Citation:

JONES-LEPP, T. L. AND R. STEVENS. PHARMACEUTICALS AND PERSONAL CARE PRODUCTS IN BIOSOLIDS/SEWAGE SLUDGES - THE INTERFACE BETWEEN ANALYTICAL CHEMISTRY AND REGULATION. Analytical and Bioanalytical Chemistry. Springer, New York, NY, 387:1173-1183, (2007).

Impact/Purpose:

The research focused on in the subtasks is the development and application of state-of the-art technologies to meet the needs of the public, Office of Water, and ORD in the area of Water Quality. Located In the subtasks are the various research projects being performed in support of this Task and more in-depth coverage of each project. Briefly, each project's objective is stated below.

Subtask 1: To integrate state-of-the-art technologies (polar organic chemical integrative samplers, advanced solid-phase extraction methodologies with liquid chromatography/electrospray/mass spectrometry) and apply them to studying the sources and fate of a select list of PPCPs. Application and improvement of analytical methodologies that can detect non-volatile, polar, water-soluble pharmaceuticals in source waters at levels that could be environmentally significant (at concentrations less than parts per billion, ppb). IAG with USGS ends in FY05. APM 20 due in FY05.

Subtask 2: Coordination of interagency research and public outreach activities for PPCPs. Participate on NSTC Health and Environment subcommittee working group on PPCPs. Web site maintenance and expansion, invited technical presentations, invited articles for peer-reviewed journals, interviews for media, responding to public inquiries.

Subtask 3: To apply state-of-the-art environmental forensic techniques to the recognition and characterization of emerging pollutants in the aquatic environment. There is a need for high sensitivity and for a powerful method of structural characterization, advanced mass spectrometric and chromatographic techniques to be employed to meet the challenge of emerging pollutants, including pharmaceuticals and personal care products, agents of sabotage, and explosives. Ongoing efforts continue to identify previously unrecognized pollutants from a range of problematic samples having importance to regional and state contacts.

Subtask 4: To provide the Agency with a set of practical analytical methods for the selective and sensitive determination of selenium species (organic, inorganic, volatile and non volatile forms) in multiple media to accurately assess and if necessary control the risk of selenium exposure to organisms. This includes development of optimal extraction, digestion, separation and detection approaches.

Subtask 5: To develop and apply an analytical method that can extract and detect synthetic musks. The extent of exposure may be determined by measuring levels of synthetic musks from their potential source (communal sewage effluent). This subtask ends in FY05 with the deliverable of APM 21. Future applications to biosolids will be covered in subtask 6.

Subtask 6: Application, and improvement, of previously in-house developed sensitive, robust, and green, methodologies regarding the use of urobilin and sterols as a possible markers of sewage contamination.

Subtask 7: Adaptation and improvement of previously developed in-house methods, for PPCPs (e.g., antibiotics and musks) to solid materials (e.g. biosolids, sediments).

Subtask 8: Study of the presence of personal care products, incombustible organic compounds from the direct-piping of small engines exhaust in Lake Tahoe, and lake deposition of airborne pollutants from industrial activity

Description:

Modern sanitary practices result in large volumes of human waste, as well as domestic and industrial sewage, being collected and treated at common collection points, wastewater treatment plants (WWTP). In recognition of the growing use of sewage sludges as a fertilizers and as soil

amendments, and the scarcity of current data regarding the chemical constituents in sewage sludges, the United States National Research Council (NRC) in 2002 produced a report on sewage sludges. Among the NRC's recommendations was the need for investigating the occurrence of pharmaceuticals and personal care products (PPCPs) in sewage sludges. PPCPs

are a diverse array of non-regulated contaminants that had not been studied in previous sewage sludges surveys but which are likely to be present. The focus of this paper will be to review the current analytical methodologies available for investigating whether pharmaceuticals are present in WWTP-produced sewage sludges, to summarize current regulatory practices regarding sewage sludges, and to report on the presence of pharmaceuticals in sewage sludges.

Record Details: