Pharmaceuticals in water and sediment of small streams under the pressure of urbanization: Concentrations, interactions, and risks

Attila Csaba Kondor; Éva Molnár; Gergely Jakab; Anna Vancsik; Tibor Filep; József Szeberényi; Lili Szabó; Gábor Maász; Zsolt Pirger; András Weiperth; Árpád Ferincz; Ádám Staszny; Péter Dobosy; Katalin Horváthné Kiss; István Gábor Hatvani; Zoltán Szalai

doi:10.1016/j.scitotenv.2021.152160

Pharmaceuticals in water and sediment of small streams under the pressure of urbanization: Concentrations, interactions, and risks

Sci Total Environ. 2022 Feb 20:808:152160. doi: 10.1016/j.scitotenv.2021.152160. Epub 2021 Dec 3.

Authors

Attila Csaba Kondor¹, Éva Molnár², Gergely Jakab³, Anna Vancsik¹, Tibor Filep¹, József Szeberényi¹, Lili Szabó⁴, Gábor Maász⁵, Zsolt Pirger², András Weiperth⁶, Árpád Ferincz⁶, Ádám Staszny⁶, Péter Dobosy⁷, Katalin Horváthné Kiss⁸, István Gábor Hatvani⁹, Zoltán Szalai⁴

Affiliations

¹ Geographical Institute, Research Centre for Astronomy and Earth Sciences, MTA Centre for Excellence, Budaörsi út 45, Budapest H-1112, Hungary.
² Balaton Limnological Research Institute, Eötvös Loránd Research Network, Klebelsberg Kuno u. 3, Tihany H-8237, Hungary.
³ Geographical Institute, Research Centre for Astronomy and Earth Sciences, MTA Centre for Excellence, Budaörsi út 45, Budapest H-1112, Hungary; Department of Environmental and Landscape Geography, Eötvös Loránd University, Pázmány Péter sétány 1/C, Budapest H-1117, Hungary; Institute of Geography and Geoinformatics, University of Miskolc, Egyetemváros, Miskolc H-3515, Hungary. Electronic address: jakab.gergely@csfk.org.
⁴ Geographical Institute, Research Centre for Astronomy and Earth Sciences, MTA Centre for Excellence, Budaörsi út 45, Budapest H-1112, Hungary; Department of Environmental and Landscape Geography, Eötvös Loránd University, Pázmány Péter sétány 1/C, Budapest H-1117, Hungary.
⁵ Balaton Limnological Research Institute, Eötvös Loránd Research Network, Klebelsberg Kuno u. 3, Tihany H-8237, Hungary; Soós Ernő Research and Development Center, University of Pannonia, Zrínyi Miklós Str. 18, Nagykanizsa H-8800, Hungary.
⁶ Department of Freshwater Fish Ecology, Institute of Aquaculture and Environmental Safety, Hungarian University of Agriculture and Life Sciences, Páter K. u. 1, Gödöllő H-2100, Hungary.
⁷ Institute of Aquatic Ecology, Centre for Ecological Research, Karolina út 29, Budapest H-1113, Hungary.
⁸ Aquaprofit Zrt., Krisztina krt. 32, Budapest H-1013, Hungary.
⁹ Institute for Geological and Geochemical Research, Research Centre for Astronomy and Earth Sciences, MTA Centre for Excellence, Budaörsi út 45, Budapest H-1112, Hungary.

PMID: 34864023
DOI: 10.1016/j.scitotenv.2021.152160

Abstract

Small streams are crucial but vulnerable elements of ecological networks. To better understand the occurrence of pharmaceutically active compounds (PhACs) in streams, this study focused on the occurrence, distribution, and environmental risk of 111 PhACs and 7 trace elements based on a total of 141 water and sediment samples from small streams located in the urbanizing region of Budapest, Hungary. Eighty-one PhACs were detected in the aqueous phase, whereas sixty-two compounds were detected in the sediment. Carbamazepine (CBZ) was the most frequently identified PhAC in water, and was found in 91.5% of all samples. However, the highest concentrations were measured for lamotrigine (344.8 μg·L^-1) and caffeine (221.4 μg·L^-1). Lidocaine was the most frequently occurring PhAC in sediment (73.8%), but the maximum concentrations were detected for CBZ (395.9 ng·g^-1) and tiapride (187.7 ng·g^-1). In both water and sediment, more PhACs were found downstream of the wastewater treatment plants (WWTPs) than in the samples not affected by treated wastewater, even though no relationship was observed between the total amount of treated wastewater and the number of detected PhACs. The PhAC concentrations were also independent of the distance from the WWTP effluents. PhAC-polluted samples were detected upstream of the WWTPs, thereby suggesting the relevance of diffuse emissions in addition to WWTP outlets. The most frequently detected PhACs in the sediment were usually also present in the water samples collected at the same place and time. The varying concentrations of PhACs and the fluctuating water-sediment properties resulted in a lack of correlation between the general chemical properties and the concentrations of PhACs, which makes it difficult to predict PhAC contamination and risks in urbanized small streams. The environmental risk assessment indicated that diclofenac had the highest risk in the sampling area.

Keywords: Environmental risk assessment; Pharmaceutically active compounds; Pollution; Sediment; Small stream.

MeSH terms

Environmental Monitoring
Pharmaceutical Preparations*
Urbanization
Wastewater
Water
Water Pollutants, Chemical* / analysis

Substances

Pharmaceutical Preparations
Waste Water
Water Pollutants, Chemical
Water