Occurrence and transport of N-nitrosamines in the urban water systems of the Pearl River Delta, southern China

Wenwen Chen; Shengyang Li; Huanfang Huang; Yingjie Chen; Wei Chen; Yang Ding; Xiaoyu Yan; Yanpeng Liang; Kuang Cen; Shihua Qi

doi:10.1016/j.scitotenv.2023.164251

Occurrence and transport of N-nitrosamines in the urban water systems of the Pearl River Delta, southern China

Sci Total Environ. 2023 Sep 10:890:164251. doi: 10.1016/j.scitotenv.2023.164251. Epub 2023 May 16.

Authors

Wenwen Chen¹, Shengyang Li², Huanfang Huang³, Yingjie Chen⁴, Wei Chen⁴, Yang Ding⁵, Xiaoyu Yan¹, Yanpeng Liang¹, Kuang Cen⁶, Shihua Qi⁴

Affiliations

¹ College of Environmental Science and Engineering, Guilin University of Technology, Guilin 541004, China.
² College of Environmental Science and Engineering, Guilin University of Technology, Guilin 541004, China; State Environmental Protection Key Laboratory of Water Environmental Simulation and Pollution Control, South China Institute of Environmental Sciences, Ministry of Ecology and Environment, Guangzhou 510535, China.
³ State Environmental Protection Key Laboratory of Water Environmental Simulation and Pollution Control, South China Institute of Environmental Sciences, Ministry of Ecology and Environment, Guangzhou 510535, China. Electronic address: huanghuanfang@scies.org.
⁴ State Key Laboratory of Biogeology and Environmental Geology, China University of Geosciences, Wuhan 430074, China.
⁵ Key Laboratory of Land Resources Evaluation and Monitoring in Southwest, Ministry of Education, Sichuan Normal University, Chengdu 610066, China.
⁶ School of the Earth Sciences and Resources, China University of Geosciences, Beijing 100083, China.

PMID: 37201810
DOI: 10.1016/j.scitotenv.2023.164251

Abstract

The discharge of substantial amounts of N-nitrosamines-contained wastewater into receiving rivers can significantly deteriorate water quality, as these carcinogenic compounds can be easily transported into groundwater and drinking water systems. This study investigated the distribution of eight species of N-nitrosamines in river water, groundwater, and tap water located in the center of the Pearl River Delta (PRD), China. The results showed that three major N-nitrosamines, including N-nitrosodimethylamine (NDMA), N-nitrosodiethylamine (NDEA), and N-nitrosodibutylamine (NDBA), with concentrations of up to 64 ng/L, were observed in river water, groundwater, and tap water, whereas the other compounds occurred sporadically. In river water and groundwater, high concentrations of NDMA, NDEA, N-nitrosomorpholine (NMOR), and NDBA were found in industrial and residential lands as compared to agricultural lands owing to the influence of various human activities. The primary sources of N-nitrosamines in river water were industrial and domestic wastewater, and the infiltration of river water was responsible for the high levels of N-nitrosamines in groundwater. Among the target N-nitrosamines, NDEA and NMOR with long biodegradation half-lives (>4 days) and low LogK_ow values (<1) displayed the highest potential for groundwater. N-nitrosamines in groundwater and tap water pose significant potential cancer risks to residents, especially children, and juveniles, with lifetime cancer risks of over 10^-4, necessitating advanced water treatments for drinking water and critical controls on primary industrial discharge in urban areas.

Keywords: Disability-adjusted life years; Industrial activities; Liver cancer risk; N-nitrosamines; PRD; Urban water systems.

MeSH terms

Child
China
Diethylnitrosamine
Dimethylnitrosamine / analysis
Drinking Water*
Humans
Nitrosamines* / analysis
Rivers
Wastewater

Substances

Wastewater
Drinking Water
dibutylnitrosamine
Nitrosamines
Dimethylnitrosamine
Diethylnitrosamine