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This study firstly investigated the species, concentration variation, and emission factors of mercury emitted from the burning of incenses and joss papers in an Asian temple. Both indoor and outdoor speciated mercury (GEM, GOM, and PHg) were sampled by manual samplers, while ambient GEM at an indoor site was in-situ monitored by a continuous GEM monitor. Field measurement results showed that the total atmospheric mercury (TAM) concentrations in indoor and outdoor environments were in the range of 8.03-35.72 and 6.03-31.35 ng/m 3 , respectively. The indoor and outdoor ratios (I/O) of TAM in the daytime and at nighttime were in the range of 0.64-0.90 and 1.50-2.04, respectively. The concentrations of GEM, GOM, and PHg during the holiday periods were approximately 1-4 times higher than those during the non-holiday periods. GEM was the dominant mercury species in the indoor and outdoor environments and accounted for 63-81% of TAM, while the oxidized mercury accounted for 19-37% of TAM. Burning incenses and joss papers in a combustion chamber showed that the concentration of GEM from joss paper burning ranged from 4.07 to 11.62 μg/m 3 , or about 13.97 times higher than that of incense burning, while the concentration of PHg from incense burning ranged from 95.91 to 135.07 ng/m 3 , or about 3.29 times higher than that of joss paper burning. The emission factors of incense burning were 10.39 ng/g of GEM and 1.40 ng/g of PHg, while those of joss paper burning were 12.65 ng/g of GEM and 1.27 ng/g of PHg, respectively. This study revealed that speciated mercury emitted from worship activities had significant influence on the indoor and outdoor mercury concentrations in an Asian temple. Higher intensity of worship activities during holidays resulted in a higher concentration of speciated mercury in indoor and outdoor air, which might cause health threats to worshipers, staffs, and surrounding inhabitants through long-term exposure., (Copyright © 2016 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.)

Perfluoroalkyl acids (PFAAs) are widely used as multi-purpose surfactants or water/oil repellents. In order to understand the contamination level and compositional profiles of PFAAs in aqueous environment in textile, leather, and paper making industrial areas, surface waters and tap waters were collected along the watershed of the Qiantang River where China's largest textile, leather, and paper making industrial bases are located. For comparison, surface water and tapwater samples were also collected in Hangzhou and its adjacent areas. 17 PFAAs were analyzed by solid phase extraction-high performance liquid chromatography-tandem mass spectrometry. The results show that the total concentrations of PFAAs (ΣPFAAs) in the Qiantang River waters ranged from 106.1 to 322.9 ng/L, averaging 164.2 ng/L. The contamination levels have been found to be extremely high, comparable to the levels of the most serious PFAA contamination in surface waters of China. The PFAA composition profiles were characterized by the dominant PFOA (average 58.1% of the total PFAAs), and PFHxA (average 18.8%). The ΣPFAAs in tap water ranged from 9.5 to 174.8 ng/L, showing PFAA compositional pattern similar to the surface waters. Good correlations between PFAA composition profiles in tap waters and the surface waters were observed., (Copyright © 2017 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.)

This study examines potentially toxic elements (PTEs) in leachates from three landfills (active and closed sites) to quantify and compare their degree of toxicity and percolation effects on aquifer groundwater based on distance zonation. The finding revealed that the active landfill leachates had higher concentrations (P < 0.05) of PTEs, with EC, TDS, Cd, Cu, Fe, Zn, Pb, and Mn being above the standard limits for wastewater. The leachate pollution index confirmed high toxicity of the active sites. The geospatial maps suggest that the aquifer was influenced by leachate migration effects, with the groundwater situated within 100 m of the landfills exceeding the regulatory limits. Based on the Ficklin-Caboi assessment, the groundwaters were categorized into "low metals-near neutral" and "high metals-near neutral." The contamination degree, heavy metal contamination index, groundwater quality index, and water pollution index denote that over 40% of the groundwaters are "highly to extremely" polluted and are unfit for drinking, while over 50% are "excellently pure." The geospatial maps revealed that all the groundwaters within 100 m of the landfills are polluted, especially those near the active landfills. The prevailing factors impairing the quality of groundwater were Pb > Cd > TDS > Fe > EC > Cr > pH > Mn > Se > Co. The correlation coefficients, principal components, and cluster analyses confirmed the heterogeneous nature of the landfills and that the solid wastes were mainly from industrial, commercial, and household sources. Aside from the migration effect of leachates, other anthropogenic and geological factors are influencing the aquifer systems. The health risk assessment showed that the groundwaters within 100-500 m of the landfills are capable of causing noncarcinogenic and cancer health risks in exposed populations, with children and those within the distance of 100 m being the most vulnerable groups., Competing Interests: Declaration of competing interest The authors declare that they have no known competing financial interests or personal relationships that could have appeared to influence the work reported in this paper., (Copyright © 2024 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.)

Environmental monitoring of organic pollutants in water sources is crucial for protecting human health and ecosystem sustainability. Herein, we develop a highly active electrocatalyst composite consisting of cauliflower-like calcium molybdate (CaMoO 4 ) decorated with sulfur-doped graphitic carbon nitride (S-C 3 N 4 ) for the ultrasensitive electrochemical detection of organic pollutant metol. Various microscopic and spectroscopic techniques were employed to analyze the structural and compositional characteristics of the S-C 3 N 4 /CaMoO 4 composite. The electrochemical sensor with the optimized S-C 3 N 4 /CaMoO 4 composite demonstrates a high sensitivity of 3.93 μA μM -1  cm -2 and a low limit of detection of 0.002 μM in a wide linear range (0.01-134 μM) by the DPV method. The excellent performance can be attributed to their high conductivity, high surface area, swift electron transportation, favorable active sites, and synergistic effect. Besides, the proposed electrochemical sensor exhibits good reproducibility and remarkable selectivity in the presence of various potential interference compounds in water sources. Its practical applicability for environmental monitoring is verified by quantifying metol in tap water, lake water, and river water. This work highlights the feasibility of rapid and robust electrochemical sensing of the organic pollutant metol at low concentrations and validates its suitability for the in-field applications., Competing Interests: Declaration of competing interest The authors declare that they have no known competing financial interests or personal relationships that could have appeared to influence the work reported in this paper., (Copyright © 2024 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.)

The widespread presence of per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) in the environment, driven by extensive industrial use, has raised global concerns due to their persistence and adverse health effects. Despite the increased regulatory focus on a sub-set of well-known PFAS, over 12,000 compounds exist, many poorly characterized. Our study assessed hidden PFAS concentrations, undetectable by standard LC-MS/MS analysis, in contaminated groundwater. We analyzed total oxidizable precursors (TOP) via TOP assay followed by LC-MS/MS, and total organic fluorine (TOF) via combustion ion chromatography (CIC). Results were compared with those from LC-MS/MS analysis of 25 individual PFAS (∑PFAS25), representing the non-hidden PFAS fraction. We also evaluated the removal of hidden PFAS employing conventional and novel adsorbents. Groundwater samples from drinking water sources and contaminated military sites in the USA showed varying PFAS contamination levels as indicated by TOF values ranging from non-detect (<0.7 μg L -1 ) to 40.2 μg L -1 . ∑PFAS25 was a major fraction of the TOF (41.7 - 92.8%) in some samples, whereas in others it only accounted for 5.1 - 20.4% of the TOF. The remaining percentages consisted of hidden PFAS not detected by conventional LC-MS/MS, but detectable as TOF by CIC. Organic fluorine content of oxidizable precursors accounted for 0.0-39.0% of TOF content, depending on the sample. Selected samples underwent adsorption with activated carbon (AC), anion exchange resin (IX), polyaniline (PANI), and poly-o-toluidine (POT). All adsorbents removed the hidden PFAS less effectively than the PFAS quantified by direct LC-MS/MS techniques. This is likely because PFAS adsorbents investigated to date primarily target anionic per- and polyfluoroalkyl acids, not effectively removing cationic, neutral, or zwitterionic hidden PFAS. AC exhibited the best overall performance among the investigated adsorbents. The results demonstrate that measuring TOP and TOF concentrations is effective for evaluating the removal of hidden PFAS in groundwater remediation., Competing Interests: Declaration of competing interest The authors declare that they have no known competing financial interests or personal relationships that could have appeared to influence the work reported in this paper., (Copyright © 2024 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.)

The widespread use of plastics has revolutionized modern life, but also led to environmental pollution. Although microplastics (MPs) have been detected in various environments, their presence in the atmosphere, particularly in Brazil, is poorly studied. This research investigated atmospheric MP concentrations at Alvaro Guião School in São Carlos, Brazil, from 2021 to 2022. Outdoor MP concentrations ranged from the limit of detection (LOD) to 168.03 items m -2 day -1 , and indoor concentrations ranged from LOD to 60.16 items m -2 day -1 . Predominantly, these MPs were fragments, even in the indoor environment, suggesting abundant sources, such as resuspension. Seasonal variations were not observed for outdoor fragments and fibers, nor for indoor fragments. However, indoor fiber concentrations were higher during the dry season (p > 0.05), likely due to winter clothing and reduced ventilation. Fragment sizes were mainly <60 μm, while fibers ranged from <60 μm to 3000-5000 μm. Polyester was the primary MP component (83-100% outdoors and 29-100% indoors), followed by ethylene vinyl acetate (EVA, 0-17% outdoors and 0-57% indoors), common in synthetic clothing and school supplies, respectively. Other plastics, found in packaging and bottles, like polyethylene (0-14%) and polyethylene terephthalate (0-6%), were also identified indoors. This study not only enhances the current understanding, but also pioneers analyses within a school environment. Despite being a work in progress, this study has already shown the presence of plastic particles in environments where children, one of the most susceptible groups to air pollution, spend a significant portion of their time. Furthermore, it can assist in developing an assessment of acceptable levels and guidelines., Competing Interests: Declaration of competing interest The authors declare that they have no known competing financial interests or personal relationships that could have appeared to influence the work reported in this paper., (Copyright © 2024 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.)

This study assesses the concentrations of a range of antibiotics in riverine and transitional sediments in Ireland. A selection of 12 macrolide, fluoroquinolone, sulphonamide, and diaminopyrimidine antibiotics were quantified in 80 grab surficial sediment samples from around Ireland, selected to investigate areas of potentially higher pollution risk (agriculture, aquaculture, industrial emissions, and wastewater emission points) as well as isolated areas where there are no known pollution sources. Several of the macrolides and sulphonamides/trimethoprim were generally detected more frequently above limits of quantification (LoQ). Fluoroquinolones, while frequently detected above limits of detection (LoD), concentrations were mostly below method LOQs. The most prevalent antibiotic detected was clarithromycin, found at the highest mean concentration (6.65 ng/g) and detected in ∼90 % of samples. Comparing levels of quantified antibiotics to levels reported internationally, Ireland is at the lower end for all quantified antibiotics. This is with the notable exception of clarithromycin, which is higher than levels found in comparable studies in Italy, Spain, France, and Argentina. Higher levels of total antibiotics (49.3 ± 24.7 ng/g) were found to be present immediately adjacent to wastewater emission points while moderate degrees of contamination (9.0 ± 9.7 ng/g) were also linked to wastewater, aquaculture, or agricultural pressures. Based on risk quotients calculated from available sediment PNECs taken from the NORMAN ecotoxicology database, clarithromycin was also the only compound to be present at concentrations indicative of a "moderate" degree of environmental risk, with most of the remaining falling below this threshold. Ciprofloxacin was ostensibly found to be of a "high" degree of environmental risk; however, this is based on only a single sample quantified above the LoQ. Overall, antibiotic sediment concentrations suggest a low ecotoxicological risk for most of the target antibiotics, although clarithromycin, ciprofloxacin, and sulfamethoxazole warrant further monitoring in sediments. A final notable finding is the differences in partitioning behaviour of antibiotics between water and sediment: clarithromycin is more likely to be detected in sediment while sulfamethoxazole partitions more to water. Such partitioning behaviour should therefore be taken into consideration for any subsequent monitoring programmes., Competing Interests: Declaration of competing interest The authors declare that they have no known competing financial interests or personal relationships that could have appeared to influence the work reported in this paper., (Copyright © 2024 The Authors. Published by Elsevier Ltd.. All rights reserved.)

