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Pharmaceuticals and personal care products (PPCPs) in Arctic environments: indicator contaminants for assessing local and remote anthropogenic sources in a pristine ecosystem in change

  • Water, sanitation, pollution and health in the Arctic
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Abstract

A first review on occurrence and distribution of pharmaceuticals and personal care products (PPCPs) is presented. The literature survey conducted here was initiated by the current Assessment of the Arctic Monitoring and Assessment Programme (AMAP). This first review on the occurrence and environmental profile of PPCPs in the Arctic identified the presence of 110 related substances in the Arctic environment based on the reports from scientific publications, national and regional assessments and surveys, as well as academic research studies (i.e., PhD theses). PPCP residues were reported in virtually all environmental compartments from coastal seawater to high trophic level biota. For Arctic environments, domestic and municipal wastes as well as sewage are identified as primary release sources. However, the absence of modern waste water treatment plants (WWTPs), even in larger settlements in the Arctic, is resulting in relatively high release rates for selected PPCPs into the receiving Arctic (mainly) aquatic environment. Pharmaceuticals are designed with specific biochemical functions as a part of an integrated therapeutically procedure. This biochemical effect may cause unwanted environmental toxicological effects on non-target organisms when the compound is released into the environment. In the Arctic environments, pharmaceutical residues are released into low to very low ambient temperatures mainly into aqueous environments. Low biodegradability and, thus, prolonged residence time must be expected for the majority of the pharmaceuticals entering the aquatic system. The environmental toxicological consequence of the continuous PPCP release is, thus, expected to be different in the Arctic compared to the temperate regions of the globe. Exposure risks for Arctic human populations due to consumption of contaminated local fish and invertebrates or through exposure to resistant microbial communities cannot be excluded. However, the scientific results reported and summarized here, published in 23 relevant papers and reports (see Table S1 and following references), must still be considered as indication only. Comprehensive environmental studies on the fate, environmental toxicology, and distribution profiles of pharmaceuticals applied in high volumes and released into the Nordic environment under cold Northern climate conditions should be given high priority by national and international authorities.

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Acknowledgements

The authors appreciate to open-minded discussions with several anonymous reviewers during the work on the current AMAP assessment report. The Arctic Monitoring and Assessment Programme (AMAP) supported this review both intellectually as well as economically. Roland Kallenborn thanks the Research Council of Norway (RCN), the Norwegian Environmental Agency (Miljødirektoratet), and the Screening Program of the Nordic Council of Ministers (NCM) for the financial support of several screening and research project on PPCP-related topics. We appreciate the financial support of ARTEK 2016 (DTU Copenhagen) allowing the presentation of the here given overview during the ARTEK Conference in Sisimiut (Greenland).

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Faculty of Chemistry, Biotechnology and Food Sciences (KBM), Norwegian University of Life Sciences (NMBU), 1432, Ås, Norway

    Roland Kallenborn

  2. Department of Arctic Technology (AT), University Centre in Svalbard (UNIS), 9176, Longyearbyen, Svalbard, Norway

    Roland Kallenborn

  3. IVL Swedish Environmental Research Institute, 400 14, Gothenburg, Sweden

    Eva Brorström-Lundén

  4. Arctic Monitoring and Assessment Programme (AMAP), AMAP Secretariat, 0349, Oslo, Norway

    Lars-Otto Reiersen & Simon Wilson

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  1. Roland Kallenborn
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  2. Eva Brorström-Lundén
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  3. Lars-Otto Reiersen
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Correspondence to Roland Kallenborn.

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Kallenborn, R., Brorström-Lundén, E., Reiersen, LO. et al. Pharmaceuticals and personal care products (PPCPs) in Arctic environments: indicator contaminants for assessing local and remote anthropogenic sources in a pristine ecosystem in change. Environ Sci Pollut Res 25, 33001–33013 (2018). https://doi.org/10.1007/s11356-017-9726-6

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