Longitudinal study on the multifactorial public health risks associated with sewage reclamation

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Abstract

This year-long research analyzed emerging risks in influent, effluent wastewaters and biosolids from six wastewater treatment plants in Spain’s Valencian Region. Specifically, it focused on human enteric and respiratory viruses, bacterial and viral faecal contamination indicators, extended-spectrum beta-lactamases-producing Escherichia coli, and antibiotic-resistance genes. Additionally, particles and microplastics in biosolid and wastewater samples were assessed. Human enteric viruses were prevalent in influent wastewater, with limited post-treatment reduction. Wastewater treatment effectively eliminated respiratory viruses, except for low levels of SARS-CoV-2 in effluent and biosolid samples, suggesting minimal public health risk. Antibiotic resistance genes and microplastics were persistently found in effluent and biosolids, thus indicating treatment inefficiencies and potential environmental dissemination. This multifaced research sheds light on diverse contaminants present after water reclamation, emphasizing the interconnectedness of human, animal, and environmental health in wastewater management. It underscores the need for a One Health approach to address the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals.

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Microplastics in the marine environment: a review of the methods used for identification and quantification.

Valeria Hidalgo-Ruz, Lars Gutow, Richard Thompson … (2012)

This review of 68 studies compares the methodologies used for the identification and quantification of microplastics from the marine environment. Three main sampling strategies were identified: selective, volume-reduced, and bulk sampling. Most sediment samples came from sandy beaches at the high tide line, and most seawater samples were taken at the sea surface using neuston nets. Four steps were distinguished during sample processing: density separation, filtration, sieving, and visual sorting of microplastics. Visual sorting was one of the most commonly used methods for the identification of microplastics (using type, shape, degradation stage, and color as criteria). Chemical and physical characteristics (e.g., specific density) were also used. The most reliable method to identify the chemical composition of microplastics is by infrared spectroscopy. Most studies reported that plastic fragments were polyethylene and polypropylene polymers. Units commonly used for abundance estimates are "items per m(2)" for sediment and sea surface studies and "items per m(3)" for water column studies. Mesh size of sieves and filters used during sampling or sample processing influence abundance estimates. Most studies reported two main size ranges of microplastics: (i) 500 μm-5 mm, which are retained by a 500 μm sieve/net, and (ii) 1-500 μm, or fractions thereof that are retained on filters. We recommend that future programs of monitoring continue to distinguish these size fractions, but we suggest standardized sampling procedures which allow the spatiotemporal comparison of microplastic abundance across marine environments.

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Discovery and quantification of plastic particle pollution in human blood

Heather Leslie, Martin J. M. van Velzen, Sicco H Brandsma … (2022)

Plastic particles are ubiquitous pollutants in the living environment and food chain but no study to date has reported on the internal exposure of plastic particles in human blood. This study's goal was to develop a robust and sensitive sampling and analytical method with double shot pyrolysis - gas chromatography/mass spectrometry and apply it to measure plastic particles ≥700 nm in human whole blood from 22 healthy volunteers. Four high production volume polymers applied in plastic were identified and quantified for the first time in blood. Polyethylene terephthalate, polyethylene and polymers of styrene (a sum parameter of polystyrene, expanded polystyrene, acetonitrile butadiene styrene etc.) were the most widely encountered, followed by poly(methyl methacrylate). Polypropylene was analysed but values were under the limits of quantification. In this study of a small set of donors, the mean of the sum quantifiable concentration of plastic particles in blood was 1.6 µg/ml, showing a first measurement of the mass concentration of the polymeric component of plastic in human blood. This pioneering human biomonitoring study demonstrated that plastic particles are bioavailable for uptake into the human bloodstream. An understanding of the exposure of these substances in humans and the associated hazard of such exposure is needed to determine whether or not plastic particle exposure is a public health risk.

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Microplastics in freshwaters and drinking water: Critical review and assessment of data quality

Albert A Koelmans, Nur Hazimah Mohamed Nor, Enya Hermsen … (2019)

Microplastics have recently been detected in drinking water as well as in drinking water sources. This presence has triggered discussions on possible implications for human health. However, there have been questions regarding the quality of these occurrence studies since there are no standard sampling, extraction and identification methods for microplastics. Accordingly, we assessed the quality of fifty studies researching microplastics in drinking water and in its major freshwater sources. This includes an assessment of microplastic occurrence data from river and lake water, groundwater, tap water and bottled drinking water. Studies of occurrence in wastewater were also reviewed. We review and propose best practices to sample, extract and detect microplastics and provide a quantitative quality assessment of studies reporting microplastic concentrations. Further, we summarize the findings related to microplastic concentrations, polymer types and particle shapes. Microplastics are frequently present in freshwaters and drinking water, and number concentrations spanned ten orders of magnitude (1 × 10−2 to 108 #/m3) across individual samples and water types. However, only four out of 50 studies received positive scores for all proposed quality criteria, implying there is a significant need to improve quality assurance of microplastic sampling and analysis in water samples. The order in globally detected polymers in these studies is PE ≈ PP > PS > PVC > PET, which probably reflects the global plastic demand and a higher tendency for PVC and PET to settle as a result of their higher densities. Fragments, fibres, film, foam and pellets were the most frequently reported shapes. We conclude that more high quality data is needed on the occurrence of microplastics in drinking water, to better understand potential exposure and to inform human health risk assessments.

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Author and article information

Contributors

Enric Cuevas-Ferrando: (View ORCID Profile)

Pablo Puchades-Colera: (View ORCID Profile)

Eugenia Núñez: (View ORCID Profile)

Journal

Title: npj Clean Water

Abbreviated Title: npj Clean Water

Publisher: Springer Science and Business Media LLC

ISSN (Electronic): 2059-7037

Publication date Created: December 2024

Publication date (Electronic): August 02 2024

Volume: 7

Issue: 1

Article

DOI: 10.1038/s41545-024-00365-y

SO-VID: 97b12a3e-d814-4578-b518-0120e6a89229

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https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0

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Longitudinal study on the multifactorial public health risks associated with sewage reclamation

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Abstract

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UN Sustainable Development Goals

Most cited references 100

Microplastics in the marine environment: a review of the methods used for identification and quantification.

Discovery and quantification of plastic particle pollution in human blood

Microplastics in freshwaters and drinking water: Critical review and assessment of data quality

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