Distribution and source apportionment of phenolic EDCs in rivers in the Pearl River Delta, South China

The sources and distribution characteristics of three phenolic endocrine-disrupting compounds (EDCs), e.g., alkylphenols (APs) (including nonylphenols (NPs) and 4-t-octylphenol (OP)) and Bisphenol A (BPA), were investigated in the rivers of the Pearl River Delta Region (PRDR) with complex land-use types. The mean concentrations of NPs, OP, and BPA in river water including wet and dry seasons were 87, 6, and 74 ng/L in the agricultural regions (n = 10), 135, 7, and 61 ng/L in the transitional regions (n = 8), and 249, 15, and 152 ng/L in the urban regions (n = 28). Contents of NPs and BPA were high in the river sediments (ranged from 7 to 3048 ng/g and 2 to 271 ng/g, respectively). Equilibrium analysis results suggested that sediment release was not the main source of the river EDCs. Principal component analysis (PCA) showed that sewage was the major source of EDCs in the dry season, while the leaching effect of rainfall on the agricultural soils, urban roads, and commercial products was an important source in the wet season. Furthermore, the ratio of APs and total concentration of phenolic EDCs (ΣEDCs) was used to characterize the agricultural regions and urban regions in the PRDR. The ratio was less than 0.6 in the agricultural regions while the ratio was large than 0.6 in the dry season and less than 0.6 in the wet season in urban regions. BPA and NPs in transitional region and urban region had small/medium potential risk to aquatic organisms.