Contamination of water, soil, and plants by micropollutants from reclaimed wastewater and sludge from a wastewater treatment plant.

Several studies have shown that plants can absorb various micropollutants. The behavior of micropollutants from wastewater treatment plant resources was comprehensively investigated in raised beds in which either a mixture of vegetables or maize was grown. The beds were either irrigated with treated wastewater or enriched with sewage sludge or composted sewage sludge.

Dissipation of twelve organic micropollutants in three different soils: Effect of soil characteristics and microbial composition.

The dissipation kinetics and half-lives of selected organic micropollutants, including pharmaceuticals and others, were systematically investigated and compared among different soil types. While some pollutants (e.g.

Selective accumulation of pharmaceutical residues from 6 different soils by plants: a comparative study on onion, radish, and spinach.

The accumulation of six pharmaceuticals of different therapeutic uses has been thoroughly investigated and compared between onion, spinach, and radish plants grown in six soil types. While neutral molecules (e.g.

A novel multiscale biophysical model to predict the fate of ionizable compounds in the soil-plant continuum.

Soil pollution from emerging contaminants poses a significant threat to water resources management and food production. The development of numerical models to describe the reactive transport of chemicals in both soil and plant is of paramount importance to elaborate mitigation strategies. To this aim, in the present study, a multiscale biophysical model is developed to predict the fate of ionizable compound in the soil-plant continuum.

On the Use of Mechanistic Soil-Plant Uptake Models: A Comprehensive Experimental and Numerical Analysis on the Translocation of Carbamazepine in Green Pea Plants.

Food contamination is a major worldwide risk for human health. Dynamic plant uptake of pollutants from contaminated environments is the preferred pathway into the human and animal food chain. Mechanistic models represent a fundamental tool for risk assessment and the development of mitigation strategies.

How microbial community composition, sorption and simultaneous application of six pharmaceuticals affect their dissipation in soils.

Pharmaceuticals may enter soils due to the application of treated wastewater or biosolids. Their leakage from soils towards the groundwater, and their uptake by plants is largely controlled by sorption and degradation of those compounds in soils. Standard laboratory batch degradation and sorption experiments were performed using soil samples obtained from the top horizons of seven different soil types and 6 pharmaceuticals (carbamazepine, irbesartan, fexofenadine, clindamycin and sulfamethoxazole), which were applied either as single-solute solutions or as mixtures (not for sorption).

Competitive and synergic sorption of carbamazepine, citalopram, clindamycin, fexofenadine, irbesartan and sulfamethoxazole in seven soils.

Sorption of pharmaceuticals, which can occur in soils, may differ when present in a soil solution as a single compound or in a solution with other pharmaceuticals. Therefore, the sorption isotherms described by the Freundlich equations were evaluated for 6 compounds, which were applied in solutions of a single pharmaceutical, two pharmaceuticals or all pharmaceuticals to seven soils. Study mainly focused on a behavior of fexofenadine and irbesartan that occurred in soils in 3 forms (cationic, zwitter-ionic or neutral, anionic).

Soil influences on uptake and transfer of pharmaceuticals from sewage sludge amended soils to spinach.

Sewage sludge from wastewater treatment plants, which may contain various contaminants including pharmaceuticals, is often used as a soil amendment. These contaminants may subsequently be taken up by plants. In the present study we examined uptake of select pharmaceuticals from sewage sludge applied to soils by spinach plants.

Root uptake of atenolol, sulfamethoxazole and carbamazepine, and their transformation in three soils and four plants.

Soils can be contaminated by pharmaceuticals. The aim of this study was to evaluate the impact of soil conditions (influencing sorption and persistence of pharmaceuticals in soils) and plant type on the root uptake of selected pharmaceuticals and their transformation in plant-soil systems. Four plants (lamb's lettuce, spinach, arugula, radish) planted in 3 soils were irrigated for 20 days (26) with water contaminated by one of 3 pharmaceuticals (carbamazepine, atenolol, sulfamethoxazole) or their mixture.