With the advancement of artificial intelligence, it is foreseeable that computer-assisted identification of microplastics (MPs) will become increasingly widespread. Therefore, exploring a machine learning-based workflow to facilitate the identification of MPs is both meaningful and practically significant. However, interferences present in MPs spectra often compromise identification accuracy, making the improvement of spectral quality a critical prerequisite for precise identification. This study developed a fully machine learning-based workflow that combines spectral reconstruction and identification of MPs. To enhance the quality of MPs spectra, two reconstruction models named autoencoders (AE) and V-like convolutional neural networks (VCNN) were employed. Then, four classification models including decision tree, random forest, linear support vector machines (LSVM) and 1D convolutional neural networks were developed to accurately identify MPs. In terms of reconstruction, VCNN outperformed AE with a higher R 2 value of 0.965, while both models outperformed conventional widely used Savitzky-Golay algorithm. For classification, LSVM exhibited the best performance with an overall accuracy of 91.35% on the original dataset and 98.00% on the VCNN-reconstructed dataset. When applied to real environmental datasets, a slight decrease in performance was observed, but a maximum top-1 accuracy of 71.43% and top-3 accuracy of >90% was still practically significant, indicating that the combined workflow has great potential for spectral reconstruction and identification of MPs., Competing Interests: Declaration of competing interest The authors declare that they have no known competing financial interests or personal relationships that could have appeared to influence the work reported in this paper., (Copyright © 2024 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.)

Urban runoff effluents transport multiple pollutants collected from urban surfaces. which ultimately reach freshwater ecosystems. We here collect the existing scientific evidence on the urban runoff impacts on aquatic organisms and ecosystem functions, assessed the potential toxicity of the most common pollutants present in urban runoff, and characterized the ecotoxicological risk for freshwaters. We used the Toxic Units models to estimate the toxicity of individual chemicals to freshwater biota and observed that the highest ecotoxicological risk of urban runoff was associated to metals, polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) and pesticides and, in a few cases, to phthalates. The potential risk was highest for copper and zinc, as well as for anthracene, fluoranthene, Di(2-ethylhexyl) phthlate (DEHP), imidacloprid, cadmium, mercury, and chromium. These pollutants had contrasting effects on freshwater biological groups, though the risk overall decreased from basal to upper trophic levels. Our analysis evidenced a lack of data on ecotoxicological effects of several pollutants present in urban runoff effluents, caused by lack of toxicity data and by the inadequate representation of biological groups in the ecotoxicological databases. Nevertheless, evidence indicates that urban runoff presents ecotoxicological risk for freshwater biota, which might increase if hydrological patterns become extreme, such as long dry periods and floods. Our study highlights the importance of considering both the acute and chronic toxicity of urban effluent pollutants, as well as recognizing the interplay with other environmental stressors, to design adequate environmental management strategies on urban freshwater ecosystems receiving urban runoff., Competing Interests: Declaration of competing interest The authors declare that they have no known competing financial interests or personal relationships that could have appeared to influence the work reported in this paper., (Copyright © 2024 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.)

Globally, the hidden contaminants like microplastics (MPs) combined with other harmful substances have agglomerated in rivers and oceans that pose a threat to human health. Thus, evaluating the toxicity of MPs separately and in combination with other pollutants must be done quickly and precisely. This work reports the synthesis of porous NiMoO 4 nanotubes (NTs) from the transformation of MoO 3 nanorods (NRs) via two steps hydrothermal methods for the effective detection of polyvinyl chloride (PVC) MPs. Transformation of MoO 3 NRs to porous NiMoO 4 NTs was comprehensively deduced by evaluating the crystalline, structural, compositional and morphological properties. The hydrophobic nature of MoO 3 NRs and porous NiMoO 4 NTs was proven experimentally and also by DFT calculations. The electrochemical detection of PVC MPs by NiMoO 4 NTs was investigated by the CV and EIS measurements. Porous NiMoO 4 NTs based electrode expressed the good detection towards PVC MPs with a reasonable sensitivity of ∼1.43 × 10 -4  μA/ppm.cm 2 , a low LOD of ∼18 ppm and R 2  = ∼0.9781. EIS results revealed that porous NiMoO 4 NTs electrode enabled to deliver sensing response at very low concentration of PVC MPs. Due to their easy interaction with hydrophobic PVC MPs, the hydrophobic NiMoO 4 NTs controlled the sensing nature of the material and improved the electrochemical detection at the MP-NiMiO 4 NTs interface., Competing Interests: Declaration of competing interest The authors declare that they have no known competing financial interests or personal relationships that could have appeared to influence the work reported in this paper., (Copyright © 2024 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.)

