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Petromelidou S, Anagnostopoulou K, Koronaiou LA, Kalaronis D, Ainali NM, Evgenidou E, Papageorgiou M, Christodoulou A, Lioumbas I, Kyzas GZ, Mitropoulos A, Bikiaris DN, Lambropoulou DA. Exploring patterns of antibiotics during and after COVID-19 pandemic in wastewaters of northern Greece: Potential adverse effects on aquatic environment. THE SCIENCE OF THE TOTAL ENVIRONMENT 2024; 914:169832. [PMID: 38190919 DOI: 10.1016/j.scitotenv.2023.169832] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/18/2023] [Revised: 12/29/2023] [Accepted: 12/30/2023] [Indexed: 01/10/2024]
Abstract
Antibiotics, recognized as Emerging Contaminants (ECs), have raised concerns due to their pervasive presence in wastewater treatment plants (WWTPs) and subsequent release into aquatic environments, posing potential ecological risks and contributing to the development of antibiotic-resistant genes. The COVID-19 pandemic prompted an unprecedented surge in antibiotic consumption, necessitating a comprehensive assessment of its impact on antibiotic levels in wastewater. In this light, a four-year monitoring study (2020-2023) was conducted in a WWTP located in the Northern Greece (Thessaloniki), employing High-Resolution Mass Spectrometry (HRMS) technology to monitor twenty antibiotics, during distinct phases pre-, during, and post-COVID-19. Our findings revealed that macrolides and fluoroquinolones were among the most often detected categories during the sampling period. Among the compounds detected, azithromycin and clarithromycin showed the most significant increases during the pandemic, doubling their average concentrations. This establishes a clear correlation between the rise in their concentrations and the incidence of COVID-19 cases. A general downward trend after 2021 was attributed to the new restrictions posed in Greece during this year, regarding the liberal prescription of antibiotics. Seasonal variation revealed a minute augmentation of antibiotics' use during the months that infections are increased. Additionally, the study highlights the ecological risks associated with elevated antibiotic presence and emphasizes the need for continued monitoring and regulatory measures to mitigate potential ecological repercussions. These findings contribute to our understanding of the complex interplay between antibiotic consumption, environmental presence, and the COVID-19 pandemic's impact on antibiotic pollution in WWTPs.
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Affiliation(s)
- Styliani Petromelidou
- Laboratory of Environmental Pollution Control, Department of Chemistry, Aristotle University of Thessaloniki, GR-541 24 Thessaloniki, Greece; Centre for Interdisciplinary Research and Innovation (CIRI-AUTH), Balkan Center, Thessaloniki, 10th km Thessaloniki-Thermi Rd, GR 57001, Greece
| | - Kyriaki Anagnostopoulou
- Laboratory of Environmental Pollution Control, Department of Chemistry, Aristotle University of Thessaloniki, GR-541 24 Thessaloniki, Greece; Centre for Interdisciplinary Research and Innovation (CIRI-AUTH), Balkan Center, Thessaloniki, 10th km Thessaloniki-Thermi Rd, GR 57001, Greece
| | - Lelouda-Athanasia Koronaiou
- Laboratory of Environmental Pollution Control, Department of Chemistry, Aristotle University of Thessaloniki, GR-541 24 Thessaloniki, Greece; Centre for Interdisciplinary Research and Innovation (CIRI-AUTH), Balkan Center, Thessaloniki, 10th km Thessaloniki-Thermi Rd, GR 57001, Greece
| | - Dimitrios Kalaronis
- Laboratory of Environmental Pollution Control, Department of Chemistry, Aristotle University of Thessaloniki, GR-541 24 Thessaloniki, Greece
| | - Nina Maria Ainali
- Laboratory of Environmental Pollution Control, Department of Chemistry, Aristotle University of Thessaloniki, GR-541 24 Thessaloniki, Greece; Laboratory of Polymer and Colors Chemistry and Technology, Department of Chemistry, Aristotle University of Thessaloniki, Thessaloniki, GR-541 24, Greece
| | - Eleni Evgenidou
- Laboratory of Environmental Pollution Control, Department of Chemistry, Aristotle University of Thessaloniki, GR-541 24 Thessaloniki, Greece; Centre for Interdisciplinary Research and Innovation (CIRI-AUTH), Balkan Center, Thessaloniki, 10th km Thessaloniki-Thermi Rd, GR 57001, Greece
| | - Matthildi Papageorgiou
- EYATH S.A., Thessaloniki Water Supply & Sewerage Company, Egnatias 127, GR 54635, Thessaloniki, Greece
| | - Aikaterini Christodoulou
- EYATH S.A., Thessaloniki Water Supply & Sewerage Company, Egnatias 127, GR 54635, Thessaloniki, Greece
| | - Ioannis Lioumbas
- EYATH S.A., Thessaloniki Water Supply & Sewerage Company, Egnatias 127, GR 54635, Thessaloniki, Greece
| | - George Z Kyzas
- Department of Chemistry, International Hellenic University, Kavala GR-654 04, Greece
| | | | - Dimitrios N Bikiaris
- Laboratory of Polymer and Colors Chemistry and Technology, Department of Chemistry, Aristotle University of Thessaloniki, Thessaloniki, GR-541 24, Greece
| | - Dimitra A Lambropoulou
- Laboratory of Environmental Pollution Control, Department of Chemistry, Aristotle University of Thessaloniki, GR-541 24 Thessaloniki, Greece; Centre for Interdisciplinary Research and Innovation (CIRI-AUTH), Balkan Center, Thessaloniki, 10th km Thessaloniki-Thermi Rd, GR 57001, Greece.
