Investigation of trade waste sources of concerning contaminants in wastewater networks

Investigation of trade waste sources of concerning contaminants in wastewater networks

Although wastewater treatment plants are known collection points of concerning contaminants, there has not been extensive attribution to upstream sources. Elevated point sources are likely present in wastewater networks, as intermittent pulses of contaminants have been observed in wastewater contaminant baselines. In this project, a number of elevated wastewater contamination occurrences are being linked to previously unexplored trade waste point sources to fill knowledge gaps in wastewater contaminant and public health tracking. We have so far attributed sources of selected PFAS, pesticides, PPCPs and drugs to different industry types, identifying industry hotspots, as well as proposing a pooling approach to optimise future extensive trade waste sampling campaigns. We also linked a decline in wastewater treatment plant performance to elevated levels of antibiotics discharged by a pharmaceutical manufacturer. Future research includes measuring the contaminant removal efficiencies of trade waste treatment technologies and exploring trade waste contributions of ethyl sulfate to wastewater networks, which is currently widely used to track population alcohol consumption. 

Please note this is a Student Progress Review presentation by Chantal Keane