Grantee Research Project Results
2022 Progress Report: Assessing biosolid treatment processes on pollutant environmental fate and plant uptake following land application
EPA Grant Number: R840252Title: Assessing biosolid treatment processes on pollutant environmental fate and plant uptake following land application
Investigators: Li, Hui , Carignan, Courtney , Huang, Qingguo , Zhang, Wei , Ippolito, James , Norton, John
Institution: Michigan State University , University of Georgia , Ohio State University , Great Lake Water Authority
EPA Project Officer: Packard, Benjamin H
Project Period: September 1, 2021 through August 31, 2024 (Extended to August 31, 2026)
Project Period Covered by this Report: September 1, 2021 through August 31,2022
Project Amount: $1,498,000
RFA: National Priorities: Evaluation of Pollutants in Biosolids (2020) RFA Text | Recipients Lists
Research Category: Water Quality , Water , Water Treatment
Objective:
The overall objective is to fill the knowledge gaps in occurrence, fate, transport, and plant uptake of pharmaceuticals and personal care products (PPCPs) and per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFASs) at the nexus of biosolids, soil, water, and crops via performing systematically designed laboratory and field experiments, and to effectively communicate the results through extension and outreach activities.
Progress Summary:
We made reasonable progress under all 6 tasks. For Task 1 (surveillance of impacts of biosolids treatment processes on PPCPs and PFASs concentration and leachability), we have collected biosolids samples from 12 wastewater treatment plants across the nation, and are quantifying target PPCPs and PFASs in the samples. For Task 2 (environmental fate and transport of PPCPs and PFASs in soils amended with biosolids), we studied sorption of several perfluoroalkyl acids by soils with cation exchange sites occupied by K+, Ca2+ and Fe3+, respectively. The results showed that Ca2+- and Fe3+-soils exhibited significantly higher sorption than that by K+-soils. This could be attributed to cation-bridging interaction between the deprotonated carboxylate group and Ca2+/Fe3+ at soil cation exchange sites. For Task 3 (accumulation of PPCPs and PFASs in agricultural crops from biosolids-amended soils and relation with their presence in soil pore water), we conducted greenhouse experiments to measure vegetable uptake of PPCPs from soils. The results reveal that PPCPs in soil pore water is the dominant fraction bioavailable to plant uptake. For Task 4 (field experiments to measure the accumulation of PPCPs and PFASs in crops from biosolids application), we started the measurement of PFASs in historically archived soil and crop samples from long-term biosolids-applied plots. For Task 5 (modeling human exposure to PPCPs and PFASs through biosolids application pathway), reasonable dataset has been collected for developing the models to assess human exposure. For Task 6 (community engagement and communication through extension), we provided a podcast on PFASs in the environment to Michigan State University Extension.
Future Activities:
We will continue to analyze PPCPs and PFASs in the biosolids samples, and conduct experiments to evaluate PFASs and PPCPs release from biosolids. We will conduct more experiments to better understand PFASs sorption and transport in soils, as well as PFASs and PPCPs uptake and accumulation in plants. In the coming year we will initiate field plot trials on plant uptake of PFASs and PPCPs from the soils amended with biosolids. We will further analyze human exposure to PFASs and PPCPs through the pathway of land application of biosolids. We will continue to engage stakeholders and seek their input to our research program and simultaneously disseminate the results of our research project.
Journal Articles on this Report : 3 Displayed | Download in RIS Format
| Other project views: | All 17 publications | 5 publications in selected types | All 5 journal articles |
|---|
| Type | Citation | ||
|---|---|---|---|
|
|
Carignan C. Invited Perspective: Examining Chemicals in Food as a Priority for Toxicity Testing. ENVIRONMENTAL HEALTH PERSPECTIVES 2023;131(3):031304 |
R840252 (2022) |
|
|
|
Li Y, Sallach JB, Zhang W, Boyd SA, Li H. Characterization of plant accumulation of pharmaceuticals from soils with their concentration in soil pore water. Environmental Science & Technology 2022; 56(13):9346-55. |
R840252 (2022) |
Exit |
|
|
Wang W, Rhodes G, Zhang W, Yu X, Teppen BJ, Li H. Implication of cation-bridging interaction contribution to sorption of perfluoroalkyl carboxylic acids by soils. Chemosphere 2022; 290:133224. |
R840252 (2022) |
Exit |
Supplemental Keywords:
Biosolids, Persistent Organic Pollutants, Bioavailability, Exposure Assessment, Sorption and Transport, Exposure Assessment, Soil AmendmentProgress and Final Reports:
Original AbstractThe perspectives, information and conclusions conveyed in research project abstracts, progress reports, final reports, journal abstracts and journal publications convey the viewpoints of the principal investigator and may not represent the views and policies of ORD and EPA. Conclusions drawn by the principal investigators have not been reviewed by the Agency.