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Roof runoff contamination: a review on pollutant nature, material leaching and deposition

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Abstract

Roof runoff is generally perceived as a relatively clean source of water and is therefore often discharged or used without any treatment. Available data from literature however show that roof runoff can be contaminated by a wide range of (micro)pollutants, and in concentrations often exceeding surface water quality and/or drinking water standards. In this review, information on more than 100 contaminants, including trace metals, polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons, pesticides, phthalates, alkylphenols and alkylphenolethoxylates, is summarized and a meta-analysis provides quantitative proof that roof runoff is a major contributor to stormwater quality deterioration. The two prime sources of roof runoff contamination are leaching from roofing materials and atmospheric deposition. A detailed discussion on material-pollutant relationships is given and a benchmarking method is presented which ranks roofing materials based on their runoff quality. Treated wood roofing and metallic rooftops (copper and zinc) were found to have the highest impact on water quality. Atmospheric deposition is also discussed in detail and includes a summary on the concentration levels in deposition for more than 400 pollutants such as trace metals, pesticides and polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons. As a conclusion, it can be argued that the general perception on roof runoff quality is inaccurate and that its quality aspects should not be overlooked when roof runoff is used or discharged.

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Abbreviations

2,4-D:

2,4-Dichlorophenoxyacetic acid

ACC:

Acid copper chromate

ACQ:

Alkaline copper quat

ACZA:

Ammoniacal copper zinc arsenate

AMPA:

Aminomethylphosphonic acid

AP:

Alkylphenol

APEO:

Alkylphenol ethoxylate

APP:

Atactic polypropylene

BBP:

Butyl benzyl phthalate

BGV:

Best guess value

BPA:

Bisphenol A

CA:

Copper azole

CCA:

Chromated copper arsenate

CBGV :

The calculated best guess value

Cmax ABS :

Absolute maximal concentration of a certain pollutant as reported in literature

Cmax SV :

Maximal concentration of the available selected values for a certain pollutant

Cmean TE :

Mean concentration of a certain pollutant based on the triple estimate approach

Cmean TE, DC :

Deposition corrected mean concentration of a certain pollutant based on the triple estimate approach

Cmin SV :

Minimal concentration of the available selected values for a certain pollutant

COD:

Chemical oxygen demand

DBP:

Dibutyl phthalate

DBPP:

Dibutyl phenyl phosphate

DDD:

Dichlorodiphenyldichloroethane

DDE:

Dichlorodiphenyldichloroethylene

DDT:

Dichlorodiphenyltrichloroethane

DEHP:

Bis(2-ethylhexyl) phthalate

DEP:

Diethyl phthalate

DF:

Calculated detection frequency for a certain pollutant

DIBP:

Diisobutyl phthalate

DIDP:

Diisodecyl phthalate

DINP:

Diisononyl phthalate

DMP:

Dimethyl phthalate

DNOC:

Dinitro-ortho-cresol

DNOP:

Di-n-octyl phthalate

DOC:

Dissolved organic carbon

DWQS:

Drinking water quality standards

DWQSstrictest :

Strictest possible drinking water quality standard for a certain pollutant

EPDM:

Ethylene propylene diene monomer

EVA:

Ethylene vinyl acetate terpolymer

FPO/TPO:

Flexible polyolefin/thermoplastic polyolefin

HBCD:

Hexabromocyclododecane

HCH:

Hexachlorocyclohexane

KOC :

Organic carbon–water partitioning coefficient

KOW :

Octanol–water partitioning coefficient

LLT:

Laboratory leaching test

MCPA:

2-Methyl-4-chlorophenoxyacetic acid

MCPP:

Mecoprop

MI:

Material index

MIDW :

Drinking water material index

MISW :

Environmental/surface water material index

ne :

Number of sampled/reported (rain) events

np :

Number of pollutants found in the runoff of a certain material

NP:

Nonylphenol

NP1EO:

Nonylphenol monoethoxylate

NP2EO:

Nonylphenol diethoxylate

NP3EO:

Nonylphenol triethoxylate

NPEO:

Nonylphenol ethoxylate

nSV :

Number of selected values

OP:

Octylphenol

OP3EO:

Octylphenol triethoxylate

OPEO:

Octylphenol ethoxylate

PAH:

Polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons

PBDE:

Polybrominated diphenyl ether

PCB:

Polychlorinated biphenyl

PCP:

Pentachlorophenol

PIB:

Polyisobutylene

PMMA:

Polymethylmethacrylate

PVC:

Polyvinylchloride

SBS:

Styrene butadiene styrene

SFA:

Substance flow analysis

SV:

Selected value

SWQS:

Surface water quality standards

SWQSstrictest :

Strictest possible surface water quality standard for a certain pollutant

TBEP:

Tris(2-butoxyethyl) phosphate

TBP:

Tributyl phosphate

TCEP:

Tris(2-chloroethyl) phosphate

TCP:

Tris(methylphenyl) phosphate

TCPP:

Tris(2-chloroisopropyl) phosphate

TDCPP:

Tris(1,3-dichloro-2-propyl) phosphate

TE:

Triple estimate approach

TEP:

Triethyl phosphate

TiBP:

Triisobutyl phosphate

TN:

Total nitrogen

TOC:

Total organic carbon

TP:

Total phosphorus

TPP:

Triphenyl phosphate

TPPO:

Triphenyl phosphine oxide

TPrP:

Tripropyl phosphate

TPU:

Thermoplastic polyurethane

WHO:

World Health Organization

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Acknowledgements

This research did not receive any specific grant from funding agencies in the public, commercial, or not-for-profit sectors.

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Correspondence to Pieter-Jan De Buyck.

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De Buyck, PJ., Van Hulle, S.W.H., Dumoulin, A. et al. Roof runoff contamination: a review on pollutant nature, material leaching and deposition. Rev Environ Sci Biotechnol 20, 549–606 (2021). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11157-021-09567-z

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s11157-021-09567-z

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