Field dissipation of 4-nonylphenol, 4-t-octylphenol, triclosan and bisphenol A following land application of biosolids

The persistence of contaminants entering the environment through land application of biosolids needs to be understood to assess the potential risks associated. This study used two biosolids treatments to examine the dissipation of four organic compounds: 4-nonylphenol, 4-t-octylphenol, bisphenol A and triclosan, under field conditions in South Australia. The pattern of dissipation was assessed to determine if a first-order or a biphasic model better described the data. The field dissipation data was compared to previously obtained laboratory degradation data. The concentrations of 4-nonylphenol, 4-t-octylphenol and bisphenol A decreased during the field study, whereas the concentration of triclosan showed no marked decrease. The time taken for 50% of the initial concentration of the compounds in the two biosolids to dissipate (DT50), based on a first-order model, was 257 and 248 d for 4-nonylphenol, 231 and 75 d for 4-t-octylphenol and 289 and 43 d for bisphenol A. These field DT50 values were 10- to 20-times longer for 4-nonylphenol and 4-t-octylphenol and 2.5-times longer for bisphenol A than DT50 values determined in the laboratory. A DT50 value could not be determined for triclosan as this compound showed no marked decrease in concentration. The biphasic model provided a significantly improved fit to the 4-t-octylphenol data in both biosolids treatments, however, for 4-nonylphenol and bisphenol A it only improved the fit for one treatment. This study shows that the use of laboratory experiments to predict field persistence of compounds in biosolids amended soils may greatly overestimate degradation rates and inaccurately predict patterns of dissipation.     

Quantification of bisphenol A, 353-nonylphenol and their chlorinated derivatives in drinking water treatment plants

Bisphenol A (BPA) and nonylphenols (NP) are of major concern to public health due to their high potential for human exposure and to their demonstrated toxicity (endocrine disruptor effect). A limited number of studies have shown that BPA and NP are present in drinking water. The chlorinated derivatives that may be formed during the chlorination step in drinking water treatment plants (DWTP) exhibit a higher level of estrogenic activity than their parent compounds. The aim of this study was to investigate BPA, 353NP, and their chlorinated derivative concentrations using an accurate and reproducible method of quantification. This method was applied to both surface and treated water samples from eight French DWTPs producing from surface water. Solid-phase extraction followed by liquid chromatography?Ctandem mass spectrometry was developed in order to quantify target compounds from water samples. The limits of detection ranged from 0.3 to 2.3?ng/L for BPA and chlorinated BPA and from 1.4 to 63.0?ng/L for 353NP and chlorinated 353NP. BPA and 353NP were found in most analyzed water samples, at a level ranging from 2.0 to 29.7?ng/L and from 0 to 124.9?ng/L, respectively. In most of DWTPs a decrease of BPA and 353NP was observed between surface water and treated water (36.6 to 78.9?% and 2.2 to 100.0?% for BPA and 353NP, respectively). Neither chlorinated BPA nor chlorinated 353NP was detected. Even though BPA and 353NP have been largely removed in the DWTPs studied, they have not been completely eliminated, and drinking water may consequently remain a source of human exposure.     

Determination of 4-tert-octylphenol, 4-nonylphenol and bisphenol A in surface waters from the Haihe River in Tianjin by gas chromatography-mass spectrometry with selected ion monitoring

The estrogenic pollutants 4-tert-octylphenol (OP), 4-nonylphenol (NP) and bisphenol A (BPA) were determined in surface water samples from the Haihe River, Tianjin, China. The analytes were extracted and concentrated from 300 ml acidified water samples by liquid–liquid extractions using dichloromethane, derivatized with trifluoroacetic anhydride, and quantified by gas chromatography–mass spectrometry (GC–MS) with selected ion monitoring (SIM). Among the samples collected from 14 sampling sites, only one sample was found to have a relatively high concentration of BPA (8.30 μg l⁻¹) and NP (0.55 μg l⁻¹). The concentrations of OP, NP and BPA in the other samples were in the range of 18.0–20.2, 106–296 and 19.1–106 ng l⁻¹, respectively. Recoveries for OP, NP and BPA in the spiked water samples were all over 80%.     

