Chemical Status Research Articles

Geochemical fingerprints, evolution, and driving forces of groundwater in an alpine basin on Tibetan Plateau: Insights from unsupervised machine learning and objective weight allocation approaches

Study RegionTongde Basin, a typical alpine basin on the northeastern Tibetan Plateau Study focusResearch on the hydrochemical pattern and availability of groundwater is very limited in alpine regions, which greatly hinders the rational ulitilization and scientific management of groundwater resources. Multiple approaches integrating self-organizing map, K-means, entropy weight were employed to elucidate the distinct hydrochemical evolution patterns and controlling mechanisms of groundwater in alpine basins with dense human activities. New hydrological insights for the regionMultiple hydrochemical evolution patterns were discovered for groundwater in present alpine basin on northeastern Tibetan Plateau. Groundwater presents a gradual hydrochemical evolution from the piedmont to the riverside under the natural regulation with the increasing of TDS and major ions along the flow path. While, groundwater at some sporadic sites is featured with relatively high total alkalinity due to carbonate mineral dissolution. The riverine groundwaters are regulated by the strong hydrodynamic condition of river and demonstrate fresher hydrochemical characteristics. Groundwaters in the irrigation areas are featured by elevated nitrate levels with a maximum of 42.86 mg/L, attributed to agricultural pollution inputs. A conceptual model was established to illustrate the distinct hydrochemical fingerprints, evolution patterns and controlling mechanisms of groundwater in alpine basins that with dense human activities. This research can enhance the understanding of groundwater chemical status, genesis and availability, and is beneficial for the conservation and sustainable management of groundwater resources in ecologically fragile alpine regions worldwide.

Urban Groundwater in the cities of Europe: hidden challenges in a changing climate

In European cities, groundwater remains an issue of significant concern, largely because it is “out of sight and out of mind.” The general public, and even decision-makers, possess only a limited understanding of the state and characteristics of this vital resource. As a consequence, problems related to groundwater quality or changing water tables/piezometric surfaces may persist for years, or even decades, without being adequately addressed-or worse, without being noticed at all before resulting in land subsidence,saltwater intrusion, deep migration of persistent organic contaminants like PFAS (Le monde, 2023) or other irreversible consequences. The urban water cycle is central to ensuring the supply of clean, safe drinking water, effective sanitation, and wellfunctioning drainage systems for millions of residents. The impacts of human activities, such as land use change, excessive water abstraction and mismanagement, and the discharge of wastewater can exert a far greater influence on groundwater systems and hydrogeology than climate change. These activities alter the quantity and quality of both surface and groundwater, raising complex scientific, technical, socio-economic, cultural, and ethical challenges in urban water management. It is important to address the many challenges associated with ensuring water security and safety in cities (Quevauviller et al., 2024), as well as for development of effective climate change mitigation and adaptation strategies for urban areas (IPCC, 2024). Groundwater plays a critical role in the green transition and is an integral component of most climate change mitigation and adaptation strategies (Ingemarsson et al., 2022), and for meeting the increasing demand for freshwater in cities due to accelerating urbanization (United Nations, 2022). Many urbanized areas in Europe already face poor chemical and quantitative status (EEA, 2024; Sentek et al., 2024), and global change including increasing populations and sea level rise pose a tremendous challenge for safe and secure water supply especially in coastal European cities. Open access to digital subsurface data e.g. through the European Geological Data Infrastructure supports societal needs and UN sustainable development goals (Hinsby et al., 2024). This special issue demonstrates some of the important issues that the water supply of European cities are facing in times of increasing competing use of the subsurface (Volckko et al., 2020), projected climate change impacts on the hydrological cycle (Henriksen et al., 2023) and with freshwater now being among the transgressed planetary boundaries (Richardsson et al., 2023). [...]