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Lopez-Herguedas N, Irazola M, Alvarez-Mora I, Mijangos L, Bilbao D, Etxebarria N, Zuloaga O, Olivares M, Prieto A. Evaluating membrane bioreactor treatment for the elimination of emerging contaminants using different analytical methods. JOURNAL OF HAZARDOUS MATERIALS 2024; 463:132833. [PMID: 37918067 DOI: 10.1016/j.jhazmat.2023.132833] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/16/2023] [Revised: 10/18/2023] [Accepted: 10/20/2023] [Indexed: 11/04/2023]
Abstract
Since wastewater treatment plants (WWTPs) were not originally designed to eliminate contaminants of emerging concern (CECs), alternative strategies like membrane bioreactor (MBR) technology are gaining importance in achieving effective CEC removal and minimising their environmental impact. In this study, composite wastewater samples were collected from the biggest WWTP in the Basque Country (Galindo, Biscay) and the performance of two secondary treatments (i.e. conventional activated sludge treatment, CAS, and MBR) was assessed. The combination of a suspect screening approach using liquid chromatography tandem high-resolution mass spectrometry (LC-HRMS) and multitarget analysis by gas chromatography-mass spectrometry (GC-MS) allowed the detection of approximately 200 compounds in the WWTP effluents. The estimated removal efficiencies (REs) revealed that only 16 micropollutants exhibited enhanced removal by MBR treatment (RE > 70% or 40 - 60%). The environmental risk posed by the non-eliminated compounds after both treatments remained similar, being anthracene, clarithromycin, bis(2-ethylhexyl) phthalate (DEHP) and dilantin the most concerning pollutants (RQ > 1). The Microtox® bioassay confirmed the MBR's efficiency in removing baseline toxicity, while suggesting a similar performance of CAS treatment. These minimal differences between treatments call into question the worthiness of MBR treatment and emphasise the need to seek more efficient alternative treatment methods.
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Affiliation(s)
- N Lopez-Herguedas
- Department of Analytical Chemistry, Faculty of Science and Technology, University of the Basque Country (UPV/EHU), Leioa, Basque Country, Spain; Research Centre for Experimental Marine Biology and Biotechnology (PIE), University of the Basque Country (UPV/EHU), Plentzia, Basque Country, Spain.