Biodegradation of 4-nonylphenol in seawater and sediment

Biodegradation of 14C-labelled nonylphenol at the concentration 11 microg litre (-1) in seawater has been estimated by collection and quantification of the formed labelled carbon dioxide. Initially degradation was very slow but when the microorganisms had become adapted, after four weeks at 11 degrees C, the degradation rate increased rapidly and after 58 days about 50% of 14C from NP was found in the CO2 fraction. In the presence of sediment the initial degradation rate was high and did not increase after longer incubation. Lack of oxygen reduced the degradation rate by half in the presence of sediment.     

First assessment of population exposure to perfluorinated compounds in Flanders, Belgium

With the objective to evaluate exposure of the population in Flanders (Belgium) to perfluorinated compounds (PFCs), we measured perfluorooctane sulfonate (PFOS) and perfluorooctanoic acid (PFOA) in settled dust in homes and offices, in a selection of food items from local origin, in drinking-water and in human serum. We complemented the data with results from a literature survey. Based on this dataset we calculated intake by children and adults from food, drinking-water, settled dust and soil, and air. Dietary exposure dominated overall intake. For adults, average dietary intake equalled 24.2 (P95 40.9) ng PFOS kg⁻¹ d⁻¹ and 6.1 (P95 9.6) ng PFOA kg⁻¹ d⁻¹, whereas for children the dietary intake was about 3 times higher. Predicted intake is high when compared to assessments in other countries, and to serum levels from Flanders, but comparable to the intakes published by The European Food Safety Authority (EFSA) in 2008. Intake of PFOS and PFOA remained below the Tolerable Daily Intake.     

Fate and exposure models in relation to risk assessment

The recognition of potential long-term effects of substances, has led to the development of regulations and legislation which emphasis the need for assessing the risks posed by both new and existing substances for man and the environment. The evaluation of fate and exposure models is put into perspective in relation to the developments over the last five years in the framework of the EU regulations and national legislation within the European Community. The validation of environmental exposure models (multi-media models) is described in the context of quality assurance of models available to a user group, which is different from the quality assurance aspects for a developers group.     

Organohalogen exposure in a Eurasian Eagle owl (Bubo bubo) population from Southeastern Spain: temporal-spatial trends and risk assessment

Polybrominated diphenyl ethers (PBDEs), polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs) and organochlorine insecticides (OCs) were analysed in 58 Eurasian Eagle owl (Bubo bubo) unhatched eggs collected between 2004 and 2009 in Southeastern Spain. Levels of p,p′-DDE were found to be higher than in eggs laid by other European owls in the same decade, probably due to the greater agricultural activity in our study area. Compared to other European raptors, exposure to PCBs can be considered intermediate, but low to PBDEs. Land use differences and prey availability were the rationale to divide the study area in two subareas in further assessments. Temporal trends of HCB, p,p′-DDE, β-HCH, PCBs and PBDEs were significantly different in each subarea, generally increasing over time in the Southern but decreasing or remaining stable in the Northern. On the contrary, levels of cyclodienes tended to decrease in both subareas. Dietary shifts with a greater amount of birds are suggested as a cause for increasing organochlorine loads in raptors. This may explain the increasing trend in the Southern territories. However, due to the proximity of most of these nests to Cartagena, an important industrial city, increasing environmental pollution cannot be ruled out. Although average levels of the compounds analysed are below threshold levels, 17% of the samples exceeded 400 pg g⁻¹ ww (wet weight), the LOAEC for Total TEQs. Moreover, a negative correlation between TEQ concentrations and the metabolizable fraction of PCBs (F_prob = 0.0018) was found when TEQs values were above 10 pg g⁻¹ ww. This could be indicative of hepatic enzymes induction in the birds exposed at higher concentrations, which are mainly breeding in the Southern subarea. These females could be suffering from Ah-receptor-related toxic effects, some of which have been related to altered bird reproduction. Finally, a significant negative correlation between p,p′-DDE levels and eggshell thickness (r = −0.469, p < 0.001) was observed, with about 17% of eggshell thinning for eggs with p,p′-DDE levels above 100 μg g ⁻¹ lw. The persistence of this degree of thinning over a period of time has been related to population declines in other raptor species.     