The aim of this paper is to draw attention to the direct source of primary microplastics (MPs) that have been entirely neglected so far, namely by providing qualitative studies of the fishing ground baits with glitters. Among many microplastic sources already detected in fishing and angling gear and reported in the literature, the glitters in synthetic pastry are the only primary source (produced <5 mm; P-MPs), with MPs placed directly into the freshwater, during sports competitions and individual leisure activities, and were so far not discussed. Dozens of different fishbait pastry products available on the market containing glitters were funded to represent, from the material point of view, only three different classes studied further. Fourier-transform infrared (FTIR), ATR-FTIR and Raman spectroscopy combined with scanning electron microscopy with an energy-dispersive detector (SEM/EDS) enabled the characterization of their composition and morphology. Glitters are composite structures with an internal core and several chemical layers symmetrically placed on both sides. The polymer origin of particles, with the polyethylene terephthalate (PET) core, was confirmed as being an essential condition to classify them as P-MPs. One should focus on the fact that those primary microplastics are designed purposely to be particularly attractive and ingested by fishes, thus being efficiently introduced to the trophic chain with all persistent consequences, including their contribution to the plastisphere. The preliminary qualitative results of environmental stability were obtained in the accelerated ageing test to discuss the possible long-term ecological implications further. Glitters were durable in the saltwater (both natural and used for weathering in the ageing chamber) and in the seabed sediments. The primary weathering test was performed in marine environments, as oceans are the final destination of most freshwater MPs. Finally, suggestions for future studies to enlarge the knowledge about this issue are provided., Competing Interests: Declaration of competing interest The authors declare that they have no known competing financial interests or personal relationships that could have appeared to influence the work reported in this paper., (Copyright © 2024 The Authors. Published by Elsevier Ltd.. All rights reserved.)

The spatial distribution and contamination patterns of polychlorinated dibenzo-p-dioxins and dibenzofurans (PCDD/Fs) and polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs) in soil and pine needles from the multi-industrial city of Ulsan, South Korea were assessed. The mean concentrations of Σ 17 PCDD/Fs, Σ 12 dl-PCBs, and Σ 7 I-PCBs were 78 pg/g dw, 90 pg/g dw, and 453 pg/g dw in the soil and 6 pg/g ww, 31 pg/g ww, and 166 pg/g ww in the pine needles, respectively. The mean concentrations of PCDD/Fs, dl-PCBs, and I-PCBs in the soil at industrial sites (138, 184, and 453 pg/g dw) were significantly higher than those at urban (47, 33, and 186 pg/g dw) and suburban sites (48, 49, and 234 pg/g dw). In the pine needles, although PCDD/F and PCB levels were higher at several industrial sites, mean concentrations at the industrial (6, 31, and 166 pg/g ww), urban (4, 29, and 143 pg/g ww), and suburban (4, 31, and 169 pg/g ww) sites were comparable, indicating that atmospheric transport plays a crucial role in spreading contamination throughout the study area. Higher chlorinated PCBs were predominant in the soils, while PCDFs and lower chlorinated PCBs were more common in the pine needles, reflecting the distinct physicochemical properties and interactions of these chemicals with each medium. Principal Component Analysis (PCA) revealed industrial combustion as the main source of PCDD/Fs and PCBs, with Aroclors identified as an additional source of PCBs. Suburban areas were influenced by both local sources and pollutants transported from urban and industrial areas. This study highlights that industrial activities and atmospheric transport significantly contribute to the widespread contamination of PCDD/Fs and PCBs in Ulsan., Competing Interests: Declaration of competing interest The authors declare that they have no known competing financial interests or personal relationships that could have appeared to influence the work reported in this paper., (Copyright © 2024 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.)

Concentrations of polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons were assessed in a sediment core retrieved from Nutrias Lagoon, located within the Rocha Lagoon Protected Area along the SE Uruguayan coast. Using a 210 Pb chronology, we reconstructed the historical accumulation of polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons over the past 123 years (1895-2018). This study, the first of its kind in Uruguay, fills a research gap in understanding historical PAH accumulation and source changes. Our examination of dating, geochemical, and sedimentological data unveiled four main events, with minor instances in 1956 ± 5 and 1964 ± 4, and more significant occurrences in 1914 ± 9 and 1997 ± 2. Additionally, two prominent trend shifts were identified, one predating 1900 and the other in 1986 ± 2. Before 1900, a dry spell was apparent, supported by all proxies, alongside a notable surge in heavy polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons, likely attributed to fires during this arid period. Post-1986 ± 2, a rise in sedimentation rates in the lagoon was observed, possibly due to increased rainfall. Also, the eutrophication of the lagoon over the years can be observed. Furthermore, a recent increase in polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons influx at the core's surface was linked to the construction of a nearby lagoon bridge and associated roadwork. Our findings suggest that atmospheric deposition constitutes the primary source of polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons in the lagoon, offering insights into its recent environmental history and basin dynamics. This study establishes a critical baseline for future research in the region and facilitates the development of effective and sustainable environmental management strategies., Competing Interests: Declaration of competing interest The authors declare that they have no known competing financial interests or personal relationships that could have appeared to influence the work reported in this paper., (Copyright © 2024 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.)

