Worldwide cases of water pollution by emerging contaminants: a review

Abstract

Water contamination by emerging contaminants is increasing in the context of rising urbanization, industrialization, and agriculture production. Emerging contaminants refers to contaminants for which there is currently no regulation requiring monitoring or public reporting of their presence in our water supply or wastewaters. There are many emerging contaminants such as pesticides, pharmaceuticals, drugs, cosmetics, personal care products, surfactants, cleaning products, industrial for-mulations and chemicals, food additives, food packaging, metalloids, rare earth elements, nanomaterials, microplastics, and pathogens. The main sources of emerging contaminants are domestic discharges, hospital effluents, industrial wastewaters, runoff from agriculture, livestock and aquaculture, and landfill leachates. In particular, effluents from municipal wastewater treatment plants are major contributors to the presence of emerging contaminants in waters. Although many chemicals have been recently regulated as priority hazardous substances, conventional plants for wastewater and drinking water treat-ment were not designed to remove most emerging contaminants. Here, we review key examples of contamination in China, Portugal, Mexico, Colombia, and Brazil. Examples include persistent organic pollutants such as polychlorinated biphenyls, dibenzofurans, and polybrominated diphenyl ethers, in lake and ocean ecosystems in China; emerging contaminants such as alkylphenols, natural and synthetic estrogens, antibiotics, and antidepressants in Portuguese rivers; and pharmaceuticals, hormones, cosmetics, personal care products, and pesticides in Mexican, Brazilian, and Colombian waters. All continents are affected by these contaminants. Wastewater treatment plants should therefore be upgraded, e.g., by addition of tertiary treatment systems, to limit environmental pollution.

Chitosan as an Outstanding Polysaccharide Improving Health-Commodities of Humans and Environmental Protection

“…Water treatment/remediation is an issue of great interest to ensure the water supply for future generations. In recent years, the increase in contamination of natural water reservoirs (e.g., rivers and lakes) has been exposed [ 151 ]. As is well known, water treatment plants are inefficient in removing certain substances such as metals, drugs, dyes, plastics, and pesticides because they were not designed to remove these pollutants [ 152 , 153 ].…”

Waves of pharmaceutical waste

“…Since then, numerous studies have reported their adverse effects and risks on environmental and public health. Pharmaceuticals constitute a notorious class of anthropogenic waste, often with high toxicities and persistence in the environment if disposed of inappropriately (Caban and Stepnowski 2021;Han 2022;Monisha 2022;Morin-Crini et al 2022;Zare et al 2022). At parts per trillion levels, those bioactive substances elicit undesired responses in aquatic or terrestrial biota, bioaccumulate and pose direct risks to humans through food and drinking water (Miège et al 2009;Nakada et al 2006;Velpandian et al 2018;Wee et al 2020).…”

Water Pollution Prevention and Control Grade Evaluation Based on Analytic Hierarchy Process and Fuzzy Comprehensive Evaluation

“…WP caused by emerging pollutants is increasing [14]. The purpose of WP assessment is to fully consider various problems that may occur in the WP planning at the beginning of prevention and control, and avoid the negative social impact that may occur after the implementation of the plan.…”