Terrestrial safety assessment of linear alkylbenzene sulfonate

Mieure, James P.; Waters, J.; Holt, Martin; Matthijs, E.

doi:10.1016/0045-6535(90)90397-c

Cited by 36 publications

(14 citation statements)

References 12 publications

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“…Through the use of sewage sludge as a fertilizer, LAS is exported to agricultural soils, where the surfactant may be toxic to the soil ecosystem [3][4][5][6][7]. However, from recent reviews of toxicity data, it has been concluded that current LAS uses do not pose a risk to terrestrial plants and invertebrates [1,8,9]. For soil microorganisms and microbial processes, a lack of data has so far prevented a terrestrial risk assessment of LAS.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Effects and Risk Assessment of Linear Alkylbenzene Sulfonates in Agricultural Soil. 2. Effects on Soil Microbiology as Influenced by Sewage Sludge and Incubation Time

Elsgaard

Petersen

Debosz

2001

Environ Toxicol Chem

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The anionic surfactant linear alkylbenzene sulfonate (LAS) may inhibit soil microorganisms and may occur in agricultural soil through the application of sewage sludge. For five microbial parameters (microbial biomass C and the potentials of iron reduction, ammonium oxidation, dehydrogenase activity, and arylsulfatase activity), we compared the effects of aqueous LAS and LAS-spiked sewage sludge added to existing levels of 0, 3, 8, 22, 22, 62, 174, and 488 mg/kg soil (dry wt) in a Danish sandy agricultural soil that was incubated for 5 d to eight weeks. Arylsulfatase activity (measured after four weeks of incubation) was rather insensitive to LAS, with an EC 10 of 222 and more than 488 mg/kg in soil samples treated with aqueous LAS and LAS-spiked sewage sludge, respectively. For the other microbial parameters, the short-term effects (approximately one to two weeks) of aqueous LAS were characterized by an EC10 in the range of 3 to 39 mg/kg. Application of LAS via sewage sludge generally reduced the short-term effects for the microbial parameters, and the EC10 for LAS in sludge-amended soil after approximately one to two weeks of incubation ranged from less than 8 to 102 mg/kg. Recovery potential was seen for most microbial parameters as a result of prolonged incubation, both under conditions of LAS persistence (anaerobic conditions, the iron-reduction test) and LAS depletion (aerobic incubations, all other assays). In conclusion, the short-term inhibitory effects of LAS on soil microbiology were decreased in the presence of sewage sludge and by a prolonged (two to eight weeks) laboratory incubation period.

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Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Effects and Risk Assessment of Linear Alkylbenzene Sulfonates in Agricultural Soil. 2. Effects on Soil Microbiology as Influenced by Sewage Sludge and Incubation Time

Elsgaard

Petersen

Debosz

2001

Environ Toxicol Chem

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“…Elsgaard et al (2000) reported a decrease of N mineralization as a consequence of the inhibition of specific microbial activities in the presence of a high LAS application rate. However, in most treatments, the LAS15 dose increased the N content of stem, leaves, and edible part of broccoli, and LAS30 dose induced a decrease or no effect of N. In accordance with this, Thomas and Yoshikawa (1988) (cited by Mieure et al 1990) found a plant-growth promotion with LAS at low concentrations of this anionic surfactant. The stimulatory effect on plant N nutrition could have been due to the presence of nutrients and different enzymes in the commercial LAS, which may have a fertilizing effect (Jensen 1999).…”

Section: Nutrient Contents In Plantmentioning

confidence: 64%

“…The effects of LAS on physiological characteristics of plants (Litz et al 1987;Marschener 1992) and growth and yield of crops have been studied extensively (Gilbert and Pettigrew 1984;Mieure et al 1990;Figge and Schöberl 1989), indicating that adverse effects for plants start at approximately 90 mg of LAS kg 21 of soil (Jensen 1999). However, the effects of these anionic surfactants on nutrient contents of plants have received considerably less attention.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Effects of Linear Alkylbenzene Sulfonates (LASs) in Sewage Sludge–Amended Soils on Nutrient Contents of Broccoli Plants

