title: What difference might sewage treatment performance make to endocrine disruption in rivers?
abstract: An assessment of the steroid estrogen removing performance of 23 different sewage treatment plants (STPs) was performed. The assessment relied on a model to estimate influent concentrations, and completed questionnaires on the STP treatment details from the relevant water companies. This information was compared with observed effluent 17beta-estradiol (E2) and estrone (E1) concentrations. The 10 biological filter plants (BFP) in the study performed poorly with only 30% (SD 31) removal on average for E1. This reduced E1 removal performance of the BFPs compared to all the other STP types in the survey was statistically significant (p<0.001). Scenarios of all the STPs as activated sludge types, and one as all BFP types were modelled using the GREAT-ER model set up for the Aire/Calder catchment in the UK. This difference was shown to have an important effect on predicted river E1 concentrations and consequent risk classifications.
authors.affiliation: Centre for Ecology and Hydrology, Maclean Building, Benson Lane, Crowmarsh Gifford, Wallingford, Oxfordshire, OX10 8BB, UK. ajo@ceh.ac.uk
authors.forename: Andrew C
authors.initials: AC
authors.lastname: Johnson
authors.forename: Richard J
authors.initials: RJ
authors.lastname: Williams
authors.forename: Pete
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Simpson
authors.forename: Rakesh
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Kanda
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D001717:Birds / Q000378:metabolism; D004958:Estradiol / Q000032:analysis; D004967:Estrogens / Q000032:analysis*; D004970:Estrone / Q000032:analysis; D011786:Quality Control; D045483:Rivers; D012722:Sewage; D011795:Surveys and Questionnaires; D014819:Vitellogenins / Q000378:metabolism; D014865:Waste Disposal, Fluid / Q000379:methods*; D014874:Water Pollutants, Chemical / Q000032:analysis* / Q000378:metabolism; D018508:Water Purification / Q000379:methods*
chemical_list: D004967:Estrogens; D012722:Sewage; D014819:Vitellogenins; D014874:Water Pollutants, Chemical; D004970:Estrone; D004958:Estradiol