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Phthalate esters in water and sediments of the Kaveri River, India: environmental levels and ecotoxicological evaluations

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Abstract

Phthalate esters are well known for their environmental contamination and toxicological effects as “endocrine disruptors.” In this study, environmental levels of phthalate esters and ecotoxicological risk assessments were performed in one of the major rivers in India, the Kaveri. Water and sediment samples were collected during 2010–2012 representing the major stretch of the river and extracted by solid-phase and ultrasonic methods, respectively, and analyzed for six major phthalates by using a gas chromatograph–mass spectrometer. The analytical recovery for phthalates in water and sediment ranged from 79 to 121 %. Results indicated that diethyl phthalate (DEP) and dimethyl phthalate were found in every sample, whereas butylbenzyl phthalate and diethylhexyl phthalate (DEHP) were detected in 92 % of the water samples. Likewise, in sediment samples, DEP was found most often (94 %). The total phthalates in water samples ranged from 313 to 1,640 ng/l, whereas in sediments it was 2 to 1,438 ng/g dw (dry weight) with DEHP having the highest concentration. Human health risk assessment based on drinking water consumption showed no potential risk for phthalates and also DEHP levels were safe with respect to USEPA guideline (6,000 ng/l). Further, DEHP and di-n-octyl phthalate levels in water were expected to pose little threat to sensitive organisms in the riverine ecosystem as per ECOSAR chronic values. In case of sediment, the DEHP concentration was well above the USEPA sediment guideline value. To our knowledge, this is the first study to describe the levels and ecotoxicological risks of phthalates in Kaveri River, India.

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Acknowledgments

The authors are grateful to the United Nations University, Tokyo, Japan and Shimadzu Corporation, Japan for the GC–MS facility established through the project “POPs Monitoring in Asian Coastal Hydrosphere” and DST, New Delhi for laboratory facilities under DST-FIST programme. One of the authors, K. K. S., is thankful to Department of Science and Technology (DST), India, for providing Junior Research Fellow under the DST-PURSE program. Likewise, the co-author S.S. would like to thank the University Grants Commission, India, for providing research fellowship.

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  1. Department of Environmental Biotechnology, School of Environmental Sciences, Bharathidasan University, Tiruchirappalli, 620024, Tamil Nadu, India

    Krishna Kumar Selvaraj, Gomathy Sundaramoorthy, Praveen Kumar Ravichandran, Girish Kumar Girijan, Srimurali Sampath & Babu Rajendran Ramaswamy

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  1. Krishna Kumar Selvaraj
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  2. Gomathy Sundaramoorthy
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  3. Praveen Kumar Ravichandran
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Correspondence to Babu Rajendran Ramaswamy.

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Selvaraj, K.K., Sundaramoorthy, G., Ravichandran, P.K. et al. Phthalate esters in water and sediments of the Kaveri River, India: environmental levels and ecotoxicological evaluations. Environ Geochem Health 37, 83–96 (2015). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10653-014-9632-5

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