Environmental Science and Pollution Research

, Volume 22, Issue 1, pp 689–700 | Cite as

The presence of the top prescribed pharmaceuticals in treated sewage effluents and receiving waters in Southwest Nova Scotia, Canada

  • Avik J. Ghoshdastidar
  • Shannon Fox
  • Anthony Z. Tong
Research Article
First Online:
Received:
Accepted:

Abstract

From a list of the top prescribed drugs in Canada, 11 pharmaceuticals and two metabolites were selected for study in municipal sewage treatment plant effluents and receiving waters. Wastewater samples were collected from 16 wastewater treatment plants across Southwest Nova Scotia including the Annapolis Valley, South Shore, and Metropolitan Halifax. Samples were also collected between 100 and 200 m downstream of effluent outflows. Seven pharmaceuticals were found above μg/L levels with their highest concentrations as follows: metformin (10.6 μg/L), acetaminophen (28.9 μg/L), paraxanthine (18.2 μg/L), cotinine (3.10 μg/L), caffeine (115 μg/L), naproxen (29.1 μg/L), and venlafaxine (2.65 μg/L). Metformin, paraxanthine, caffeine, naproxen, ramipril, and venlafaxine were detected in every wastewater effluent sample. Statistical analysis revealed significant differences in pharmaceutical occurrence by treatment methods, weak dependence of pharmaceutical concentrations on populations, and the co-occurrence of some pharmaceuticals. Experimental results might indicate the limitation of primary only treatment methods in breaking down pharmaceuticals.

Keywords

Pharmaceuticals Effluent Receiving water Treatment methods Rural versus urban 
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Notes

Acknowledgments

The authors appreciate financial support from Acadia University and Canada Foundation for Innovation (CFI). The authors would also like to thank Brian Crouse and Martin Sichinga for technical assistance. The authors are grateful to numerous STP technicians and engineers who were very helpful in assisting sample collection.

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Copyright information

© Springer-Verlag Berlin Heidelberg 2014

Authors and Affiliations

  • Avik J. Ghoshdastidar
    • 1
  • Shannon Fox
    • 1
  • Anthony Z. Tong
    • 1
  1. 1.Department of ChemistryAcadia UniversityWolfvilleCanada

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