Organophosphate esters (OPEs) are emerging contaminants that serve as alternatives to regulated substances in aquatic environments. A nationwide large-scale assessment for OPEs, including point sources, remains insufficient. To address this issue, we aimed to investigate OPEs occurrence and novel OPEs via comprehensive target, suspect and non-target analysis. Among the 11 target OPEs, 10 were detected at sampling sites distributed evenly nationwide. The highest mean concentrations were measured for tris-(2-butoxyethyl) phosphate (TBOEP) and tris(2-chloroisopropyl) phosphate (TCIPP). The multivariate statistical analysis revealed that TBOEP and TCIPP are essential components for assessing total OPEs pollution. The systematic risk assessment results evaluated the overall risk contribution of TBOEP and the significant risk impact of 2-ethylhexyl diphenyl phosphate. Promising suspect and non-target analysis enabled frequent detection and identification of 6 antioxidant transformation products (TPs), as well as the tentative identification of 14 OPEs and TPs, including 3 di-OPEs. Based on sampling site classification, we confirmed that major OPEs are significantly discharged near point sources. We believe that this is the first attempt to assess the nationwide risk and potential sources of OPEs in Korean surface waters, providing insights that could support further prioritization and regulation efforts., Competing Interests: Declaration of competing interest The authors declare the following financial interests/personal relationships which may be considered as potential competing interests:Junho Jeon reports financial support was provided by Changwon National University. If there are other authors, they declare that they have no known competing financial interests or personal relationships that could have appeared to influence the work reported in this paper., (Copyright © 2024 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.)

Citizens grow their own fruits and vegetables in allotment gardens in the vicinity of a fluorochemical production plant (FCPP) in The Netherlands. Historic emissions and the subsequent atmospheric deposition of perfluorooctanoic acid (PFOA) and GenX (hexafluoropropylene oxide-dimer acid/HFPO-DA) from the FCPP have resulted in the nearby environment being contaminated with per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFASs). This research aimed to investigate the levels of PFASs in garden produce and whether a gradient can be observed in relation to distance from the FCPP. Furthermore, differences between certain types of fruits and vegetables were explored, as well as a potential relation between the measured concentrations in garden produce and soil. 737 fruit and vegetable samples were collected from 17 allotments and 4 gardens up to 20 km from the FCPP, along with soil and water samples. Garden produce included fruits, potatoes, fruiting vegetables, brassicas, leafy vegetables, root vegetables, bulb vegetables, legumes and stem vegetables. PFASs concentrations in the samples were quantified using a very sensitive UPLC-MS/MS method. PFASs were detected in most samples above the analytical limit of detection (0.3-12.5 pg/g ww). PFOA and GenX were found in the highest concentrations (up to 5280 pg/g ww GenX and 3020 pg/g ww PFOA) in garden produce sampled downwind and close to the FCPP. Other PFASs were also found, but at (much) lower levels. Field-derived bioaccumulation factors (BAFs) were calculated for PFOA and GenX. The BAFs for PFOA were shown to be approximately 1 order of magnitude lower than BAFs from other studies. This may be explained by aging of the PFASs contamination and the intense cultivation of the garden plots. This study shows that PFOA and GenX can end up in garden produce and this will result in human exposure when the garden produce is consumed., Competing Interests: Declaration of competing interest The authors declare the following financial interests/personal relationships which may be considered as potential competing interests: All authors reports financial support was provided by Municipality of Dordrecht. All authors reports financial support was provided by Municipality of Sliedrecht. All authors reports financial support was provided by Municipality of Papendrecht. All authors reports financial support was provided by Municipality of Molenlanden. Managerial editor for the Chemosphere special issue to which this manuscript is submitted - SvL Editorial board member of Chemosphere - SvL & RH If there are other authors, they declare that they have no known competing financial interests or personal relationships that could have appeared to influence the work reported in this paper., (Copyright © 2024 The Authors. Published by Elsevier Ltd.. All rights reserved.)

The increasing levels of industrialization and urbanization have led to the generation of significant amounts of wastewater and waste products, often containing chemicals like per- and poly-fluoroalkyl substances (PFASs) commonly found in consumer products. PFASs are known for their persistence, ubiquity, and ecotoxicological impacts, raising concerns about potential harm to ecosystems. This paper reports the occurrence and evaluates the ecological risks of PFASs in aquatic ecosystems and wastewater treatment works (WWTWs) across Africa. We reviewed 32 papers published in the period 2009-2024 and identified a total of 35 PFAS compounds in surface waters, wastewater, sediments, fish, crocodiles, and invertebrates. Much of the reported studies came from South Africa, followed by Kenya and Nigeria. PFAS concentrations in Africa were <0.7-390.0 ng L -1 in surface waters, 0.05-772 ng g -1 dw in sediments, and <0.2-832 ng L -1 in wastewater, while the highest levels in fish and invertebrates were 460.7 and 35.5 ng g -1 ww, respectively. The PFAS levels were in the same range of data as those reported globally. However, the high concentrations of PFASs in sediments and wastewater suggest areas of point contamination and a growing risk to aquatic ecosystems from effluent discharges. Calculated risk quotients suggested that, in Africa, organisms in river systems face greater risks due to exposure to PFASs compared to those in lakes, while marine organisms might face higher risks compared to freshwater organisms. Future studies should focus on PFAS contamination sources, especially WWTWs, as emerging sources of PFASs in aquatic systems., Competing Interests: Declaration of competing interest The authors declare that they have no known competing financial interests or personal relationships that could have appeared to influence the work reported in this paper., (Copyright © 2024 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.)