Review: Urban Water Security and Safety

“Water security” and “water safety” is defined differently. As the terms are related they may lead to confusion and misinterpretations, depending on the context. Water security generally refers to a lack of resources of an acceptable quality, i.e. water scarcity that may be related either to an excess of water demand or drought impacts (with links to climate change and e.g. salt water intrusion into coastal aquifers). Further, water security is closely related to food security, energy security, health security and ecological security. From a (human) security viewpoint, however, water security may also be understood in the light of possible intentional degradation of the resources, e.g. criminal or terrorist act leading to a deliberate (chemical or biological) contamination of water supply systems. Water safety on the other hand refers to the quality or chemical status of the water resources that has to comply with the defined quality standards for drinking water specifically to protect human health, both from elevated concentrations of contaminants and natural geogenic elements. This review gives a snapshot of various (ground)water safety and security issues written by authors from different sectors and disciplines. Illustrating and clarifying the many societal challenges related to water security and safety in cities.

Temporal and spatial variations in the effect-based ecotoxicological assessment of streams

BackgroundWater bodies are affected by chemical contamination, including micropollutants, which is not fully captured by conventional chemical monitoring methods. The inclusion of integrative, effect-based in vivo and in vitro methods in standardized assessment procedures offers the possibility of bridging discrepancies between chemical and biological assessments and has already been proposed in several studies. However, there is a need to develop a comparable ecotoxicological assessment system for surface waters as for chemical and ecological status. This study aims to contribute to this discourse by investigating the temporal and spatial variation of ecotoxicological effects by assessing water grab samples of 15 different sites in central Germany over the course of 1 year using different in vitro assays.ResultsThe level of measured estrogenicity and anti-estrogenicity varied between the four measurement campaigns, while baseline toxicity, dioxin-like effects and mutagenicity showed relatively constant detectable effects over the study period. The impact of conventionally treated wastewater appeared to be one of the strongest influencing stressors, as direct comparisons of ecotoxicity upstream and downstream of wastewater treatment plant dischargers showed a significant increase for most of the conducted bioassays. Comparison of the measured estrogenicity with proposed threshold values showed effects within ecotoxicologically relevant ranges.ConclusionsBioassays record ecotoxicological effects on the basis of specific modes of action, allowing whole groups of substances to be identified as pollutants. Recording ecotoxicological status in this way is a useful complement to water assessment tools and can contribute to successful water management. Although most of the assays in this study were very consistent in detecting strong anthropogenic influences, possible temporal variations of individual assays should be taken into account when planning sampling strategies to improve the comparability of results.

Osteoinductivity enhancement by tailoring the surface chemical bond status: A strategy to mobilize host bone growth factors for in situ bone regeneration

The incorporation of growth factors and biomaterials is a promising strategy for improving osseointegration. However, current strategies to develop biomaterials with exogenous growth factors present disadvantages like inefficiency, difficult deployment, and potential off-target activation, making their translation into clinical practice challenging. This study reveals a bioactive N-doped tantalum carbide (TaC) solid solution film that can be used to construct a TaCN film via bionic interface engineering to recruit host bone growth factors to the wounded site and improve bone regeneration. X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS) and protein absorption analysis reveal that the performance of TaCN is related to the surface chemical bonds of films. The introduction of N to TaC causes a cascade effect wherein negative charges enrich on the TaCN surface, and the recruitment of positively charged bone growth factors around the TaCN film is facilitated. Under these circumstances, the endogenous bone growth factors enhance bone healing. The TaCN film shows an outstanding performance for in vivo osteogenic differentiation along with a superior in vitro cytocompatibility. Incorporation of N atoms into TaC provides a new clinically translatable strategy to mobilize host bone growth factors for in situ bone regeneration without the need for incorporation of exogenous growth factors.

