The occurrence of steroidal estrogens in south-eastern Ontario wastewater treatment plants

详细信息    查看全文

• 作者：Susanna K. Atkinson ; ^{susannakatkinson@gmail.com} ; Vicki L. Marlatt ^{vicki.marlatt@ufv.ca} ; Lynda E. Kimpe ^{lkimpe@uottawa.ca} ; David R.S. Lean ^{drslean@gmail.com} ; Vance L. Trudeau ^{trudeauv@uottawa.ca} ; Jules M. Blais ^{jules.blais@uottawa.ca}
• 关键词：Steroidal estrogen ; Biodegradation ; Wastewater treatment plant ; Removal efficiency ; Estrogenic potency
• 刊名：Science of the Total Environment
• 出版年：2012
• 出版时间：15 July, 2012
• 年：2012
• 卷：430
• 期：Complete
• 页码：119-125
• 全文大小：306 K

文摘

We measured steroidal estrogens in wastewater in Ottawa and Cornwall (Ontario, Canada) to determine removal efficiency of these steroids during the treatment process, and whether removal varies during a seasonal cycle. Estrone (E1), 17¦Â-estradiol (E2) and 17¦Á-ethinylestradiol (EE2) were found at maximum concentrations in raw sewage (RS), at 104, 66.9 and 5.7 ng L^?#xA0;1, respectively. For the Ottawa wastewater treatment plant (WWTP), there was sufficient data to show that E1 concentrations in RS correlated with both ambient air temperature and mean daily flow of the WWTP (R² = 0.792, p = 0.003 and R² = 0.757, p = 0.005). E1 removal was correlated with the percent difference in cBOD from RS to FE (final effluent) (R² = 0.435, p = 0.075). However estrogenic potency, as determined by a sensitive in vitro reporter gene assay, did not decrease during the water treatment process, suggesting that many estrogenic chemicals are conserved in FE. E1 and EE2 were found in river water, both upstream and downstream of the WWTPs, and at much lower concentrations than in FE. Our study demonstrates the persistence of steroidal estrogens and estrogenic potency in Ontario WWTP effluents and surface waters, and has uncovered temporal patterns of release that may be used to help predict risks to aquatic organisms in these environments.