Occurrence and temporal variations of the xenoestrogens bisphenol A, 4-<Emphasis Type="Italic">tert</Emphasis>-octylphenol,and tech. 4-nonylphenol in two German wastewater treatment plants

GOAL, SCOPE, AND BACKGROUND: The xenoestrogens bisphenol A, 4-tert-octylphenol, and the technical isomer mixture of 4-nonylphenol (tech. 4-nonylphenol) belong to the group of chemicals which are called endocrine disrupters due to their property of causing hormonal dysfunctions in the endocrine system of organisms at very low concentrations. Bisphenol A, 4-tert-octylphenol, and the tech. 4-nonylphenol (mixture of isomers) were determined in water samples collected from the influent and effluent of two German wastewater treatment plants (WWTP) during a long-time sampling period from February 2003 till August 2005 to assess their occurrence and temporal variations in WWTPs. METHODS: The compounds were extracted and concentrated from water by solid-phase extraction (SPE) using Bond Elut PPL cartridges and quantified by use of gas chromatography-mass spectrometry (GC-MS). RESULTS: The influent concentrations were as follows: Bisphenol A < limit of detection of the method (< ldm)--12,205 ng L(-1), tech. 4-nonylphenol < ldm--10,186 ng L(-1), and 4-tert-octylphenol 39-1,495 ng L(-1). The measured effluent concentrations were lower with values in the range of < ldm--7,625 ng L(-1) for bisphenol A, < ldm--14,444 ng L(-1) for tech. 4-nonylphenol, and < ldm--392 ng L(-1) for 4-tert-octylphenol. All target compounds were largely eliminated during the wastewater treatment process. The elimination efficiency varied between 73% and 93%. DISCUSSION: All analytes show highly fluctuating influent concentrations with very high peak concentrations at particular sampling times. The variation of effluent concentrations is by far lower than the variation of influent concentrations. For tech. 4-nonylphenol, a significant temporal concentration variation has been detected with very high concentrations up to the microgram-per-liter level in the time from February 2003 till July 2003 and clearly decreasing concentrations in the time from June 2004 till August 2005. This corresponds well with the implementation of Directive 2003/53/EC (nonylphenol and nonylphenol ethoxylates in the European Union "may not be placed on the marked or used as a substance or constituent of preparations in concentrations equal or higher than 0.1% by mass") from January 2005 on. Bisphenol A is present in the effluent samples in a wide range of concentrations from below the detection limit to high concentrations up to the microgram-per-liter level. For 4-tert-octylphenol, no particular trend of concentration development has been observed. CONCLUSIONS: Combined SPE and GC-MS proved to be an efficient method to identify and quantify polar organic compounds in environmental samples. With respect to the concentrations measured in the present study, bisphenol A sometimes is the prominent compound in influent samples. Neither bisphenol A nor 4-tert-octylphenol or tech. 4-nonylphenol show seasonal variations. However, there was a significant general trend of decreasing concentrations of tech. 4-nonylphenol in influent and effluent samples from both WWTPs which probably reflects the implementing Directive 2003/53/EC. RECOMMENDATIONS AND PERSPECTIVES: Further research is needed to investigate whether the observed decrease of tech. 4-nonylphenol concentrations in German WWTPs since June 2004 will continue further on. The reason for the high effluent concentrations of bisphenol A in only a few samples has to be clarified in further research. The results from this study provide insight into the concentration development of the xenoestrogens bisphenol A, tech. 4-nonylphenol, and 4-tert-octylphenol in WWTPs in the time span between 2003 and 2005.     