Identification of river valley areas threatening the chemical status of groundwater, in the example of the upper course of the Ner River basin, central Poland

Identification of river valley areas threatening the chemical status of groundwater, in the example of the upper course of the Ner River basin, central Poland

Assessment of nematode and microbial diversity and screening of entomopathogens in revegetated post-coal-mining land in Kutai Kartanegara District, East Kalimantan, Indonesia

Abstract. Sopialena, Rosfiansyah, Suryadi A. 2024. Assessment of nematode and microbial diversity and screening of entomopathogens in revegetated post-coal-mining land in Kutai Kartanegara District, East Kalimantan, Indonesia. Biodiversitas 25: 2921-2930. Post-coal-mining management should strive toward site revegetation. The success of such revegetation efforts is largely determined by the soil's fertility status, which encompasses physical, chemical, and biological components. Biological fertility is indicated by the presence and abundance of soil microbes and nematodes. The objective of this study was to identify the diversity of nematodes and soil microbes in ex-coal-mining land revegetated with oil palm in Kutai Kartanegara District (East Kalimantan, Indonesia), to screen for entomopathogenic nematodes and microbes, and to analyze their relationships with the chemical fertility status of the land. As a control, non-mining land was also investigated. The results showed that microbial diversity and density (including fungi and bacteria) in the ex-coal-mining area were significantly lower compared to the control. Additionally, a decrease in microbial diversity and density was found in deeper soil layers of both post-mining and non-mining lands. In contrast, soil nematodes were more abundant in post-mining land, both in terms of diversity and density, and were also more plentiful in the deeper soil layers. Among the nematodes and microbes studied, only Heterorhabditis and Steinernema (nematodes), Trichoderma (fungi), and Bacillaceae (bacteria) were identified as entomopathogens, causing death in Tenebrio molitor L. larvae. Overall, soil fertility in ex-coal-mining land was observed to be lower, characterized by decreased soil pH, basic saturation, Soil Organic Carbon (SOC), and nutrient content, which contributed to a reduced microbial community compared to non-mining land.

Mapping nutrient and soil fertility indexes for Durum Wheat in the La Mina region of Algeria

The growing population coupled with a reduction in available agricultural land per capita necessitates smart management practices to boost production per unit area and enhance overall land productivity, ultimately ensuring food security. Thus, evaluating soil fertility and productivity is crucial for sustainable agriculture. This study aims to assess the chemical fertility status of the soils within the irrigated perimeter of la Mina, a region in Algeria known for Durum Wheat production. Thirty-two soil samples were collected from the study area and subjected to analysis for total N, available P and K, and organic matter (OM) concentration. All the soils were basic (pH 7.63–8.95), had low concentrations of total N (0.04 and 0.19 %), low concentrations of available P (7.36 – 30 mg kg−1), low concentrations of available K (<0.4 Cmol kg−1) and low concentrations of OM (0.67–2.37 % by weight). Using a Nutrient Index classification, the overall classification of the soils of the irrigated perimeter of la Mina were low for N, P, K and OM. In addition, the Soil Fertility Index revealed three levels of fertility with a dominance of fertility level 5 (low). Application of the FertiliCalc software for the evaluation of nutrient requirements of Durum Wheat showed average requirements of 183 kg ha−1 for N, 65.8 kg ha−1 for P and 579 kg ha−1 for K. In light of these findings, appropriate agricultural practices, including the addition of fertilizers, are required to build and maintain the needs of Durum Wheat in the study area.

Occurrence of emerging contaminants in three river basins impacted by wastewater treatment plant effluents: Spatio-seasonal patterns and environmental risk assessment

