6533b870fe1ef96bd12cf373

RESEARCH PRODUCT

Ecological risk assessment of pesticides in the Mijares River (eastern Spain) impacted by citrus production using wide-scope screening and target quantitative analysis

José M. MarínElena PitarchAndreu RicoTania PortolésLubertus BijlsmaFélix HernándezMaría IbáñezEddie Fonseca

subject

ecological risk assessmentMixture toxicityCitrusEnvironmental EngineeringHealth Toxicology and Mutagenesis0211 other engineering and technologiesDrainage basinSimazine02 engineering and technology010501 environmental sciences01 natural sciencesRisk Assessmentchemistry.chemical_compoundRiversEnvironmental protectionEnvironmental ChemistryAnimalsAgricultural productivityPesticidesEcological risk assessmentWaste Management and Disposal0105 earth and related environmental sciencesMixture toxicity021110 strategic defence & security studiesgeographygeography.geographical_feature_categoryPesticide residuePrimary producersCONTAMINACION DEL AGUAbusiness.industrysurface waterQ Science (General)pesticidesPesticidePollutionchromatography coupled to mass spectrometryPRODUCTOS QUIMICOS AGRICOLAS -- ASPECTOS AMBIENTALESRESIDUOS DE ASPERSION EN AGRICULTURAchemistryWastewaterAgricultureSpainEnvironmental sciencebusinessWater Pollutants ChemicalEnvironmental Monitoring

description

The widespread use of pesticides, especially in agricultural areas, makes necessary to control their presence in surrounding surface waters. The current study was designed to investigate the occurrence and ecological risks of pesticides and their transformation products in a Mediterranean river basin impacted by citrus agricultural production. Nineteen sites were monitored in three campaigns distributed over three different seasons. After a qualitative screening, 24 compounds was selected for subsequent quantitative analysis. As expected, the lower section of the river was most contaminated, with total concentration >5 µg/L in two sites near to the discharge area of wastewater treatment plants. The highest concentrations were found in September, after agricultural applications and when the river flow is reduced. Ecological risks were calculated using two mixture toxicity approaches (Toxic Unit and multi-substance Potentially Affected Fraction), which revealed high acute and chronic risks of imidacloprid to invertebrates, moderate-to-high risks of diuron, simazine and 2,4-D for primary producers, and moderate-to-high risks of thiabendazole for invertebrates and fish. This study shows that intensive agricultural production and the discharge of wastewater effluents containing pesticide residues from post-harvest citrus processing plants are threatening freshwater biodiversity. Further actions are recommended to control pesticide use and to reduce emissions. Universitat Jaume I/[UJI-B2018-55]/UJI/España Ministry of Science, Innovation and University/[RTI2018-097417-B-I00]//España Generalitat Valenciana[PROMETEO 2019/040]//España Universidad de Costa Rica/[OAICE-CAB-12-235-2016]/UCR/Costa Rica Ministerio de Ciencia e Innovación/[RYC2019-028132-I]/MICINN/España Ministry of Economy and Competitiveness/[RYC-2017-22525]/MINECO/España UCR::Vicerrectoría de Investigación::Unidades de Investigación::Ciencias Básicas::Centro en Investigación en Contaminación Ambiental (CICA)

yearjournalcountryeditionlanguage
2021-01-01
10.1016/j.jhazmat.2021.125277