title: Emerging pollutants in sewage, surface and drinking water in Galicia (NW Spain).
abstract: A monitoring programme was carried out on wastewater, surface and drinking water on the NW area of Spain during the four seasons of a year period (November 2007-September 2008). This study covered a series of emerging pollutants of different classes, including pharmaceuticals, neutral and acidic organophosphorus flame retardant/plasticizers (OPs), triclosan, phenoxy-herbicides, insect repellents and UV filters. From the total set of 53 compounds, 19 were found in raw wastewater with median concentrations higher than 0.1 μg L(-1). Among them, salicylic acid, ibuprofen and the UV filter benzophenone-4 (BP-4) were the most concentrated, exceeding the 1 μg L(-1) median value. Subsequently, 11 of these contaminants are not efficiently enough removed in the small WWTPs tested and their median concentrations in effluents still surpassed the 0.1 μg L(-1), so that they can spread through surface water. These chemicals are the pharmaceuticals naproxen, diclofenac and atenolol; the OPs tri(2-chloroethyl) phosphate (TCEP), tri(chloropropyl) phosphate (TCPP), tri-n-butyl phosphate (TnBP), diphenyl phosphate (DPhP) and diethylhexyl phosphate (DEHP); and the sulphonate UV filters BP-4 and 2-phenylbenzimidazole-5-sulphonic acid (PBSA). These OPs were then the dominant emerging pollutants occurring in surface and drinking water, where they are detected in the 20-200 ng L(-1) range. Pharmaceuticals and UV filters are typically below the 10 ng L(-1) level. Finally, herbicides were only detected in the last sampling campaign under the 100 ng L(-1) drinking water European Union limit.
authors.affiliation: Department of Analytical Chemistry, Nutrition and Food Sciences, IIAA - Institute for Food Analysis and Research, University of Santiago de Compostela, 15782 Santiago de Compostela, Spain.
authors.forename: Rosario
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Rodil
authors.forename: José Benito
authors.initials: JB
authors.lastname: Quintana
authors.forename: Estefanía
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: Concha-Graña
authors.forename: Purificación
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: López-Mahía
authors.forename: Soledad
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Muniategui-Lorenzo
authors.forename: Darío
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Prada-Rodríguez
mesh_terms: D001262:Atenolol / Q000032:analysis; D001577:Benzophenones / Q000032:analysis; D004008:Diclofenac / Q000032:analysis; D060766:Drinking Water / Q000737:chemistry*; D004784:Environmental Monitoring; D005411:Flame Retardants / Q000032:analysis; D007052:Ibuprofen / Q000032:analysis; D007306:Insecticides / Q000032:analysis; D009288:Naproxen / Q000032:analysis; D010755:Organophosphates / Q000032:analysis; D010968:Plasticizers / Q000032:analysis; D020156:Salicylic Acid / Q000032:analysis; D012621:Seasons; D012722:Sewage / Q000737:chemistry*; D013030:Spain; D013473:Sunscreening Agents / Q000032:analysis; D014260:Triclosan / Q000032:analysis; D014865:Waste Disposal, Fluid; D014874:Water Pollutants, Chemical / Q000032:analysis*; D014877:Water Pollution, Chemical / Q000706:statistics & numerical data*
chemical_list: D001577:Benzophenones; D060766:Drinking Water; D005411:Flame Retardants; D007306:Insecticides; D010755:Organophosphates; D010968:Plasticizers; D012722:Sewage; D013473:Sunscreening Agents; D014874:Water Pollutants, Chemical; D004008:Diclofenac; C009361:sulisobenzone; D014260:Triclosan; D001262:Atenolol; D009288:Naproxen; C009524:tributyl phosphate; D020156:Salicylic Acid; D007052:Ibuprofen