The concern on the fate and distribution of contaminants of emerging concern (CECs) is a burning topic due to their widespread occurrence and potential harmful effects. Particularly, antibiotics have received great attention due to their implications in antimicrobial resistance occurrence. The impact of wastewater treatment plants (WWTP) is remarkable, being one of the main pathways for the introduction of CECs into aquatic systems. The combination of novel analytical methodologies and risk assessment strategies is a promising tool to find out environmentally relevant compounds posing major concerns in freshwater ecosystems impacted by those wastewater effluents. Within this context, a multi-target approach was applied in three Spanish river basins affected by different WWTP treated effluents for spatio-temporal monitoring of their chemical status. Solid phase extraction followed by ultra-high-performance liquid chromatography were used for the quantification of a large panel of compounds (n = 270), including pharmaceuticals and other consumer products, pesticides and industrial chemicals. To this end, water samples were collected in four sampling campaigns at three locations in each basin: (i) upstream from the WWTPs; (ii) WWTP effluent discharge points (effluent outfall); and (iii) downstream from the WWTPs (500 m downriver from the effluent outfall). Likewise, 24-h composite effluent samples from each of the WWTPs were provided in all sampling periods. First the occurrence and distribution of these compounds were assessed. Diverse seasonal trends were observed depending on the group of emerging compounds, though COVID-19 outbreak affected variations of certain pharmaceuticals. Detection frequencies and concentrations in effluents generally exceeded those in river samples and concentrations measured upstream WWTPs were generally low or non-quantifiable. Finally, risks associated with maximum contamination levels were evaluated using two different approaches to account for antibiotic resistance selection as well. From all studied compounds, 89 evidenced environmental risk on at least one occasion in this study.

Hydrochemical characterization of a Dinaric karst catchment in relation to emerging organic contaminants

The main findings of a hydrochemical investigation conducted within a typical Dinaric karst catchment located in Southern Croatia are outlined. The studied aquifer is drained by the Jadro and Žrnovnica springs, which are important for the regional and local water supplies, respectively. Presumably, there is intercatchment groundwater flow coming from the neighbouring Cetina River catchment. Various factors governing aquifer hydrochemistry and their interplay with emerging organic contaminants (EOCs) that were detected at different water resources in ng/L concentrations was assessed. A total of 26 sampling campaigns (October 2019 – October 2022) were conducted at two springs, in a river and at a deep borehole, all representative of this complex hydrogeological system. Assessment of major ion constituents and saturation indices calculated with PHREEQC revealed the sampled water resources are of a Ca-HCO3 type due to the predominant weathering of the carbonate mineral calcite. Sharp spikes observed in chemographs indicated a highly karstified system with an effective conduit network allowing rapid spring responses to precipitation events. Water resources are of good chemical status, as affirmed by anthropogenic contamination indicators, with nitrates, chlorides and sulphates all below maximum threshold values. Strong positive correlations were found between EOCs concentration, number of detected compounds, and nitrates in the Cetina River, indicating a common origin, most likely wastewater. Identification of persistent EOCs including widely used repellent N,N-diethyl- metatoluamide (DEET) during base flow conditions and its strong positive correlation with the Ca2+ content in both the Cetina and Jadro samples, suggests potential storage in the epikarst and aquifer matrix. This coupling of conventional hydrochemical indicators and novel markers of anthropogenic impacts, including EOCs, in vulnerable karst water resources is a crucial advancement in the assessment and management of emerging environmental and potential human health risks. Such an approach is pivotal for the sustainable protection of hydrogeologically intricate sites.

Assessment of chemical and bacteriological status of treated wastewater of the Baraki WWTP (Algeria) for agricultural purposes

ABSTRACT Due to its geographical location in the arid and semi-arid zone, Algeria is suffering from water stress amplified by the effects of climate change. For these reasons this study was conducted to evaluate the suitability for agricultural reuse of treated wastewater of Baraki WWTP. The quality for agricultural reuse is related to the physicochemical parameters and indicators of water quality. The bacteriological characteristics including total and fecal coliforms, fecal enterococci, Salmonella spp. and Staphylococcus spp. were also considered. The results revealed that SAR and SSP values were excellent for irrigation. A Wilcox diagram showed that most of the samples fell in the field of C3-S1 indicating high salinity and low sodium water. The physicochemical results indicated that most of parameters are in conformity with standards except ammonia NH4+ and total nitrogen that are higher than the permissible limit of USEPA and FAO. The average concentrations of heavy metals are low compared with the FAO recommendations. However, the bacteriological analyses confirmed the existence of germs indicating a fecal contamination exceeding the WHO regulations but an absence of pathogenic germs. Hence, the disinfection of this water and an adequate treatment is needed before its use for agricultural purposes.

