Occurrence, removal and environmental risk of markers of five drugs of abuse in urban wastewater systems in South Australia

Yadav, MK; Short, MD; Gerber, C; van Den Akker, B; Aryal, R; Saint, CP

Occurrence, removal and environmental risk of markers of five drugs of abuse in urban wastewater systems in South Australia

Yadav, MK Short, MD Gerber, C van Den Akker, B Aryal, R

Saint, CP

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Publisher:: Springer (part of Springer Nature)
Publication Type:: Journal Article
Citation:: Environmental Science and Pollution Research, 2019, 26, (33), pp. 33816-33823
Issue Date:: 2019

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Field	Value	Language
dc.contributor.author	Yadav, MK
dc.contributor.author	Short, MD
dc.contributor.author	Gerber, C
dc.contributor.author	van Den Akker, B
dc.contributor.author	Aryal, R https://orcid.org/0000-0001-7348-4649
dc.contributor.author	Saint, CP
dc.date.accessioned	2020-05-05T22:32:42Z
dc.date.available	2018-05-31
dc.date.available	2020-05-05T22:32:42Z
dc.date.issued	2019
dc.identifier.citation	Environmental Science and Pollution Research, 2019, 26, (33), pp. 33816-33823
dc.identifier.issn	0944-1344
dc.identifier.issn	1614-7499
dc.identifier.uri	http://hdl.handle.net/10453/140495
dc.description.abstract	© 2018 Springer-Verlag GmbH Germany, part of Springer Nature The occurrence and fate of five drugs of abuse in raw influent and treated effluent wastewater were investigated over a period of 1 year in the Adelaide region of South Australia. Four wastewater treatment plants were chosen for this study and monitored for five drugs which included cocaine in the form of its metabolite benzoylecgonine (BE), methamphetamine, 3,4-methylenedioxymethamphetamine (MDMA) and two opioids (codeine and morphine) during the period April 2016 to February 2017. Alongside concentrations in raw sewage, the levels of drugs in the treated effluent were assessed and removal efficiencies were calculated. Drug concentrations were measured by mixed-mode solid phase extraction and liquid chromatography coupled to a quadrupole mass spectrometer. Drug concentrations detected in the raw wastewater ranged from 7 to 6510 ng/L and < LOD to 4264 ng/L in treated effluent samples. Drug removal rates varied seasonally and spatially. The mass loads of drugs discharged into the environment were in descending order: codeine > methamphetamine > morphine > MDMA > BE. Results showed that all the targeted drugs were on average incompletely removed by wastewater treatment, with removal performance highest for morphine (94%) and lowest for MDMA (58%). A screening-level environmental risk assessment was subsequently performed for the drugs based on effluent wastewater concentrations. Based on calculated risk quotients, overall environmental risk for these compounds appears low, with codeine and methamphetamine likely to pose the greatest potential risk to receiving environments. Given the recognised limitations of current ecotoxicological models and risk assessment methods for these and other pharmaceutical drugs, the potential for environmental impacts associated with the continuous discharge of these compounds in wastewater effluents should not be overlooked.
dc.format	Print-Electronic
dc.language	eng
dc.publisher	Springer (part of Springer Nature)
dc.relation.ispartof	Environmental Science and Pollution Research
dc.relation.isbasedon	10.1007/s11356-018-2464-6
dc.rights	info:eu-repo/semantics/restrictedAccess
dc.subject	03 Chemical Sciences, 05 Environmental Sciences, 06 Biological Sciences
dc.subject.classification	Environmental Sciences
dc.subject.mesh	Humans
dc.subject.mesh	Methamphetamine
dc.subject.mesh	N-Methyl-3,4-methylenedioxyamphetamine
dc.subject.mesh	Cocaine
dc.subject.mesh	Water Pollutants, Chemical
dc.subject.mesh	Chromatography, Liquid
dc.subject.mesh	Environmental Monitoring
dc.subject.mesh	Sewage
dc.subject.mesh	Waste Disposal, Fluid
dc.subject.mesh	South Australia
dc.subject.mesh	Solid Phase Extraction
dc.subject.mesh	Waste Water
dc.subject.mesh	Biomarkers
dc.subject.mesh	Illicit Drugs
dc.subject.mesh	Biomarkers
dc.subject.mesh	Chromatography, Liquid
dc.subject.mesh	Cocaine
dc.subject.mesh	Environmental Monitoring
dc.subject.mesh	Humans
dc.subject.mesh	Illicit Drugs
dc.subject.mesh	Methamphetamine
dc.subject.mesh	N-Methyl-3,4-methylenedioxyamphetamine
dc.subject.mesh	Sewage
dc.subject.mesh	Solid Phase Extraction
dc.subject.mesh	South Australia
dc.subject.mesh	Waste Disposal, Fluid
dc.subject.mesh	Waste Water
dc.subject.mesh	Water Pollutants, Chemical
dc.title	Occurrence, removal and environmental risk of markers of five drugs of abuse in urban wastewater systems in South Australia
dc.type	Journal Article
utslib.citation.volume	26
utslib.location.activity	Germany
utslib.for	090410 Water Treatment Processes
utslib.for	03 Chemical Sciences
utslib.for	05 Environmental Sciences
utslib.for	06 Biological Sciences
pubs.organisational-group	/University of Technology Sydney/Faculty of Engineering and Information Technology
pubs.organisational-group	/University of Technology Sydney/Faculty of Engineering and Information Technology/School of Civil and Environmental Engineering
pubs.organisational-group	/University of Technology Sydney
utslib.copyright.status	closed_access	*
pubs.consider-herdc	true
dc.date.updated	2020-05-05T22:32:37Z
pubs.issue	33
pubs.publication-status	Published
pubs.volume	26
utslib.start-page	33816
utslib.citation.issue	33

Abstract:

© 2018 Springer-Verlag GmbH Germany, part of Springer Nature The occurrence and fate of five drugs of abuse in raw influent and treated effluent wastewater were investigated over a period of 1 year in the Adelaide region of South Australia. Four wastewater treatment plants were chosen for this study and monitored for five drugs which included cocaine in the form of its metabolite benzoylecgonine (BE), methamphetamine, 3,4-methylenedioxymethamphetamine (MDMA) and two opioids (codeine and morphine) during the period April 2016 to February 2017. Alongside concentrations in raw sewage, the levels of drugs in the treated effluent were assessed and removal efficiencies were calculated. Drug concentrations were measured by mixed-mode solid phase extraction and liquid chromatography coupled to a quadrupole mass spectrometer. Drug concentrations detected in the raw wastewater ranged from 7 to 6510 ng/L and < LOD to 4264 ng/L in treated effluent samples. Drug removal rates varied seasonally and spatially. The mass loads of drugs discharged into the environment were in descending order: codeine > methamphetamine > morphine > MDMA > BE. Results showed that all the targeted drugs were on average incompletely removed by wastewater treatment, with removal performance highest for morphine (94%) and lowest for MDMA (58%). A screening-level environmental risk assessment was subsequently performed for the drugs based on effluent wastewater concentrations. Based on calculated risk quotients, overall environmental risk for these compounds appears low, with codeine and methamphetamine likely to pose the greatest potential risk to receiving environments. Given the recognised limitations of current ecotoxicological models and risk assessment methods for these and other pharmaceutical drugs, the potential for environmental impacts associated with the continuous discharge of these compounds in wastewater effluents should not be overlooked.

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http://hdl.handle.net/10453/140495