Specifying and interpreting the occurrence of emerging pollutants is essential for assessing treatment processes and plants, conducting wastewater-based epidemiology, and advancing environmental toxicology research. In recent years, artificial intelligence (AI) has been increasingly applied to enhance chemical analysis and monitoring of contaminants in environmental water and wastewater. However, their specific roles targeting pharmaceuticals and personal care products (PPCPs) have not been reviewed sufficiently. This review aims to narrow the gap by highlighting, scoping, and discussing the incorporation of AI during the detection and quantification of PPCPs when utilising chemical analysis equipment and interpreting their monitoring data for the first time. In the chemical analysis of PPCPs, AI-assisted prediction of chromatographic retention times and collision cross-sections (CCS) in suspect and non-target screenings using high-resolution mass spectrometry (HRMS) enhances detection confidence, reduces analysis time, and lowers costs. AI also aids in interpreting spectroscopic analysis results. However, this approach still cannot be applied in all matrices, as it offers lower sensitivity than liquid chromatography coupled with tandem or HRMS. For the interpretation of monitoring of PPCPs, unsupervised AI methods have recently presented the capacity to survey regional or national community health and socioeconomic factors. Nevertheless, as a challenge, long-term monitoring data sources are not given in the literature, and more comparative AI studies are needed for both chemical analysis and monitoring. Finally, AI assistance anticipates more frequent applications of CCS prediction to enhance detection confidence and the use of AI methods in data processing for wastewater-based epidemiology and community health surveillance., Competing Interests: Declaration of competing interest The authors declare that they have no known competing financial interests or personal relationships that could have appeared to influence the work reported in this paper., (Copyright © 2024 The Authors. Published by Elsevier Ltd.. All rights reserved.)

The emission of microfibers (MFs) into all environmental matrices, including biota, is a global concern, but appropriate methodologies aimed at biomonitoring these pollutants are still in an exploratory stage. In this work a new method is presented for the extraction of airborne anthropogenic microfibers (MFs) from the leaves of Pittosporum tobira. The method is a sequential extraction consisting of tape tearing followed by water floating, ethanol extraction, and wet peroxidation, which considered at first outermost MFs, weakly adhering to leaf surface, and deeper MFs partly embedded in waxy cuticle layer. Tape tearing removed the highest fraction of MFs (about 75%), followed by water washing, ethanol and peroxidation. The constant ratio between the MFs collected in the successive extraction steps indicated that the protocol proposed is reliable and reproducible. Moreover, based on the tape tearing step, MFs number was significantly higher on the upper surface of the leaves, whereas MFs were significantly longer on the lower surface. A "reverse" extraction protocol in which tape tearing followed three water-washings demonstrated that a noticeable fraction of MFs still adhered to the leaf after water floating. SEM observation of the leaf surface highlighted the structural changes occurring during the extraction, with leaf surface becoming clearer and smoother at each step. Raman spectroscopy highlighted the presence of different kind of anthropogenic MFs, with microplastics representing 50%, and polyethylene terephthalate 39% of total MFs. Due to reproducible results and easy handling of the leaves, we encourage the use of P. tobira as a biomonitor of airborne MFs and suggest that a simplified extraction method based on tape tearing alone could be a fast and useful alternative to be adopted in biomonitoring protocols., Competing Interests: Declaration of competing interest The authors declare that they have no known competing financial interests or personal relationships that could have appeared to influence the work reported in this paper., (Copyright © 2024 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.)

A cost-effective Daphnia magna testing framework was applied to identify emerging hazards such as neurological and cardiovascular defects as well as antibiotic resistant genes (ARGs), related to pharmaceuticals present in waste water treated (WWTP) effluent discharged into rivers. D. magna juveniles were exposed during 48 h to water samples from three rivers in the vicinity of Barcelona (NE Spain), Besós, Llobregat and Onyar, upstream and downstream of WWTP discharging points. The analyses included measuring levels of 80 pharmaceutical residues in water samples by HPLC-MS, determination of the loads of different clinically relevant antibiotic resistant genes (ARGs) in both water samples and exposed animals, and assessment of toxic effects in feeding, heartbeat responses, and behavioural indicators. ARG prevalence in water, but not in gut microbiomes, was associated with the presence of bactericides in water. These results suggest that their levels were high enough to put a selective pressure over river microbial populations, but that Daphnia guts were not easily populated by environmental bacteria. Toxic effects were found in 20-43% of water samples, depending on the river, and related to water quality parameters and to pollutant levels. For example, heartbeats were correlated with salinity, whereas feeding impairment did so with high loads of suspended solids. In contrast, behavioural alterations were associated to the concentration of neuroactive chemicals. Accordingly, we hypothesize that measured neuroactive chemicals have caused the observed effects. If this also applies to local invertebrate populations, the environmental consequences may be severe and unpredictable., Competing Interests: Declaration of competing interest The authors declare that they have no known competing financial interests or personal relationships that could have appeared to influence the work reported in this paper., (Copyright © 2024 The Authors. Published by Elsevier Ltd.. All rights reserved.)

The Watch List (WL) monitoring program in the European Union (EU) aims to identify and prioritize emerging pollutants in the aquatic environment that may pose risks to human health and the environment. Thus, reliable methods are needed to determine these substances. This study presents the development of a simple, fast, and green method for analysing 23 WL substances (4 antibiotics, 9 azole compounds, 6 other pesticides, and 4 sunscreens), covering a range of medium to very low polarity (log K ow 2.2-6.9), in whole environmental water samples using direct aqueous injection (DAI) in combination with liquid chromatography-electrospray ionization tandem mass spectrometry (LC-ESI-MS/MS). To process the samples, 0.5 mL of acetonitrile is added to 1 mL of raw water, followed by brief shaking. The mixture is then centrifuged to remove sedimented suspended solids before being injected into the LC instrument. A rigorous analytical greenness metric for sample preparation (AGREEprep) assigned this procedure a green score of 0.61. The method showed satisfactory performance characteristics for all analytes under investigation, including limits of quantification meeting the WL requirements, recoveries in the range of 79-120%, and intra-day precision with relative standard deviations in the range of 1.9-20%. The method is suitable for screening and monitoring purposes, as confirmed by the analysis of real samples., Competing Interests: Declaration of competing interest The authors declare that they have no known competing financial interests or personal relationships that could have appeared to influence the work reported in this paper., (Copyright © 2024 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.)