Uncertainty in Environmental Micropollutant Modeling.

Water pollution policies have been enacted across the globe to minimize the environmental risks posed by micropollutants (MPs). For regulative institutions to be able to ensure the realization of environmental objectives, they need information on the environmental fate of MPs. Furthermore, there is an urgent need to further improve environmental decision-making, which heavily relies on scientific data. Use of mathematical and computational modeling in environmental permit processes for water construction activities has increased. Uncertainty of input data considers several steps from sampling and analysis to physico-chemical characteristics of MP. Machine learning (ML) methods are an emerging technique in this field. ML techniques might become more crucial for MP modeling as the amount of data is constantly increasing and the emerging new ML approaches and applications are developed. It seems that both modeling strategies, traditional and ML, use quite similar methods to obtain uncertainties. Process based models cannot consider all known and relevant processes, making the comprehensive estimation of uncertainty challenging. Problems in a comprehensive uncertainty analysis within ML approach are even greater. For both approaches generic and common method seems to be more useful in a practice than those emerging from ab initio. The implementation of the modeling results, including uncertainty and the precautionary principle, should be researched more deeply to achieve a reliable estimation of the effect of an action on the chemical and ecological status of an environment without underestimating or overestimating the risk. The prevailing uncertainties need to be identified and acknowledged and if possible, reduced. This paper provides an overview of different aspects that concern the topic of uncertainty in MP modeling.

Analysis of the state of the surface waters of the Pyasachnik dam

An ecological monitoring survey of the freshwater ecosystem of the Pyasachnik Dam was carried out in the period 2011-2016. The main indicators of surface water quality such as temperature, transparency, electrical conductivity, dissolved oxygen, N–NH4, N–NO2, N–NO3, orthophosphates P, total nitrogen, total phosphorus, and chlorophyll a content were monitored. Hereafter, the obtained results are discussed by years and seasons. The chemical status and ecological potential of the freshwater ecosystem were determined. The investigated surface waters are suitable for irrigation, but with a permanent mandatory monitoring. Keywords: ecological potential, irrigation, physicochemical monitoring, chemical status, chlorophyll

Effect of untreated and stabilized dairy effluent applications on soil fertility and associated health risks

The intensification of dairy production in Uruguay generates increasing volumes of organic waste that are difficult to handle and may entail health risks. Irrigation with farm dairy effluents (DE) is a recommended agricultural practice to improve soil fertility. The objective of this work was to evaluate the effect of the application of raw (RDE) and two-lagoon stabilized effluents (LDE), urea fertilization, or non-amendment to Festuca arundinacea on soil and plant nutrient content, as well as pathogenic bacterial indicators and persistence of antimicrobial resistance genes. In a greenhouse trial, four seasonal applications were made with a total dose equivalent to 200 kg N ha-1. Soil Na content increased after DE applications. There was no increase in the nutrient content of tall fescue caused by DE applications. The persistence of E. coli was low but still detected in soil receiving RDE. Beta-lactam genes blaTEM and blaOXA were detected in both DE, being highest in LDE. However, they were not detected in the soil. DE applications demonstrated effects comparable to those of control and urea fertilization on tall fescue biomass and nutrient content, and slightly altered the soil's chemical status. LDE reduced pathogenic bacteria load to the soil, underlining the safety of its application.