Moreno‐Caselles

Prats

Moral

et al. 2006

Communications in Soil Science and Plant Analysis

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Sewage sludge is used in agriculture as a fertilizer and an organic amendment to improve physical and chemical soil properties. However, sludge contains organic compounds, such as surfactants, which may be toxic in the soilplant system. The effects on plants of linear alkylbenzene sulfonates (LAS), a group of anionic surfactants that are widely used in detergent products, have not been well defined. In this experiment, the effect of differently treated sewage sludge containing LAS on the macronutrient and sodium contents of different parts of broccoli plants (Brassica oleracea L. var. botrytis subvar. cymosa Lam.) was studied in a field experiment. Fertilizer treatments were un-composted sewage sludge (UCSS), composted sewage sludge (CSS), and a control without fertilization (NF ). The LAS levels were established across all fertilizer treatments by addition of 0, 15, or 30 g LAS m 22 (LAS0, LAS15, and LAS30, respectively). In general, the macronutrient contents in shoots, leaves, and edible parts of broccoli were higher in plants cultivated without fertilization but with LAS. In most cases, the LAS application increased the nitrogen, phosphorus, and sodium contents of the different plant parts, whereas calcium and magnesium concentrations were reduced.

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“…The toxicity of linear alkylbenzene sulfonates (LAS) to collembolans and earthworms has previously been investigated in laboratory soil tests [1][2][3][4]. The use of such test results in a risk assessment of LAS raises the question as to what extent laboratory results may be extrapolated to field conditions.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Effects and Risk Assessment of Linear Alkylbenzene Sulfonates in Agricultural Soil. 4. The Influence of Salt Speciation, Soil Type, and Sewage Sludge on Toxicity Using the Collembolan Folsomia Fimetaria and the Earthworm Aporrectodea Caliginosa as Test Organisms

Holmstrup

Krogh

Løkke

et al. 2001

Environ Toxicol Chem

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Sewage sludge applied to agricultural soils often contains linear alkylbenzene sulfonates (LAS) in the range of 1 to 10 g/kg dry weight, and their toxicity to relevant soil organisms should, therefore, be assessed to ensure safe use of sewage sludge as a fertilizer. Studies of LAS toxicity to soil organisms are few, and to our knowledge, factors that may influence the toxicity in the field have not been studied in detail. In this paper, we report on the influence of speciation of LAS in the test solution added to soil (soluble Na-LAS vs poorly soluble Ca-LAS or Mg-LAS), the influence of soil type, and the modifying effects of sludge amendment on the toxicity of LAS. These issues were investigated using reproduction of Collembola and growth of juvenile earthworms as test parameters. Speciation of the LAS added to test soil did not have any influence on toxicity for any of the test species. Likewise, in three different agricultural soils (sand, loam, and clay), we found almost equal toxicities. The LAS added to test soil in a sludge-water suspension was equally toxic as when it was added in an aqueous solution. However, anaerobic incubation for 7 and 14 d of the LAS-sludge suspension (with no decay of LAS) caused the toxicity to increase almost threefold in both collembolan and earthworm. The relationships between soil constituents, bioavailability, and toxicity are also discussed.

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Terrestrial safety assessment of linear alkylbenzene sulfonate

Cited by 36 publications

References 12 publications

Effects and Risk Assessment of Linear Alkylbenzene Sulfonates in Agricultural Soil. 2. Effects on Soil Microbiology as Influenced by Sewage Sludge and Incubation Time

Effects and Risk Assessment of Linear Alkylbenzene Sulfonates in Agricultural Soil. 2. Effects on Soil Microbiology as Influenced by Sewage Sludge and Incubation Time

Effects of Linear Alkylbenzene Sulfonates (LASs) in Sewage Sludge–Amended Soils on Nutrient Contents of Broccoli Plants

Effects and Risk Assessment of Linear Alkylbenzene Sulfonates in Agricultural Soil. 4. The Influence of Salt Speciation, Soil Type, and Sewage Sludge on Toxicity Using the Collembolan Folsomia Fimetaria and the Earthworm Aporrectodea Caliginosa as Test Organisms

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