National scale down‐the‐drain environmental risk assessment of oxybenzone in the United States

The copper redhorse (Moxostoma hubbsi) is an endangered fish that spawns exclusively in the Richelieu River (Quebec, Canada). Tributaries of the Richelieu are contaminated with high levels of current‐use pesticides, which may impact early–life stage (ELS) copper redhorse and other native fishes. We assessed the effects of exposure to contaminated river water on ELS copper redhorse and river redhorse (Moxostoma carinatum), a related fish that shares the copper redhorse's spawning grounds and nursery habitat. A riverside flow‐through system was used to expose copper and river redhorse embryos (1000 each) to Richelieu River water or laboratory water as a control. Fish were maintained until 14 days posthatch, and water samples were taken daily for chemical analysis. Following a heavy rain event, concentrations of two neonicotinoid pesticides, clothianidin and thiamethoxam, exceeded water quality guidelines for aquatic life (20 ng/L). Using nontargeted screening, we tentatively identified an additional 24 pharmaceutical and personal care products and 23 pesticides in river water. Effects of river water on ELS fish were observed in both species, but the copper redhorse appeared to be more sensitive. Fish exposed to river water hatched 10.7 (copper redhorse) and 2.4 (river redhorse) cumulative degree days earlier than controls. Copper redhorse survival was significantly lower in river water (73 ± 16%) compared to laboratory water (93 ± 3%), whereas river redhorse survival was similar between treatments (84 ± 6% and 89 ± 4%, respectively). Sequencing of copper redhorse larvae RNA revealed 18 differentially expressed genes (DEGs) following 14 days of exposure to river water. Eight up‐regulated DEGs were linked to immune function and injury response, and seven down‐regulated DEGs were involved with digestion and nutrient absorption. The present study provided valuable data on the effects of ELS exposure to a real‐world mixture of contaminants in two fish species of concern. Environ Toxicol Chem 2022;41:1950–1966. © 2022 SETAC

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Exposure to Contaminated River Water is Associated with Early Hatching and Dysregulation of Gene Expression in Early Life Stages of the Endangered Copper Redhorse (Moxostoma hubbsi)

Marchand

Barst

Boulanger

et al. 2022

“…Most recently, the United States Food and Drug Administration issued their intent to publish an Environmental Impact Statement for two important UV filters, oxybenzone (BP-3) and octinoxate (EHMC). A robust environmental risk assessment (ERA) for BP-3 in US freshwaters was recently published (Burns et al, 2021), and the present study presents a comparable assessment for the other UV filter of regulatory interest, EHMC.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…A literature review of EHMC freshwater monitoring data identified no studies conducted in the United States, similar to the review for BP-3 (Burns et al, 2021). Due to the lack of monitoring data specific to the United States, a robust exposure modeling approach is needed to predict concentrations from down-the-drain wash-off of EHMC that reflect the variability in population and geographical features across the region.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Freshwater Environmental Risk Assessment of Down‐the‐Drain Octinoxate Emissions in the United States

Burns

Roush

Csiszar

et al. 2022

Self Cite

Organic ultraviolet (UV) filters are used in a variety of cosmetic and personal care products (CPCPs), including sunscreens, due to their ability to absorb solar radiation. These UV filters can be washed down the drain through bathing, cleansing, or the laundering of clothing, therefore UV filters can enter the freshwater environment via wastewater treatment plant effluent, and so a freshwater risk assessment is necessary to establish the environmentally safe use of these important CPCP ingredients. In the present study, an environmental safety assessment for a UV filter of regulatory concern, octinoxate, was conducted. An established risk assessment framework designed specifically for CPCPs released to the freshwater environment in the United States was used for the assessment. A distribution of predicted environmental concentrations (PECs) representative of conditions across the region was calculated using the spatially resolved probabilistic exposure model iSTREEM. A review of available hazard data was conducted to derive a predicted no-effect concentration (PNEC). The safety assessment was conducted by comparing the PEC distribution to the PNEC. A substantial margin of safety was found between the 90th percentile PEC, which is representative of the reasonable worst-case environmental exposure, and the PNEC. Owing to this finding of negligible risk, further refinement of the risk assessment through the generation of experimental data or refinement of conservative assumptions is not prioritized. These results are critical for demonstrating the environmental safety of UV filters in the US freshwater environment and will help guide future work.

“…In particular, CPCP ingredients including microplastics (Burns & Boxall, 2018 ), parabens (Yamamoto et al, 2011 ), and most recently ultraviolet (UV) filters (Mitchelmore et al, 2021 ) are receiving attention. The CPCPs can enter the aquatic environment through their intended use and subsequent wash‐off, either directly (e.g., swimming) or indirectly through down‐the‐drain release to wastewater (Burns et al, 2021 ). Therefore, the CPCP industry is developing product stewardship programs to assess the environmental safety of ingredients.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…The CPCP industry aims to develop a systematic risk‐based prioritization approach that begins with lower tier screening‐level assessments, to identify which ingredients are the highest priority to assess using higher tier ERA methods. These assessments will focus on down‐the‐drain freshwater exposure scenarios on which most of the ecotoxicological hazard and exposure knowledge is based; however, in certain scenarios, for example, products used at the beach and coastal locations, the ERA exposure scenario may need to be extended to include direct wash‐off during recreation (Burns et al, 2021 ). In these special circumstances, it is particularly important to consider relevant marine toxicological data (e.g., cnidarians, mollusks, echinoderms; European Chemicals Agency [ECHA], 2008 ).…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Coral Ecotoxicological Data Evaluation for the Environmental Safety Assessment of Ultraviolet Filters

Burns

Davies

2021

Self Cite

There is growing interest in the environmental safety of ultraviolet (UV) filters found in cosmetic and personal care products (CPCPs). The CPCP industry is assessing appropriate environmental risk assessment (ERA) methods to conduct robust environmental safety assessments for these ingredients. Relevant and reliable data are needed for ERA, particularly when the assessment is supporting regulatory decision‐making. In the present study, we apply a data evaluation approach to incorporate nonstandard toxicity data into the ERA process through an expanded range of reliability scores over commonly used approaches (e.g., Klimisch scores). The method employs an upfront screening followed by a data quality assessment based largely on the Criteria for Reporting and Evaluating Ecotoxicity Data (CRED) approach. The method was applied in a coral case study in which UV filter toxicity data was evaluated to identify data points potentially suitable for higher tier and/or regulatory ERA. This is an optimal case study because there are no standard coral toxicity test methods, and UV filter bans are being enacted based on findings reported in the current peer‐reviewed data set. Eight studies comprising nine assays were identified; four of the assays did not pass the initial screening assessment. None of the remaining five assays received a high enough reliability score ( R n ) to be considered of decision‐making quality (i.e., R1 or R2). Four assays were suitable for a preliminary ERA (i.e., R3 or R4), and one assay was not reliable (i.e., R6). These results highlight a need for higher quality coral toxicity studies, potentially through the development of standard test protocols, to generate reliable toxicity endpoints. These data can then be used for ERA to inform environmental protection and sustainability decision‐making. Environ Toxicol Chem 2021;40:3441–3464. © 2021 Personal Care Products Council. Environmental Toxicology and Chemistry published by Wiley Periodicals LLC on behalf of SETAC.