Studies in the Foliar Analysis of Sal (&lt;i&gt;Shorea robusta&lt;/i&gt; Gaertn. F.) and the Physico-Chemical Status of the Underlying Soils in Madhya Pradesh

The paper describes the foliar analysis of sal (Shores robusta Gaertn. f.) and the physico-chemical status of soils under the respective sal forests of Madhya Pradesh.The soils are fresh, immature to leached down ones. The best growth of sal, as determined by Relative Growth Index (RGI-a new concept) is base poor, leached-down sandy loams. Coarse, fresh and thin soils under sal climate have poor growth of the species; and medium growth is registered in comparatively base richer soils.The soils are discussed to have been derived so by the process of 'laterisation' under the forest floor and the existing climate.Further, foliar analysis confirms the chemical status of the soils and reveals that sal is not a heavy demander of soil bases.

Assessing the impact of two conventional wastewater treatment plants on small streams with effect-based methods

Sixty percent of discrete surface water bodies in Europe do not meet the requirements for good ecological and chemical status and in Germany, the situation is even worse with over 90% of surface water bodies failing to meet the threshold. In addition to hydromorphological degradation, intensive land use and invasive species, chemical pollution is primarily considered to be responsible for the inadequate ecological status of the water bodies. As a quantitatively important source of micropollutants, wastewater treatment plants (WWTPs) represent an important entry path for chemical stressors. It is therefore important to analyze the effectiveness of the WWTPs in eliminating micropollutants and other chemical stressors to mitigate the negative impacts of the treated wastewater (WW) in aquatic ecosystems. Accordingly, in this study, we evaluated the impacts of two conventional, medium-sized WWTPs on their small receiving water systems in the southwestern region of Hessen in Germany during two sampling campaigns (spring and fall) using effect-based methods (EBM). We hypothesized that due to the insufficient elimination of micropollutants, a broad spectrum of toxic effects would be detected in conventionally treated WW and also in the receiving surface waters downstream the WWTPs. As EBMs a battery of in vitro assays and active biomonitoring using two in vivo assays were applied. The results supported our hypothesis and showed that the untreated WW had a very high baseline toxicity and also high endocrine and mutagenic activities. Conventional WW treatment, consisting of mechanical and biological treatment with nitrification, denitrification and phosphate precipitation, reduced baseline toxicity by more than 90% and endocrine activities by more than 80% in both WWTPs. Despite these high elimination rates, the remaining baseline toxicity, the endocrine, dioxin-like and mutagenic activities of the conventionally treated WW were so high that negative effects on the two receiving waters were to be expected. This was confirmed in the active monitoring with the amphipod Gammarus fossarum and the mudsnail Potamopyrgus antipodarum, as mortality of both species increased downstream of the WWTPs and reproduction in P. antipodarum was also affected. These results indicate that advanced WW treatment is needed to more effectively eliminate chemical stressors to prevent negative impacts of treated WW particularly in small receiving waters.

Conventional agricultural management negatively affects soil fauna abundance, soil physicochemical quality and multifunctionality

Agricultural intensification is one of the major drivers of biodiversity decline and the losses of its functions in the soil. For soil health and sustainability planning, it is important to understand the effects associated with agricultural management on soil function and biodiversity. This study explored soil fauna, physicochemical properties, soil quality and multifunctionality and how they are affected by agroecosystem management in four different land uses i.e., conventional agriculture, livestock-integrated agriculture, conservation agriculture and natural grassland. The conventional land use favoured some nutrients, however soil of both the integrated and conservation land uses had physical and chemical properties indicative of good soil quality e.g. low compaction, low C:N ratio and stable aggregates. Soil fauna abundance was more responsive to land use and the soil environment compared to species diversity which did not show significant responses as expected. Tillage is known to negatively influence soil fauna, soil functions and physicochemical properties through intense soil structure disruption. Here, its detrimental effect is reflected by the lowest record of soil fauna, poor soil physicochemical quality and low multifunctionality observed within the conventional landuses managed under deep tillage, compared to other land uses which are under zero tillage. Overall, the study shows that the implementation of sustainable soil management practices which improves the physical and chemical status will not only be beneficial for productivity but also for the promotion of important soil fauna, better soil quality and ecosystem multifunctionality.

