Water Online the Magazine gives Water & Wastewater Engineers and end-users a venue to find project solutions and source valuable product information. We aim to educate the engineering and operations community on important issues and trends.
Issue link: http://wateronline.epubxp.com/i/597858
A study conducted by the state of Washington's Department of Ecology and the EPA assessed the efficacy of PPCP treatment removal rates of various wastewater treatment processes. By Melanie Redding and Brandi Lubliner P harmaceuticals and personal care products (PPCPs) are widely present in the environment. PPCPs are anthropogenic contaminants; their presence in the environment results from the universal, frequent, and cumulative usage by multitudes of individuals. Large quantities of pharmaceuticals are used to treat and cure diseases and other medical conditions. PPCPs enter the environment primarily as they pass through the body or are improperly disposed of in toilets, sinks, and the trash. PPCPs include drugs made for humans and ani- mals — prescription and over-the-counter drugs. This definition includes drugs used for human, veterinary, livestock, and aqua- culture. It includes diagnostic agents, nutraceuticals, and excipients. Personal care products are items that individuals use every day to take care of themselves. They include a wide variety of products — shampoo, deodorant, toothpaste, lotions, makeup, after-shave lotions, hair dyes, anti-dandruff shampoos, teeth whiteners, sunless tanning products, colognes, and fragrances. There are more than 10,500 chemicals used in personal care products. Only 11 percent of these chemicals have been tested for safety in the U.S. Low concentrations of PPCPs have been detected in surface water, groundwater, marine waters, soils, sediments, and drink- ing water. Conventional wastewater treatment plants were not designed to treat for PPCPs, and it is widely believed that the PPCP compounds migrate into groundwater and surface waters from treated and untreated wastewaters. There is concern about the effects on wild- life and human health from these chemicals at low concentrations in the environment. It is unclear how the unintended exposure to low concentrations of multiple chemicals may affect an organism or an individual. Tracking The Problem PPCPs enter the environment from several different sources. Human sources are the predominant ones, releasing PPCPs after they have been used, either as they are washed off the body or excreted. Additionally, PPCPs are often disposed down the drain or in the trash, and these enter the environment either through wastewater treatment systems or landfills. Other 30 wateronline.com n Water Innovations Assessing PPCPs: How To Handle The Micropollutants That Pose A Major Threat Conventional wastewater treatment plants were not designed to treat for PPCPs, and it is widely believed that the PPCP compounds migrate into groundwater and surface waters from treated and untreated wastewaters.