TY - JOUR
T1 - Pharmaceuticals in soils of lower income countries
T2 - Physico-chemical fate and risks from wastewater irrigation
AU - Lees, Katherine
AU - Fitzsimons, Mark
AU - Snape, Jason
AU - Tappin, Alan
AU - Comber, Sean
N1 - Publisher Copyright:
© 2016 Elsevier Ltd
PY - 2016/9/1
Y1 - 2016/9/1
N2 - Population growth, increasing affluence, and greater access to medicines have led to an increase in active pharmaceutical ingredients (APIs) entering sewerage networks. In areas with high wastewater reuse, residual quantities of APIs may enter soils via irrigation with treated, partially treated, or untreated wastewater and sludge. Wastewater used for irrigation is currently not included in chemical environmental risk assessments and requires further consideration in areas with high water reuse. This study critically assesses the contemporary understanding of the occurrence and fate of APIs in soils of low and lower-middle income countries (LLMIC) in order to contribute to the development of risk assessments for APIs in LLMIC. The physico-chemical properties of APIs and soils vary greatly globally, impacting on API fate, bioaccumulation and toxicity. The impact of pH, clay and organic matter on the fate of organic ionisable compounds is discussed in detail. This study highlights the occurrence and the partitioning and degradation coefficients for APIs in soil:porewater systems, API usage data in LLMICS and removal rates (where used) within sewage treatment plants as key areas where data are required in order to inform robust environmental risk assessment methodologies.
AB - Population growth, increasing affluence, and greater access to medicines have led to an increase in active pharmaceutical ingredients (APIs) entering sewerage networks. In areas with high wastewater reuse, residual quantities of APIs may enter soils via irrigation with treated, partially treated, or untreated wastewater and sludge. Wastewater used for irrigation is currently not included in chemical environmental risk assessments and requires further consideration in areas with high water reuse. This study critically assesses the contemporary understanding of the occurrence and fate of APIs in soils of low and lower-middle income countries (LLMIC) in order to contribute to the development of risk assessments for APIs in LLMIC. The physico-chemical properties of APIs and soils vary greatly globally, impacting on API fate, bioaccumulation and toxicity. The impact of pH, clay and organic matter on the fate of organic ionisable compounds is discussed in detail. This study highlights the occurrence and the partitioning and degradation coefficients for APIs in soil:porewater systems, API usage data in LLMICS and removal rates (where used) within sewage treatment plants as key areas where data are required in order to inform robust environmental risk assessment methodologies.
KW - Irrigation
KW - Lower and lower middle income countries
KW - Pharmaceuticals
KW - Soil
KW - Terrestrial risk assessment
KW - Wastewater
UR - http://www.scopus.com/inward/record.url?scp=84977585509&partnerID=8YFLogxK
U2 - 10.1016/j.envint.2016.06.018
DO - 10.1016/j.envint.2016.06.018
M3 - Review article
C2 - 27349834
AN - SCOPUS:84977585509
SN - 0160-4120
VL - 94
SP - 712
EP - 723
JO - Environment International
JF - Environment International
ER -