Sorption of citalopram, irbesartan and fexofenadine in soils: Estimation of sorption coefficients from soil properties.

The sorption of 3 pharmaceuticals, which may exist in 4 different forms depending on the solution pH (irbesartan in cationic, neutral and anionic, fexofenadine in cationic, zwitter-ionic and anionic, and citalopram cationic and neutral), in seven different soils was studied. The measured sorption isotherms were described by Freundlich equations, and the sorption coefficients, K (for the fixed n exponent for each compound), were related to the soil properties to derive relationships for estimating the sorption coefficients from the soil properties (i.e.

Simultaneous sorption of four ionizable pharmaceuticals in different horizons of three soil types.

Soils may be contaminated by human or veterinary pharmaceuticals. Their behaviour in soil environment is largely controlled by sorption of different compounds in a soil solution onto soil constituents. Here we studied the sorption affinities of 4 pharmaceuticals (atenolol, trimethoprim, carbamazepine and sulfamethoxazole) applied in solute mixtures to soils taken from different horizons of 3 soil types (Greyic Phaeozem on loess, Haplic Luvisol on loess and Haplic Cambisol on gneiss).

Pharmaceuticals' sorptions relative to properties of thirteen different soils.

Transport of human and veterinary pharmaceuticals in soils and consequent ground-water contamination are influenced by many factors, including compound sorption on soil particles. Here we evaluate the sorption isotherms for 7 pharmaceuticals on 13 soils, described by Freundlich equations, and assess the impact of soil properties on various pharmaceuticals' sorption on soils. Sorption of ionizable pharmaceuticals was, in many cases, highly affected by soil pH.

Temporal dissolution of potentially toxic elements from silver smelting slag by synthetic environmental solutions.

Waste slag which is created during precious metal smelting contains high levels of potentially toxic elements (PTE) which can be mobilised from unconfined deposits into the local environment. This paper examines the extractability of selected PTE (Pb, Zn, Cd, Mn) from slag samples by synthetic solutions designed to replicate those in the environment. Extracting agents were used to replicate potential leaching scenarios which are analogous to natural chemical weathering.

Profile distribution and temporal changes of sulphate and nitrate contents and related soil properties under beech and spruce forests.

The behaviour of principal inorganic anions in forest soils, originating mainly from acid deposition, strongly influences the forest ecosystem response on acidification. The aim of this study was to describe seasonal and temporal changes of sulphate and nitrate contents and related soil properties under beech and spruce forests in a region heavily impacted by acidification. The Jizera Mountains area (Czech Republic) was chosen as such a representative mountainous soil ecosystem.

Assessment of soil aluminium pools along three mountainous elevation gradients.

Anthropogenic soil acidification in mountain forests and consequent Al release still present a significant problem in many regions. The effect of deposition may differ according to stand conditions, including altitude. This contribution is focused on three elevation transects, two in the Jizera Mountains strongly influenced by acid deposition, one in the less affected Novohradske Mountains.

Grass cover on forest clear-cut areas ameliorates some soil chemical properties.

Clear-cut areas formed after forest decline due to acid deposition, pest attacks, or wind-breaks in temperate mountainous regions are often populated by grass (mainly Calamagrostis villosa). This study focused on the changes of soil chemical characteristics under the grass cover replacing the forest, focusing mainly on aluminium (Al) speciation. Clear-cut area due to strong acid deposition in the Jizera Mountains (Northern Bohemia) was studied.

Comparison of water-soluble and exchangeable forms of Al in acid forest soils.

Soil acidification promotes Al release from minerals and parent bedrocks; it also affects Al mobilization and speciation. Speciation of KCl extractable and water-extractable Al in forest soils was done by means of HPLC/IC method. Species Al3+ were the most abundant Al forms in the KCl extracts (around 93%).