Identification and Ecological Hazard Analysis of Contaminants of Emerging Concerns (CECs) in Water Bodies Located in a Coastal Metropolitan Environment

There is a rise in concern across the globe over the contaminants of emerging concerns (CECs) such as pharmaceuticals, personal care products (PCPs), UV stabilizers, surfactants, endocrine disrupting compounds (EDCs), etc. In the present study, we have identified some compounds belonging to the classes of pharmaceuticals, PCPs, and EDCs in the water samples collected from the coastal area of Ernakulam district of Kerala (India) (sea and lake). The analysis was carried out using ultra-performance liquid chromatography coupled with quadrupole time-of-flight mass spectrometry (UPLC-Q-ToF-MS) after enrichment by solid-phase extraction. The nine CECs were identified in both positive and negative electrospray ionization mode (ESI). In both the matrices (sea and lake water), the highest concentration levels were noted for benzophenone (26.5-33.2 mu g/l) and dibutyl phthalate (12.65-35.21 mu g/l), whereas butyl and propyl parabens occurred at low concentration levels. The normality (Kolmogorov-Smirnov and Shapiro-Wilk) tests indicated that the concentration levels of contaminants among lake water samples were non-normally distributed. Whereas in seawater samples, the contaminant concentration levels were normally distributed. The analysis of homogeneity of variance and ANOVA test revealed no significant relationship between the contaminants detected from the lake and seawater samples. The risk assessment analysis showed that the organisms in the lake are at more risk compared to that of the sea. The results from the risk quotient (RQ) values obtained for each identified compound showed that the presence of dibutyl phthalate, butylparaben, and oxybenzone pose a medium risk to biological populations than other CECs.

Automated summary

The study identified various contaminants from pharmaceuticals, personal care products, and endocrine disrupting compounds in water samples from coastal areas of Ernakulam district, Kerala, India. Benzophenone and dibutyl phthalate showed the highest concentrations, with lake water samples showing non-normally distributed contaminant levels and seawater samples showing normally distributed levels. Risk assessment indicated that organisms in the lake are at higher risk compared to those in the sea.