TY  - JOUR
A1  - Finckh, Saskia
A1  - Beckers, Liza-Marie
A1  - Busch, Wibke
A1  - Carmona, Eric
A1  - Dulio, Valeria
A1  - Kramer, Lena
A1  - Krauss, Martin
A1  - Posthuma, Leo
A1  - Schulze, Tobias
A1  - Slootweg, Jaap
A1  - Ohe, Peter Carsten von der
A1  - Brack, Werner
T1  - A risk based assessment approach for chemical mixtures from wastewater treatment plant effluents
T2  - Environment international
N2  - In this study, 56 effluent samples from 52 European wastewater treatment plants (WWTPs) were investigated for the occurrence of 499 emerging chemicals (ECs) and their associated potential risks to the environment. The two main objectives were (i) to extend our knowledge on chemicals occurring in treated wastewater, and (ii) to identify and prioritize compounds of concern based on three different risk assessment approaches for the identification of consensus mixture risk drivers of concern. Approaches include (i) PNEC and EQS-based regulatory risk quotients (RQs), (ii) species sensitivity distribution (SSD)-based hazard units (HUs) and (iii) toxic units (TUs) for three biological quality elements (BQEs) algae, crustacean, and fish.

For this purpose, solid-phase extracts were analysed with wide-scope chemical target screening via liquid chromatography high-resolution mass spectrometry (LC-HRMS), resulting in 366 detected compounds, with concentrations ranging from < 1 ng/L to > 100 µg/L. The detected chemicals were categorized with respect to critical information relevant for risk assessment and management prioritization including: (1) frequency of occurrence, (2) measured concentrations, (3) use groups, (4) persistence & bioaccumulation, and (5) modes of action. A comprehensive assessment using RQ, HU and TU indicated exceedance of risk thresholds for the majority of effluents with RQ being the most sensitive metric. In total, 299 out of the 366 compounds were identified as mixture risk contributors in one of the approaches, while 32 chemicals were established as consensus mixture risk contributors of high concern, including a high percentage (66%) of pesticides and biocides. For samples which have passed an advanced treatment using ozonation or activated carbon (AC), consistently much lower risks were estimated.
KW  - Emerging contaminants (ECs)
KW  - Wastewater treatment plant (WWTP) effluents
KW  - Wide-scope chemical target screening
KW  - Environmental risk assessment
KW  - Risk metrics (risk quotients, toxic units, hazard units)
KW  - Advanced treatment technologies
Y1  - 2022
UR  - http://publikationen.ub.uni-frankfurt.de/frontdoor/index/index/docId/63113
UR  - https://nbn-resolving.org/urn:nbn:de:hebis:30:3-631139
SN  - 1873-6750
N1  - This project has received funding from the NORMAN network. The QExactive Plus LC-HRMS used in this study is part of the major infrastructure initiative CITEPro (Chemicals in the Terrestrial Environment Profiler) and was funded by the Helmholtz Association. The conclusions expressed in this paper represent the expert judgement of the authors, but not necessarily the opinion of their affiliation. Finally, we would like to thank all WWTP operators and people involved in the sampling and laboratory work, especially Jörg Ahlheim and Margit Petre.
VL  - 164
IS  - art. 107234
SP  - 1
EP  - 20
PB  - Elsevier Science
CY  - Amsterdam [u.a.]
ER  -