Pollutant source apportionment represents one of the fundamental activities in environmental science. Several efficient chemometric tools are available to the scope, mostly based on multivariate techniques and usually applied to aerosol chemical speciation data. In the present work, an alternative source profiling method is proposed, based on the self-organizing maps (SOM) algorithm. Moreover, the dataset used includes typical criteria pollutants and physical parameters related to airborne particulate matter widely used as a complement of aerosol source apportionment and largely available at a higher time resolution than bulk aerosol samplings, allowing the information on the dynamic behavior of the local airshed to be extended. In this work, data was collected at a coastal location in NW Italy, between January and July 2012. Hourly concentrations of typical gaseous pollutants (SO 2 , NO, NO 2 , benzene, toluene, (m-p)-xylene, o-xylene), black-carbon and particle number concentrations by an optical particle sizer (OPS) were collected. The dataset was integrated with radon-222 activity concentration and meteorological parameters to enrich and refine the information obtained by SOM computation as well as to improve the air pollution source localization. Despite the lower specificity of criteria pollutants, the approach developed was capable of revealing distinct pollution sources such as the urban background traffic, the coal-fired power plant active at the time of the study, and the harbor, in agreement with previous PM-based source apportionment studies carried out locally, while enlightening peculiar dynamical conditions detectable at the sub-daily time scale. The application of the SOM algorithm, with the integration of meteorological parameters and atmospheric radon, proved to be very efficient in unveiling the air pollution sources., Competing Interests: Declaration of competing interest The authors declare that they have no known competing financial interests or personal relationships that could have appeared to influence the work reported in this paper., (Copyright © 2024 The Authors. Published by Elsevier Ltd.. All rights reserved.)

In the face of intense urban expansion, the assessment of water quality plays a crucial role in environmental preservation. Here, we evaluated aquatic genotoxicity in three locations with different degrees of urbanization using Tradescantia pallida var. purpurea and Daphnia magna as bioindicators. The objective was to investigate the influence of urbanization on water quality and the efficiency of the TRAD-MCN biological test in monitoring aquatic genotoxicity. Therefore, we established the genotoxic potential by evaluating micronucleus frequency in T. pallida and immobilization and DNA damage in the standard test with D. magna during two seasons of the year (dry and rainy). Our results showed that the frequency of micronuclei in T. pallida (TRAD-MCN) was significantly higher in the locations with a higher degree of urbanization, independently of the seasons. The tests with D. magna revealed a higher rate of immobilization and DNA damage in the location most impacted by residential and industrial effluents (especially mining activities). Additionally, the TRAD-MCN proved to be equivalent to the standard test for genotoxicity assessment, supporting its potential applicability in environmental monitoring. Finally, we observed that urbanization significantly influences water quality, and among the evaluated physicochemical parameters, dissolved oxygen was shown to be the most important driver of the water quality index (WQI). Our findings have significant implications for water resource management, underlining the need for policies that consider the specificities of different regions. This highlights the robustness, flexibility, and reliability of T. pallida as an environmental monitoring tool., Competing Interests: Declaration of competing interest The authors declare that they have no known competing financial interests or personal relationships that could have appeared to influence the work reported in this paper., (Copyright © 2024 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.)

Over the past two decades, ambient O 3 air pollution in Seoul, the capital city of South Korea, has increased. As a secondary air pollutant, O 3 is affected not only by precursor gas emissions but also by meteorological conditions. This study examined the influence of weather changes in Seoul for 2001-2019 on the long-term daily maximum 8-h O 3 concentration (MDA8 O 3 ) trends measured at 25 monitoring sites. As the relationship between O 3 and meteorological variables may not be linear, we used a generalized additive model framework to estimate O 3 trends, incorporating quantile and logistic regressions for continuous O 3 data and O 3 exceedance days (>60 ppb), respectively. Over the 19-year period, the O 3 concentrations in Seoul increased by 14.7 (SD = 3.2) and 13.1 (SD = 3.1) ppb before and after adjusting for local meteorology, respectively, resulting in an average weather penalty of 1.55 ppb. Seasonal variations in the penalty were substantial, showing a greater penalty (4.5 ppb) during the warm season (May-October) than during the cold season (November-April). Furthermore, the increase in O 3 concentration was more pronounced on days with comparatively high O 3 levels. During the warm season, the weather penalties on O 3 trends reached 3.7-4.0 ppb on high-O 3 days (75 th , 95 th , and 99 th percentiles). From 2001 to 2019, the O 3 exceedance days started 2.66 days earlier and ended 2.30 days later per year, extending the peak-O 3 season by approximately 89 days in total. Weather changes accelerated the upward trend in the odds ratio of O 3 exceedance days by 3.8 years. Our findings indicate that O 3 exceedance days can occur in nearly all months owing to weather changes. The significant weather penalties on O 3 concentrations and exceedance days emphasize the need for a comprehensive O 3 air pollution mitigation strategy, considering non-emission factors that are increasingly being recognized in the context of climate change., Competing Interests: Declaration of competing interest The authors declare that they have no known competing financial interests or personal relationships that could have appeared to influence the work reported in this paper., (Copyright © 2024 The Authors. Published by Elsevier Ltd.. All rights reserved.)

