title: Sources and fate of perfluorinated compounds in the aqueous environment and in drinking water of a highly urbanized and industrialized area in Italy.
abstract: Perfluorinated substances are listed among emerging contaminants because they are globally distributed, environmentally persistent, bioaccumulative and potentially harmful. In a three-year monitoring campaign (2010-2013) we investigated the occurrence, sources and fate of nine perfluoroalkylcarboxylic acids and three perfluoroalkylsulfonic acids, in the most industrialized region of Italy. Composite samples were collected in influents and effluents of wastewater treatment plants (WWTPs), in the main rivers flowing through the basin, and in raw groundwater and finished drinking water. Samples were analyzed by liquid chromatography tandem mass spectrometry. Perfluorinated substances were not removed in WWTPs and those receiving industrial wastes discharged up to 50 times the loads of WWTPs receiving municipal wastes. The mass balance of the emissions in the River Lambro basin showed continuously increasing contamination from north to south and differences in the composition of homologues in the west and east sides of the basin. Ground and drinking water were contaminated in industrial areas, but these substances were removed well in Milan. Contamination from industrial sources was prevalent over urban sources, contributing to 90% of the loads measured at the closure of the basin. The River Lambro was confirmed as one of the main sources of contamination in the Po River.
authors.affiliation: IRCCS-Istituto di Ricerche Farmacologiche "Mario Negri", Department of Environmental Health Sciences, Via La Masa 19, 20156, Milan, Italy. Electronic address: sara.castiglioni@marionegri.it.
authors.forename: Sara
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Castiglioni
authors.affiliation: IRSA-CNR-Water Research Institute, National Research Council, Via Mulino 19, 20861, Brugherio MB, Italy.
authors.forename: Sara
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Valsecchi
authors.affiliation: IRSA-CNR-Water Research Institute, National Research Council, Via Mulino 19, 20861, Brugherio MB, Italy.
authors.forename: Stefano
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Polesello
authors.affiliation: IRSA-CNR-Water Research Institute, National Research Council, Via Mulino 19, 20861, Brugherio MB, Italy.
authors.forename: Marianna
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Rusconi
authors.affiliation: IRCCS-Istituto di Ricerche Farmacologiche "Mario Negri", Department of Environmental Health Sciences, Via La Masa 19, 20156, Milan, Italy.
authors.forename: Manuela
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Melis
authors.affiliation: IRCCS-Istituto di Ricerche Farmacologiche "Mario Negri", Department of Environmental Health Sciences, Via La Masa 19, 20156, Milan, Italy.
authors.forename: Marinella
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Palmiotto
authors.affiliation: Metropolitana Milanese S.p.A., Area Acquedotto, Via Giuseppe Meda 44, 20141 Milan, Italy.
authors.forename: Angela
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Manenti
authors.affiliation: IRCCS-Istituto di Ricerche Farmacologiche "Mario Negri", Department of Environmental Health Sciences, Via La Masa 19, 20156, Milan, Italy.
authors.forename: Enrico
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: Davoli
authors.affiliation: IRCCS-Istituto di Ricerche Farmacologiche "Mario Negri", Department of Environmental Health Sciences, Via La Masa 19, 20156, Milan, Italy.
authors.forename: Ettore
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: Zuccato
mesh_terms: D002210:Caprylates / Q000032:analysis*; D060766:Drinking Water / Q000032:analysis; D004784:Environmental Monitoring; D005466:Fluorocarbons / Q000032:analysis*; D060587:Groundwater / Q000032:analysis; D007558:Italy; D045483:Rivers / Q000737:chemistry; D013451:Sulfonic Acids / Q000032:analysis*; D014507:Urbanization; D014865:Waste Disposal, Fluid; D014874:Water Pollutants, Chemical / Q000032:analysis*; D018508:Water Purification
chemical_list: D002210:Caprylates; D060766:Drinking Water; D005466:Fluorocarbons; D013451:Sulfonic Acids; D014874:Water Pollutants, Chemical
keywords: Aqueous environment; Drinking water; Mass spectrometry; Perfluoroalkyl substances; Wastewater