Bioaccumulation of 4-nonylphenol in marine animals--a re-evaluation

The bioaccumulation of 4-nonylphenol (NP) has been studied in shrimps (Crangon grangon L.), mussels (Mytilus edulis L.) and sticklebacks (Gasterosteus aculeatus L.) exposed to (14)C-NP in running seawater. NP was extracted with high recovery from tissues which were pretreated with pancreatic enzymes. The bioconcentration factor determined of NP in fish was 1300 and in mussels, 3400. These values are 5 and 340 times higher, respectively, than values reported earlier.     

Heavy metal contamination and exposure risk assessment via drinking groundwater in Vehari,Pakistan

Environmental Science and Pollution Research - The presence of toxic substances in aquifers, particularly potentially toxic heavy metals, is an important environmental and social concern worldwide....     

TCDD Biomonitoring and exposure to agent orange: Still the gold standard

Environmental Science and Pollution Research -     

An environmental fate, exposure and risk assessment of ethylene oxide from diffuse emissions

Ethylene oxide (EO) is mainly used as a chemical intermediate and as a fumigant and sterilizing agent. Through its manufacturing and intended uses, EO may be released into the environment. Therefore, an assessment of the environmental significance of those potential emissions was conducted. Data were collected describing pertinent physical properties, degradation and other loss mechanisms that control the fate of EO in the environment. Available aquatic and terrestrial ecotoxicity data were assembled and used as the basis of calculating critical toxicity values to characterize hazard. Environmental compartment concentrations of EO were calculated using Level III fugacity-based modeling. Six scenarios were developed to account for different climatic conditions in various portions of the US. Finally, potential regional-scale risks to aquatic and terrestrial wildlife were determined. In the conceptual model that was developed in this assessment, EO diffuses into air, partitions between environmental compartments, is transported out of the different compartments via advection, and undergoes abiotic and biological degradation within each compartment. All known emissions within the continental USA were assumed to enter a modeled region roughly the size of the State of Ohio. Organisms (receptors) were assumed to dwell in both terrestrial and aquatic compartments. Receptors were assumed to include small mammals, soil invertebrates, water column (pelagic) organisms, and sediment benthos. The goal of this assessment was to characterize any potential adverse risks to terrestrial and aquatic wildlife populations. Hazard Quotients (HQ) were calculated by dividing predicted concentrations of EO in air, water, sediment, and soil by their critical toxicity values. Maximum calculated HQ values in air were 1.52x10(-7), in water were 1.17x10(-5), in sediment were 2.25x10(-4), and in soil were 1.37x10(-5). The results of this assessment suggest that EO as currently manufactured and used does not pose adverse risks to aquatic or terrestrial wildlife. In all cases, the HQ values were much less than the maximum desired HQ value of 1.0 (4,400-6,600,000 times), indicating that the potential for diffuse emissions of EO to pose adverse environmental risks is quite low.     

Biomonitoring of pyrethroid exposure among rural and urban populations in northern Poland

The aim of this study was to determine for the first time in Poland, levels of exposure to synthetic pyrethroids in preschool and school age children and their parents living in urban and rural areas. For this purpose concentrations of pyrethroid metabolites: 3-phenoxybenzoic acid (3-PBA), 2,2-dibromovinyl-2,2-dimethylcyclopropanecarboxylic acid (Br₂CA), cis-3-(2,2-dichlorovinyl)-2,2-dimethylcyclopropane-1-carboxylic acid (cis-Cl₂CA) and trans-3-(2,2-dichlorovinyl)-2,2-dimethylcyclopropane-1-carboxylic acid (trans-Cl₂CA) were determined in 374 urine samples using a validated GC–MS method.     

Cumulative risk assessment of dietary exposure to phthalates in pregnant women in Beijing,China

