Abstract
In recent years, physiological active substances (e.g., pharmaceuticals) detected in water environments have become an emerging public concern. However, limited study of their occurrence in river water in sewered and unsewered areas exists. In this paper, we describe the occurrence of pharmaceuticals in five rivers whose basins have different wastewater treatment conditions. We found 56 substances (e.g., antifebriles, anti-inflammatory agents, antihypertensives, antibiotics, etc.) in river water. The concentrations of these substances differed according to the basin conditions, that is, a higher concentration was observed in the basins with a lower sewerage ratio. In addition, we conducted an environmental risk assessment of existing pharmaceuticals of high concentration in river water. The MEC/PNEC values of carbamazepine, acetaminophen and triclosan were 0.36, 0.39 and 106, respectively. More information on the effects of pharmaceuticals (e.g., carbamazepine, acetaminophen, triclosan) on aquatic organisms, and data monitoring are necessary.
