Pharmaceutical and personal care products in groundwater, subsurface drainage, soil, and wheat grain, following a high single application of municipal biosolids to a field

Abstract

Dewatered municipal biosolids (DMBs) were applied to a field at a rate of ∼22Mgdwha−1 in October 2008. Pharmaceuticals and personal care products (PPCPs) were monitored in groundwater, tile drainage, soil, DMB aggregates incorporated into the soil post-land application, and in the grain of wheat grown on the field for a period of ∼1year following application. Over 80 PPCPs were analyzed in the source DMB. PPCPs selected for in-depth monitoring included: antibiotics (tetracyclines, fluoroquinolones), bacteriocides (triclosan, triclocarban), beta-blockers (atenolol, propranolol, metaprolol), antidepressants (fluoxetine, citalopram, venlafaxine, sertraline), antifungals (miconazole), analgesics (acetaminophen, ibuprofen) and anticonvulsants (carbamazepine). PPCPs in tile were observed twice, ∼3weeks and 2months post-application. Of all PPCPs measured in tile drainage, only carbamazepine, ibuprofen, acetaminophen, triclosan, triclocarban, venlafaxine, and citalopram were detected (5–74ngL−1). PPCPs were not detected in groundwater >2m depth below the soil surface, and concentrations above detection limits at 2m depth were only observed once just after the first rain event post-application. In groundwater, all compounds found in tile, except carbamazepine, acetaminophen and citalopram, were detected (10–19ngL−1). PPCPs were detected in DMB aggregates incorporated in soil up to 1year post-application, with miconazole and fluoxetine having the lowest percent reductions over 1year (∼50%). For several compounds in these aggregates, concentration declines were of exponential decay form. No PPCPs were detected in the grain of wheat planted post-application on the field. No PPCPs were ever detected in water, soil or grain samples from the reference plot, where no DMB was applied.