Spatiotemporal distributions and ecological risk assessment of pharmaceuticals and personal care products in groundwater in North China

• Published in: Hydrology Research Vol. 51; no. 5; pp. 911 - 924
• Main Authors: Wu, Jin, Liu, Jingchao, Pan, Zenghui, Wang, Boxin, Zhang, Dasheng
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: London IWA Publishing 01-10-2020
• Subjects: Antibiotics; Aquatic ecosystems; Aquifers; Artificial recharge; Caffeine; Chemical wastewater; Confined aquifers; Consumer products; Contamination; Drinking water; Drugs; Ecological effects; ecological risk; Ecological risk assessment; Ecosystem services; Effluents; Engineering; Environmental health; Environmental risk; Groundwater; Ibuprofen; Laboratories; Lithology; Permeability; Personal grooming; Pharmaceuticals; ppcps; Risk assessment; Rivers; river–groundwater interaction; Seasonal variation; Seasonal variations; Sewage; Sewage effluents; Sewage treatment; Sewage treatment plants; Spatial analysis; spatiotemporal distributions; Statistical analysis; Statistical methods; Sulfamerazine; Sulfamethazine; Sulfamethoxazole; Sulfisoxazole; Surface water; Wastewater treatment; Wastewater treatment plants; Water quality; Water supply; Water treatment; China
• ISSN: 0029-1277; 1998-9563; 2224-7955
• DOI: 10.2166/nh.2020.001

Abstract
The contamination of surface water by pharmaceuticals and personal care products (PPCPs) has attracted widespread attention, but data regarding their impacts on groundwater (GW) are sparse. In river–GW interaction areas, rivers are likely an important source of PPCPs in aquifers, especially rivers impacted by sewage treatment plant effluent. Understanding the characterization, transport, and risk is valuable for the effective protection of vital aquatic ecosystem services, environmental health, and drinking water supplies. To attain this objective, statistics with spatial analysis and ecological risk were used to assess the effects of artificial recharge (AR) engineering on 16 PPCPs in aquifers in North China. The results indicated that 15 PPCPs were detected in unconfined and confined aquifers, with a few PPCPs being detected up to 1,000 ng/L. The most frequently detected PPCPs were sulfisoxazole, sulfachloropyridazine, sulfamerazine, sulfamethazine, sulfamethoxazole, and ibuprofen. In addition, the spatial and seasonal variations in most PPCPs were significant. Furthermore, the maximum concentrations were compared to the predicted no-effect concentrations to evaluate the ecological risk, and four PPCPs were found to be of medium or high ecological risk. This study highlights that AR engineering has a significant ecological effect on GW.