Gynoxys revolutifolia (Senecioneae, Asteraceae): A new species from southern Ecuador

Gynoxys is a very diverse genus of Asteraceae with an Andean distribution from Venezuela to northern Argentina. It comprises about 130 species, 34 of which are recorded in Ecuador. In the present study, we describe Gynoxys revolutifolia, a new species occurring in Ecuador between Loja and Zamora-Chinchipe provinces. The new species is a shrub or treelet characterized by coriaceous leaves with a strongly revolute margin. After an accurate revision of the main Ecuadorian herbaria and field surveys, we provide a comprehensive comparison of G. revolutifolia with the species it was previously misidentified as. We also provide information concerning the chemical composition, distribution range and conservation status of the new species.

Soil Bacterial and Archaeal Communities of the Periodic Flooding Zone of Three Main Reservoirs in the South Ural Region (Russia)

Studying the soils in the periodical flood zone of three reservoirs is of promising importance for their subsequent return to economic activities. Research on the bacterial and archaeal communities of soils that are periodically or continuously flooded by reservoirs is still insufficient. To evaluate the chemical status of soils and their microbiota, the study was conducted in the Yumaguzino, Nugush, and Slak reservoir sites in the South Ural area (Russian Federation). The bacterial and archaeal communities of periodically flooded and non-flooded soils were investigated after a comparative investigation of chemical, hydrological, and climatic factors. It was discovered that flooded soils had anoxic conditions during the whole of the year, with brief drying intervals of limited length and low levels of effective temperatures. In terms of chemistry, flooded soils are distinguished by increased acidity, a fall in organic matter, and an increase in alkali-hydrolysable nitrogen. Compared to their counterparts in non-flooded soils, bacterial and archaeal communities in flooded soils are significantly different. Generally speaking, the biodiversity of flooded soils rises with the duration and depth of floods. Significant variations at the phylum level are mostly caused by a decline in the relative presence of Thaumarchaeota and an increase in Proteobacteria and Chloroflexi representation. It was discovered that the Euryarchaeota phylum was either absent or had a significantly decreased relative prevalence at the sites of intermittently flooding soils.

Advancing environmental monitoring across the water continuum combining biomarker analysis in multiple sentinel species: A case study in the Seine-Normandie Basin (France)

Nowadays, biomarkers are recognized as valuable tools to complement chemical and ecological assessments in biomonitoring programs. They provide insights into the effects of contaminant exposures on individuals and establish connections between environmental pressure and biological response at higher levels. In the last decade, strong improvements in the design of experimental protocols and the result interpretation facilitated the use of biomarker across wide geographical areas, including aquatic continua. Notably, the statistical establishment of reference values and thresholds enabled the discrimination of contamination effects in environmental conditions, allowed interspecies comparisons, and eliminated the need of a reference site.The aim of this work was to study freshwater-estuarine-coastal water continua by applying biomarker measurements in multi-species caged organisms. During two campaigns, eight sentinel species, encompassing fish, mollusks, and crustaceans, were deployed to cover 25 sites from rivers to the sea. As much as possible, a common methodology was employed for biomarker measurements (DNA damage and phagocytosis efficiency) and data interpretation based on guidelines established using reference values and induction/inhibition thresholds (establishment of three effect levels).The methodology was successfully implemented and allowed us to assess the environmental quality. Employing multiple species per site enhances confidence in observed trends. The results highlight the feasibility of integrating biomarker-based environmental monitoring programs across a continuum scale. Biomarker results align with Water Framework Directive indicators in cases of poor site quality. Additionally, when discrepancies arise between chemical and ecological statuses, biomarker findings offer a comprehensive perspective to elucidate the disparities. Presented as a pilot project, this work contributes to gain insights into current biomonitoring needs, providing new questions and perspectives.