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Prioritizing Pharmaceutical Contaminants in Great Lakes Tributaries Using Risk-Based Screening Techniques
Citation:
Pronschinske, M., S. Corsi, L. DeCicco, E. Furlong, G. Ankley, B. Blackwell, Dan Villeneuve, AND M. Nott. Prioritizing Pharmaceutical Contaminants in Great Lakes Tributaries Using Risk-Based Screening Techniques. SETAC North America 42nd Annual meeting, Portland, OR, November 14 - 18, 2021. https://doi.org/10.23645/epacomptox.17105750
Impact/Purpose:
Presentation to the Society of Environmental Toxicology and Chemistry (SETAC) Meeting November 2021. Pharmaceuticals and personal care products (PPCPs) are common surface water contaminants for which aquatic toxicity information needed to conduct a thorough risk assessment are often lacking. Under Focus area 1 (Toxic Substances and Areas of Concern), one of the aims of the Great Lakes Restoration Initiative (GLRI) was to identify emerging contaminants and assess their effects on Great Lakes fish and wildlife. The present study reports on the monitoring of PPCPs among 16 different Great Lakes tributaries and assembled available toxicity information to prioritize the PPCPs with regard to their potential for biological effects in Great Lakes ecosystems and also to identify toxicity data gaps for the frequently detected compounds. Additionally, results indicated that wastewater discharges were not the only source of concern for PPCPs. This research supports efforts by Region 5 GLNPO and the states to achieve defined goals under the GLRI.
Description:
In a study of 44 sampling sites within 16 Great Lakes tributaries, 113 pharmaceuticals and personal care products (PPCPs) were detected of 261 monitored. Sampling sites were selected to represent a gradient of land uses and wastewater treatment plant (WWTP) influence. In some cases, multiple sites on the same tributary were sampled to observe changes due to source inputs. Samples were collected during low-flow and increased-runoff periods to characterize hydrologic variability. PPCPs are contaminants of emerging concern that typically lack formal water quality benchmarks. To provide a risk-based assessment of potential biological effects resulting from exposure to detected PPCPs, toxicity information from EPA databases (ECOTOX Knowledgebase and ToxCast) was utilized to develop screening-level water quality benchmarks and to compute hazard quotients (HQs) for 59 of the 113 detected PPCPs. Ten PPCPs were designated as high priority based on HQ threshold exceedances at a minimum of 10% of monitored sites: caffeine, nicotine, albuterol, sulfamethoxazole, venlafaxine, acetaminophen, carbamazepine, gemfibrozil, metoprolol, and thiabendazole. For approximately 75% (197) of the monitored compounds, the available evidence did not suggest substantial concern, according to HQs (49) or a lack of detection (148). Of note, screening values could not be developed for 54 of the detected PPCPs due to a lack of biological effects information; therefore, these compounds represent unknown, potential threats to aquatic life. Samples collected during low-flow periods had 109% higher PPCP concentrations than those collected during increased-runoff periods. Some of the highest PPCP concentrations and detection counts were from Lake Erie and southern Lake Michigan tributary sites. Tributary sites in northern Lake Michigan and Lake Superior had some of the lowest PPCP concentrations and detection counts. Of the watersheds with multiple monitoring sites, an upstream/downstream pair on the North Branch of the Portage River had the greatest relative difference in PPCP concentrations and detection counts. The fraction of streamflow attributable to WWTP effluent correlated positively with PPCP concentrations; however, there was substantial deviation from that relationship, indicating the potential for additional PPCP sources. The contents of this abstract neither constitute, nor necessarily reflect, official US EPA policy.
URLs/Downloads:
DOI: Prioritizing Pharmaceutical Contaminants in Great Lakes Tributaries Using Risk-Based Screening Techniques
PRIORITIZINGPHARMACEUTICALCONTAMINANTS_FORREVIEW.PDF (PDF, NA pp, 3304.522 KB, about PDF)