. Substance migration in the environment

The behavior of a substance in the environment depends on its distribution properties in the various environmental compartments and on the fate of the substance in each of the compartments concerned. It is the behavior of substances that determines their distribution in the environment – in dissolved, particulate or micelle form – as well as their distribution in sediment or water, and whether they are native or transformed.

This behavior is linked to the structure of the molecule itself, which induces specific physico-chemical properties (solubility, volatility, adsorption, etc.) that enable the evaluation of specific constants (octanol-water coefficient Kow, Henry's law constant, etc.). These properties will be responsible for the molecule's distribution in the environment, and will play a vital role in its impact on target organisms in the ecosystem, by influencing...