Diet is an important exposure route for phthalates, such as di-iso-butyl phthalate (DiBP), dibutyl phthalate (DBP), bis(2-ethylhexyl) phthalate (DEHP), and benzyl butyl phthalate (BBP). In this study, we aimed to estimate phthalate exposure in the diet of pregnant women and assess the health risk. A total of 517 pregnant women in the first trimester were recruited, and food frequency questionnaires were collected. A simple distribution assessment method was used to estimate daily exposure, and the hazard index (HI) method was used to assess cumulative risk. The maximum daily dietary exposure to DEHP, DBP, DiBP, and BBP was 5.25, 3.17, 2.59, and 0.58 μg/kg bw/day, respectively, and did not exceed the safety limit values. Cereals and vegetables were the main sources of the estimated daily intake (EDI) of phthalates in the diet. The cumulative risk assessment, based on the European Food Safety Authority tolerable daily intake (TDI) and the US Environmental Protection Agency reference dose (RfD), did not exceed the threshold of 1. DiBP, DBP, and DEHP had higher hazard quotient (HQ) values for cumulative health risk than BBP. In conclusion, a low health risk was posed by the cumulative dietary exposure to phthalates for pregnant women in Beijing.

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The acute toxicity of bisphenol A and lignin-derived bisphenol in algae,daphnids, and Japanese medaka

Environmental Science and Pollution Research - Risk assessing newly synthesized chemicals prior to their applications is extremely important, if we want to ensure substitution of risky chemicals...     

The association between bisphenol A exposure and type-2 diabetes: a world systematic review

The present study was conducted to systematically review, analyze, and interpret all the relevant evidence in the literature on the possible link between exposure to bisphenol A (BPA) and the risk of type-2 diabetes mellitus (T2DM). We developed a comprehensive search strategy and used it to search Web of Science, Scopus, PubMed, and Google Scholar up to March 31, 2016, producing 3108 hits, of which 13 original papers were included. Findings of these studies were quite controversial; few studies indicated a significant positive association between BPA exposure and T2DM, while some other failed to detect such a relationship. Overall, it can be suggested that chance is unlikely the plausible explanation for the observed association between BPA exposure and T2DM. This was mainly because even in the negative studies some clues could be found in favor of a statistically significant relationship between BPA and T2DM. Additionally, some of the studies had shortcomings in defining the exposure and outcome measures, which, if present, might have led to underestimating the relationship between BPA exposure and T2DM. The theoretical plausibility of such a relationship found earlier in animal studies also supports this point. However, more definitive answer requires the conduct of future longitudinal studies, in which the possible association between BPA exposure and T2DM is assessed over much longer periods of time with more temporally robust BPA measurements. In addition, it would be quite beneficial if future studies be conducted in areas where data is still lacking (e.g., South America, Australia/Oceania, and Europe).

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Antibiotic exposure and potential risk of depression in the Chinese elderly: a biomonitoring-based population study

Environmental Science and Pollution Research - To examine the associations between urinary antibiotics from various sources and depression in the elderly using the biomonitoring method. In the...     

Respiratory health assessment and exposure to polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons in Mexican indigenous population

Environmental Science and Pollution Research - Indoor air pollution is an important risk factor for the generation of lung diseases in developing countries. The indigenous population is...     

Evaluation of bisphenol A levels in Nigerian thermal receipts and estimation of daily dermal exposure

Environmental Science and Pollution Research - Bisphenol A (BPA) is a high production volume chemical that has wide industrial applications, especially as a color developer in thermal papers. The...     

Non-destructive pollution exposure assessment in the European hedgehog (Erinaceus europaeus): IV. Hair versus soil analysis in exposure and risk assessment of organochlorine compounds

Few ecotoxicological studies on mammals use non-destructive methodologies, despite the growing ethical concern over the use of destructive sampling methods. In the present study we assessed exposure of hedgehogs (Erinaceus europaeus) to polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs), dichloro-diphenyl-trichloroethanes (DDTs), hexachlorocyclohexanes (HCHs) and hexachlorobenzene (HCB), by investigating concentrations of these compounds in soils and hedgehog hair from seven study sites around the urban area of Antwerp, Belgium. No relationships were observed between organochlorine compound concentrations in soils and hair from the different study areas. Furthermore, the individual variation of contamination levels in hair within study sites was high, especially for HCHs and HCB, and hair and soil had different relative profiles for PCBs, DDTs and HCHs. Our results show that concentrations of organochlorine compounds in soils alone are not predictive of the risk of these pollutants to hedgehogs and that tissue analyses are preferred to soil analyses in exposure and risk assessment studies.