Résumé
For many years, there has been an unprecedented decline in biodiversity on a global scale, triggered largely by the use of plant protection products. In this context, a collective scientific assessment was conducted to identify current consensus knowledge and further needs regarding the impacts of plant protection products on biodiversity and ecosystem services in France, including its overseas territories. A particular focus was placed on chlordecone, a highly persistent organochlorine insecticide used extensively in the French West Indies (FWI) for more than 20 years (1972-1993) to control the banana root borer, but also in Eastern Europe, the USA, South America and Africa for various uses. The FWI support biodiversity hotspots, with many endemic and endangered species, and include marine and terrestrial protected areas. Such an environmental context is therefore highly relevant for studying the links between chlordecone contamination and potential effects on biodiversity. Thus, the objective of this work was to review the contamination of the FWI environment by chlordecone, its transfer through ecosystems, and its effects on biodiversity and ecosystem services. Literature analysis emphasized valuable knowledge of chlordecone ecodynamics in terrestrial, freshwater, and marine ecosystems. A wide diversity of terrestrial and aquatic organisms is chronically exposed to chlordecone. However, despite 15 years of public policy dedicated to developing knowledge on chlordecone’s fate and impacts, the knowledge gap remains critical regarding its effects on biodiversity and on ecosystem services. As the local environment is often contaminated for tens or even hundreds of years, future research is needed to characterize the effects of legacy pollution by chlordecone and its transformation products on organisms and ecosystems.