Do Pharmaceuticals, Pathogens, and Other Organic Waste Water Compounds Persist When Waste Water Is Used for Recharge?

Abstract

A proof‐of‐concept experiment was devised to determine if pharmaceuticals and other organic waste water compounds (OWCs), as well as pathogens, found in treated effluent could be transported through a 2.4 m soil column and, thus, potentially reach ground water under recharge conditions similar to those in arid or semiarid climates. Treated effluent was applied at the top of the 2.4 m long, 32.5 cm diameter soil column over 23 days. Samples of the column inflow were collected from the effluent storage tank at the beginning (Tbegin) and end (Tend) of the experiment, and a sample of the soil column drainage at the base of the column (Bend) was collected at the end of the experiment. Samples were analyzed for 131 OWCs including veterinary and human antibiotics, other prescription and nonprescription drugs, widely used household and industrial chemicals, and steroids and reproductive hormones, as well as the pathogens Salmonella and Legionella. Analytical results for the two effluent samples taken at the beginning (Tbegin) and end (Tend) of the experiment indicate that the number of OWCs detected in the column inflow decreased by 25% (eight compounds) and the total concentration of OWCs decreased by 46% while the effluent was in the storage tank during the 23‐day experiment. After percolating through the soil column, an additional 18 compounds detected in Tend (67% of OWCs) were no longer detected in the effluent (Bend) and the total concentration of OWCs decreased by more than 70%. These compounds may have been subject to transformation (biotic and abiotic), adsorption, and (or) volatilization in the storage tank and during travel through the soil column. Eight compounds—carbamazapine; sulfamethoxazole; benzophenone; 5‐methyl‐1H‐benzotriazole; N, N‐diethyltoluamide; tributylphosphate; tri(2‐chloroethyl) phosphate; and cholesterol—were detected in all three samples indicating they have the potential to reach ground water under recharge conditions similar to those in arid and semiarid climates. Results from real‐time polymerase chain reactions demonstrated the presence of Legionella in all three samples. Salmonella was detected only in Tbegin, suggesting that the bacteria died off in the effluent storage tank over the period of the experiment. This proof‐of‐concept experiment demonstrates that, under recharge conditions similar to those in arid or semiarid climates, some pharmaceuticals, pathogens, and other OWCs can persist in treated effluent after soil‐aquifer treatment.

Review of risk from potential emerging contaminants in UK groundwater

“…Hospital waste water forms an important source for a range of EGCs including disinfectants and musks, as well as rare earth elements, heavy metals, and iodised contrast media (Putschew et al, 2000;Sacher et al, 2001;Ternes and Hirsch, 2000;Verlicchi et al, 2010;Watkinson et al, 2009). There are a large number of studies of WTW effluent and septic tanks (Clara et al, 2004;Drewes et al, 2003;Gasser et al, 2010;Glassmeyer et al, 2008;Heberer et al, 1997;Kreuzinger et al, 2004), of raw sewage (Sodré et al, 2009) and of artificial recharge using treated effluent (Cordy et al, 2004;Díaz-Cruz and Barceló, 2008). Manufacturing sites may also contribute (Larsson, 2008;Larsson et al, 2007).…”

Pharmaceuticals and personal care products in effluent matrices: A survey of transformation and removal during wastewater treatment and implications for wastewater management

“…117 The fate of effluent-derived PPCPs during SAT has been studied either using bench-scale column studies constructed from aquifer materials or via field-scale monitoring of PPCPs at sites utilizing treated effluent for recharge. 115,[118][119][120][121][122][123][124] These studies have generally revealed that a wide variety of PPCPs can be further degraded during SAT including anti-inflammatories, analgesics, steroids and some endocrine disruptors, 118,119,122,123 with biodegradation representing the most important attenuation process. 118,122,124 Certain compounds, particularly those that are most resistant to biological degradation, are recalcitrant, however; effluent-derived carbamazepine and primidone were reported to persist in the subsurface at some reuse facilities for as long as 6 to 8 years.…”

Emerging Organic Contaminants in Groundwater

“…Infiltration of treated wastewater to the subsurface continues to be a very important potential source of ECs in groundwater [134][135][136]. This is a particular problem when groundwater residence times are short and natural recharge is low as it poses a threat to adjacent groundwater bodies as well as surface water resources.…”