| | - M Irazola
- Department of Analytical Chemistry, Faculty of Science and Technology, University of the Basque Country (UPV/EHU), Leioa, Basque Country, Spain; Research Centre for Experimental Marine Biology and Biotechnology (PIE), University of the Basque Country (UPV/EHU), Plentzia, Basque Country, Spain
| | - I Alvarez-Mora
- Department of Analytical Chemistry, Faculty of Science and Technology, University of the Basque Country (UPV/EHU), Leioa, Basque Country, Spain; Research Centre for Experimental Marine Biology and Biotechnology (PIE), University of the Basque Country (UPV/EHU), Plentzia, Basque Country, Spain
| | - L Mijangos
- Department of Analytical Chemistry, Faculty of Science and Technology, University of the Basque Country (UPV/EHU), Leioa, Basque Country, Spain; Research Centre for Experimental Marine Biology and Biotechnology (PIE), University of the Basque Country (UPV/EHU), Plentzia, Basque Country, Spain
| | - D Bilbao
- Department of Analytical Chemistry, Faculty of Science and Technology, University of the Basque Country (UPV/EHU), Leioa, Basque Country, Spain; Research Centre for Experimental Marine Biology and Biotechnology (PIE), University of the Basque Country (UPV/EHU), Plentzia, Basque Country, Spain
| | - N Etxebarria
- Department of Analytical Chemistry, Faculty of Science and Technology, University of the Basque Country (UPV/EHU), Leioa, Basque Country, Spain; Research Centre for Experimental Marine Biology and Biotechnology (PIE), University of the Basque Country (UPV/EHU), Plentzia, Basque Country, Spain
| | - O Zuloaga
- Department of Analytical Chemistry, Faculty of Science and Technology, University of the Basque Country (UPV/EHU), Leioa, Basque Country, Spain; Research Centre for Experimental Marine Biology and Biotechnology (PIE), University of the Basque Country (UPV/EHU), Plentzia, Basque Country, Spain
| | - M Olivares
- Department of Analytical Chemistry, Faculty of Science and Technology, University of the Basque Country (UPV/EHU), Leioa, Basque Country, Spain; Research Centre for Experimental Marine Biology and Biotechnology (PIE), University of the Basque Country (UPV/EHU), Plentzia, Basque Country, Spain
| | - A Prieto
- Department of Analytical Chemistry, Faculty of Science and Technology, University of the Basque Country (UPV/EHU), Leioa, Basque Country, Spain; Research Centre for Experimental Marine Biology and Biotechnology (PIE), University of the Basque Country (UPV/EHU), Plentzia, Basque Country, Spain
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Wu G, Zhu F, Zhang X, Ren H, Wang Y, Geng J, Liu H. PBT assessment of chemicals detected in effluent of wastewater treatment plants by suspected screening analysis. ENVIRONMENTAL RESEARCH 2023; 237:116892. [PMID: 37598848 DOI: 10.1016/j.envres.2023.116892] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/20/2023] [Revised: 08/10/2023] [Accepted: 08/13/2023] [Indexed: 08/22/2023]
Abstract
Wastewater treatment plants (WWTPs) are the major sources of contaminants discharged into downstream water bodies. Profiling the contaminants in effluent of WWTPs is crucial to assess the potential eco-risks toward downstream organisms. To this end, this study investigated the contaminants in effluent of 10 WWTPs locating in 10 cities of Yangtze River delta region of China by suspected screening analysis. Further, the persistence, bioaccumulation, toxicity (PBT) and the characteristics sub-structures of PBT-like chemicals were analyzed. Totally, 704 chemicals including 155 chemical products, 31 food additives, 52 natural substances, 112 personal care products, 123 pesticides, 192 pharmaceuticals, 17 hormones and 22 others were found. The results of PBT analysis suggested that 42 chemicals (5.97% among the detected chemicals in WWTPs) were with PBT property. Among them, 31 contaminants were not reported previously. 9 characteristics sub-structures (N-methyleneisobutylamine, 1-naphthaldehyde, 2,3,3-trimethylcyclohexene, cyclohexanol, N-sec-butyl-n-propylamine, (5E)-2,6-dimethylocta-1,5-diene, 2-ethylphenol, pentadecane and 6-methoxyhexane) were found for PBT-like chemicals. The sub-structures of highly linear alkyl partially explained the significantly higher PBT score for personal care products. Present study provides fundamental information on PBT properties of contaminants in effluent of WWTPs, which will benefit to prioritize contaminants with high concerns in effluent of WWTPs.
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Affiliation(s)
- Gang Wu
- State Key Laboratory of Pollution Control and Resource Reuse, School of the Environment, Nanjing University, Nanjing, 210023, Jiangsu, PR China
| | - Feng Zhu
- Jiangsu Province Center for Disease Control and Prevention, Nanjing, Jiangsu, 210009, PR China
| | - Xuxiang Zhang
- State Key Laboratory of Pollution Control and Resource Reuse, School of the Environment, Nanjing University, Nanjing, 210023, Jiangsu, PR China
| | - Hongqiang Ren
- State Key Laboratory of Pollution Control and Resource Reuse, School of the Environment, Nanjing University, Nanjing, 210023, Jiangsu, PR China
| | - Yanru Wang
- State Key Laboratory of Pollution Control and Resource Reuse, School of the Environment, Nanjing University, Nanjing, 210023, Jiangsu, PR China
| | - Jinju Geng
- State Key Laboratory of Pollution Control and Resource Reuse, School of the Environment, Nanjing University, Nanjing, 210023, Jiangsu, PR China; Key Laboratory of the Three Gorges Reservoir Region's Eco-Environment, Ministry of Education, Chongqing University, Chongqing, 400044, PR China.
| | - Hualiang Liu
- Jiangsu Province Center for Disease Control and Prevention, Nanjing, Jiangsu, 210009, PR China.
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