title: Passive sampling: A cost-effective method for understanding antibiotic fate, behaviour and impact.
abstract: The occurrence of antibiotics in the environment has raised much concern in recent years. Understanding their release, fate and behaviour in the environment is vital to assess potential risks. In this study, a novel passive water sampler - diffusion gradients in thin-films for organics (o-DGT) - was employed to assess the occurrence and removal of antibiotics in two waste water treatment plants (WWTPs) - one in China and the other in the United Kingdom (UK). Of the targeted compounds, 11 of 19 were detected in the Chinese WWTP (ND-200ng/L) and 10 of 40 were found in the UK plant (ND-1380ng/L). Florfenicol, lincomycin, ofloxacin and roxithromycin were most abundant in the Chinese WWTP (influent), while anhydrous erythromycin, ciprofloxacin, trimethoprim, ofloxacin and sulfapyridine were the most abundant in the UK influent samples. Estimated Chinese and UK consumption data are used to interpret the results. Neither of the WWTPs was very effective at removing antibiotics: ~40-50% (overall) was removed by the two plants, with the rest being discharged into the receiving rivers. This is the first study using o-DGT to assess the occurrence and removal of antibiotics in WWTPs. o-DGT is a useful, cost-effective tool to assess WWTP performance and can highlight the effectiveness of treatment steps, which can be applied to wastewater based epidemiology studies.
authors.affiliation: Lancaster Environment Centre, Lancaster University, Lancaster LA1 4YQ, UK.
authors.forename: Chang-Er
authors.initials: CE
authors.lastname: Chen
authors.affiliation: Lancaster Environment Centre, Lancaster University, Lancaster LA1 4YQ, UK.
authors.forename: Hao
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Zhang
authors.affiliation: State Key Laboratory of Organic Geochemistry, Guangzhou Institute of Geochemistry, Chinese Academy of Science, Guangzhou 510640, China.
authors.forename: Guang-Guo
authors.initials: GG
authors.lastname: Ying
authors.affiliation: State Key Laboratory of Organic Geochemistry, Guangzhou Institute of Geochemistry, Chinese Academy of Science, Guangzhou 510640, China; State Key Laboratory of Lake Science and Environment, Nanjing Institute of Geography and Limnology, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Nanjing 210008, China.
authors.forename: Li-Jun
authors.initials: LJ
authors.lastname: Zhou
authors.affiliation: Lancaster Environment Centre, Lancaster University, Lancaster LA1 4YQ, UK; State Key Laboratory of Organic Geochemistry, Guangzhou Institute of Geochemistry, Chinese Academy of Science, Guangzhou 510640, China. Electronic address: k.c.jones@lancaster.ac.uk.
authors.forename: Kevin C
authors.initials: KC
authors.lastname: Jones
mesh_terms: D000900:Anti-Bacterial Agents / Q000032:analysis*; D002681:China; D004784:Environmental Monitoring / Q000191:economics / Q000295:instrumentation / Q000379:methods*; D045483:Rivers / Q000737:chemistry*; D006113:United Kingdom; D062065:Wastewater / Q000032:analysis*; D014874:Water Pollutants, Chemical / Q000032:analysis*; D018508:Water Purification / Q000191:economics / Q000295:instrumentation / Q000379:methods*
chemical_list: D000900:Anti-Bacterial Agents; D062065:Wastewater; D014874:Water Pollutants, Chemical
keywords: Antibiotic; China; Passive sampling; UK; Wastewater treatment plant (WWTP); o-DGT