Abstract
This work is a study on the occurrence of emerging pollutants in the northeast Ecuadorian Amazon. Emerging contaminants (ECs)—caffeine, triclosan, estradiol, acetaminophen, nicotine, and ibuprofen—were quantified by gas chromatography–mass spectrometry in rivers and streams of the Amazon basin near the city of Tena, Ecuador. For that, a total of 16 natural water samples were taken in 8 locations. Sampling sites included areas impacted by discharges from inefficient sewage networks in urban areas, wastes from fish farming and non-functional landfill, a stream with few threats, tap water, and treated sewage. Caffeine was found in the 38% of the samples studied while trimethoprim and acetaminophen had an occurrence of 13%. Caffeine was detected at two sites receiving untreated sewage and one site receiving treated sewage with mean concentrations that ranged between 19 and 31.5 μg L−1. Acetaminophen (50.4 μg L−1) and trimethoprim (2 μg L−1) were only detected in the river receiving treated sewage effluent. This is the first assessment of emerging contaminants in the upper Ecuadorian Amazon basin, and our observations highlight the need for better sewage treatment and water quality monitoring in Amazonian cities.
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Acknowledgements
The authors would like to thank the Corporación Ecuatoriana para el Desarrollo de la Investigación y Academia—CEDIA for their contribution in innovation, through the CEPRA projects, especially the project CEPRA-XIV-2020-09—“Determinación del impacto y ocurrencia de Contaminantes Emergentes en ríos de la Costa Ecuatoriana y propuestas de tratamiento para su remoción”. Financing was also provided by Pontificia Universidad Católica del Ecuador as part of the Research Project QINV0151-IINV529020200. The authors are thankful to Oscar Solis and Emily Galarza for their support in sample collection and logistics. We want to thank the suggested institutions for their support in the research: Universidad de Cuenca, IKIAM and Universidad del Azuay.
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Capparelli, M.V., Cipriani-Avila, I., Jara-Negrete, E. et al. Emerging Contaminants in the Northeast Andean Foothills of Amazonia: The Case of Study of the City of Tena, Napo, Ecuador. Bull Environ Contam Toxicol 107, 2–10 (2021). https://doi.org/10.1007/s00128-021-03275-8
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s00128-021-03275-8