http://www.truth-out.org/news/item/40365-there-s-a-new-generation-of-water-pollutants-in-your-medicine-cabinet
There's a New Generation of Water Pollutants in Your Medicine Cabinet
Tuesday, May 02, 2017
By Lee Blaney, The Conversation | News Analysis
Every day we each use a variety of personal care products. We wash our
hands with antibacterial soaps and clean our faces with specialty
cleansers. We wash and maintain our hair with shampoo, conditioner and
other hair care products. We use deodorant and perfume or cologne to
smell nice. Depending on the day, we may apply sunscreen or insect
repellent.
All of these products contribute to our quality of life. But where do
they go after we use them?
When we bathe, personal care products wash off of our bodies and into
sewer systems that carry them to regional wastewater treatment plants.
However, these plants are not designed to treat the thousands of
specialty chemicals in pharmaceuticals and personal care products. Many
of the active and inactive ingredients present in these products pass
through our wastewater treatment plants and ultimately end up in rivers,
streams or oceans.
Once in the environment, these chemicals may cause hormonal effects and
toxicity in aquatic animals. In my laboratory we are studying these
emerging water pollutants, which are turning up in surface water,
groundwater and even treated drinking water. Although they are typically
found at low concentrations, they may still threaten human and
ecological health.
New Pollutants, Present Worldwide
Personal care products and their ingredients are widely distributed
throughout our environment. In one recent study, our lab aggregated over
5,000 measurements of active ingredients from a variety of personal care
products that were found in untreated wastewater, treated wastewater and
surface waters such as rivers and streams. They included
N,N-diethyl-3-methylbenzamide, or DEET, an insect repellent; galaxolide,
a fragrance; oxybenzone, a sunscreen; and triclosan, an antibacterial
compound.
Other studies conducted near the Mario Zucchelli and McMurdo & Scott
research bases confirmed that chemicals in personal care products were
even present in Antarctic seawater. Those reports identified the
presence of plasticizers, antibacterials, preservatives, sunscreens and
fragrances in the Antarctic marine environment. Together, these studies
suggest that the active ingredients in personal care products can be
found in any water body influenced by human activity.
These substances are typically present in the aquatic environment at
concentrations of 10 to 100 nanograms per liter, which is equivalent to
1 to 2 drops in an Olympic-sized swimming pool. But even at these low
levels, some still pose a risk.
Moving Up the Food Chain
Depending on their chemical properties, we can classify some of these
products as hydrophilic ("water-loving") or lipophilic ("lipid-loving").
The fat layers in our bodies are comprised of lipids, so lipophilic
personal care products can accumulate in the tissue and organs of
aquatic animals like fish, birds and even dolphins.
Our group has recently detected a suite of sunscreen agents and
17α-ethinylestradiol, a synthetic form of the hormone estrogen that is
the active ingredient in birth control pills, in crayfish from urban
streams near Baltimore, Maryland. We have also measured sunscreens in
oysters and mussels collected from the Chesapeake Bay. The uptake of
these chemicals by aquatic animals raises environmental concerns.
Specifically, as lipophilic chemicals from personal care products
accumulate in animals at higher concentrations, there is a greater
potential for them to cause toxic effects. For instance, many personal
care products disrupt hormone systems in the body. Some chemicals used
in personal care products affect reproductive systems and function,
causing the feminization of male fish.
These reproductive effects can have important consequences for aquatic
animals in the environment, and they may even represent a potential
health risk for humans. Last year, the Food and Drug Administration
banned the use of triclosan and a number of other antibacterial agents
in antiseptic wash products due, in part, to health risks associated
with hormonal effects.
Recent research has shown that oxybenzone, a sunscreen agent used in
many personal care products, is toxic to corals. For many coastal
communities, coral reefs are critical to local economies. For example,
the net value of Hawaii's coral reefs is estimated to be US$34 billion.
Earlier this year Hawaii introduced legislation to ban the sale of
sunscreens containing oxybenzone and octinoxate in order to protect
coral reefs. While research and policymaking are still ongoing in this
area, it is important to note that a number of new consumer products
have started using labels like "coral safe" and "reef safe."
Multiple Solutions
Typical wastewater treatment plants are designed to treat multiple
pollutants, including organic carbon from human and food waste;
nutrients like nitrogen and phosphorus; and pathogenic bacteria and
viruses that cause disease. However, they are not equipped to handle the
many ingredients of concern that are present in personal care products.
Protecting the environment and human health from these substances will
require progress in several areas. They include improving technologies
for wastewater treatment plants; conducting more testing and regulation
of personal care products to avoid unintended toxicity to aquatic
animals; and designing "green chemicals" that do not pose toxicity
concerns. This multi-pronged approach will help us to ensure that
personal care products continue to improve our quality of life without
harming the environment.