Grantee Research Project Results
2023 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 , Great Lake Water Authority , Colorado State University
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, 2022 through August 31,2023
Project Amount: $1,498,000
RFA: National Priorities: Evaluation of Pollutants in Biosolids (2020) RFA Text | Recipients Lists
Research Category: Water , Water Treatment , Water Quality
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), during year 2, we have finished the target analysis of PPCPs and PFASs in the samples collected from 12 major wastewater treatment plants across the nation. The results included PPCPs and PFASs in both liquid and solid fractions of biosolids.
For Task 2 (environmental fate and transport of PPCPs and PFASs in soils amended with biosolids), we continued to investigate the impact of exchangeable cations on sorption of PFASs. The goal is to elucidate the contribution of cation-bridging interaction to the enhanced sorption of PFASs by soils.
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 started greenhouse experiments on plant uptake of PFASs from soils.
For Task 4 (field experiments to measure the accumulation of PPCPs and PFASs in crops from biosolids application), we continued to measure PFASs and PPCPs in the historically archived soil and crop samples collected from long-term biosolids-applied plots.
For Task 5 (modeling human exposure to PPCPs and PFASs through biosolids application pathway), a small dataset has been collected to develop the initial models to assess human exposure to PFASs.
For Task 6 (community engagement and communication through extension), several presentations were delivered to 4-H educators from Michigan. The research results were also delivered at Michigan State University Center for PFAS Research Annual Symposium to the audience with diverse background. This symposium attracted the audience nationwide including not only scientists and engineers, but also farmers from PFAS-impacting farms from Maine, New Mexico, and Michigan, extension agents, stakeholders, policy makers from federal agencies and state government.
Future Activities:
We will analyze the results of PPCPs and PFASs in the biosolids samples collected from the wastewater treatment plants across the nation. More experiments will be designed and conducted to better understand PFAS sorption by soils through cation-bridging interaction. We will study plant uptake and accumulation of PFASs and PPCPs in greenhouse experiments. 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, and continue to engage stakeholders and seek their input to our research program and simultaneously disseminate the results of our research project to these groups.
Journal Articles:
No journal articles submitted with this report: View all 10 publications for this projectSupplemental Keywords:
Biosolids, Persistent Organic Pollutants, Bioavailability, Exposure Assessment, Sorption, Exposure AssessmentProgress 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.