Methoxylated polybrominated diphenoxybenzenes (MeO-PB-DPBs) are little known contaminants except in North American Great Lakes herring gull tissues and egg samples. MeO-PB-DPBs in gulls originate not via aquatic bioaccumulation pathways but instead likely via transformation of the tetradecabromo-1,4-diphenoxybenzene (TDB-DPB) flame retardant (FR). TDB-DPB was formerly produced as SAYTEX-120 in North America and is still produced in Asia. This study investigates the terrestrial exposure pathway of MeO-PB-DPBs and other FRs in herring gulls. Gull regurgitant and faeces, soil, and earthworms were collected from Channel Shelter Island (Saginaw Bay, Lake Huron), and analyzed for 3 MeO-PB-DPBs, 25 polybrominated diphenyl ethers (PBDEs), and 22 non-PBDE halogenated FRs. MeO-PB-DPBs in soil varied from non-detect to 4 ng/g dw per pentabrominated congener to a remarkably high 53 ng/g dw for the hexabrominated congener and comparable to BDE-209 which accumulates to high levels in Great Lakes sediment. MeO-hexa- to penta-brominated-DPB congener ratios were much greater (> 10x vs. ∼ 2x) than in herring gull tissues or eggs, suggesting possible differences in bioavailability. PB-DPB congeners were detected for the first time in environmental soil samples and confirmed via standard addition of the 2,2',4,4″- and 2,2',2″,4-tetrabromodiphenoxybenzene standards. MeO-PB-DPBs were mostly absent from faeces and not detected in earthworm samples. Combined with the finding of detection in regurgitant samples, indicating dietary intake, this suggests that gull exposure is via terrestrial bioaccumulation of MeO-PB-DPBs., Competing Interests: Declaration of competing interest The authors declare that they have no known competing financial interests or personal relationships that could have appeared to influence the work reported in this paper., (Crown Copyright © 2024. Published by Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.)

Formaldehyde (HCHO), a ubiquitous volatile organic compound and recognized human carcinogen, is extensively used in industrial applications such as resin and adhesive production. Even minimal exposure to HCHO can induce serious health effects, including respiratory distress and dermal irritation. Thus, the advancement of highly sensitive and selective sensors for HCHO detection is imperative for safeguarding environmental and indoor air quality. Herein, we report the development of a very sensitive, highly selective, and stable HCHO sensor based on reduced graphene oxide (rGO) and lanthanum ferrite (LaFeO 3 ). LaFeO 3 and rGO-LaFeO 3 nanocomposites with different compositions were synthesized through an affordable and straightforward sol-gel process. Among them, the LFGO(50:1) sensor demonstrated the highest response and selectivity towards HCHO, with a detection limit (theoretically) as low as 19 ppb (1.5 fold). Notably, it exhibited approximately 15-fold p-type response to 1 ppm of HCHO, while operating at 260 °C. The sensor also showed quick response and recovery times of around 1.5 s and 36 s, respectively while having negligible response to other VOCs, including ethanol, methanol, and NH 3 . A synergistic effect of rGO and LaFeO 3 is attributed to this improved sensing behavior. rGO offers a large surface area that facilitates the adsorption of HCHO molecules, while LaFeO 3 acts as a catalyst for the oxidation of HCHO. The sensor also showed good selectivity, stability, and reproducibility, making the material a promising candidate for practical applications towards environment monitoring, indoor air quality control, and industrial safety., Competing Interests: Declaration of competing interest This is to declare that the authors have no known competing financial interests or personal relationships that could have appeared to influence the work reported in this paper., (Copyright © 2024 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.)

This study investigates the influence of seasonal monsoon flooding on heavy metal contamination and bioaccumulation in benthic macroinvertebrate communities within a stream ecosystem. We analyzed sediment and benthic macroinvertebrate samples for eight heavy metals [zinc (Zn), chromium (Cr), nickel (Ni), lead (Pb), copper (Cu), arsenic (As), cadmium (Cd), and mercury (Hg)]) before (BF) and after (AF) a major flooding event. We found significant spatial and temporal variations in heavy metal concentrations were observed, with higher levels after the flood. Chironomidae showed high bioaccumulation factors (BAFs) for several metals, highlighting their role as bioindicators. Notably, elevated Cu accumulation was observed in multiple species, including Radix auricularia (R. auricularia), Cipangopaludina chinensis malleata (C. c. malleata), and Palaemon spp. Non-metric multidimensional scaling (NMDS) analysis revealed shifting correlations between environmental variables and bioaccumulation patterns before and after flooding. Pre-flood, total nitrogen (TN) showed a strong positive correlation with Hg bioaccumulation, while post-flood, large sand content emerged as a more influential factor for Zn, Cr, Ni, and Pb bioaccumulation. Our findings emphasize the complex interplay between seasonal flooding, environmental factors, and heavy metal dynamics, with potential implications for ecological risk assessment and water quality management., Competing Interests: Declaration of competing interest The authors declare that they have no known competing financial interests or personal relationships that could have appeared to influence the work reported in this paper., (Copyright © 2024. Published by Elsevier Ltd.)

Plastics are pervasive pollutants that are being produced at an increasing rate to meet consumer demands. After entering the environment, plastics can break down, creating smaller fragments, including secondary microplastics. Microplastic contamination in lakes has been recorded worldwide, and the ingestion of microplastics has been documented in zooplankton, macroinvertebrates, and fish. Microplastic ingestion and exposure can cause varying deleterious effects on these organism groups, but the impact of realistic microplastic concentrations on whole freshwater food webs requires further study. We addressed these knowledge gaps by conducting an 8-week experiment factorially crossing microplastic addition at a concentration of 1.5 particles/L with a fish predator (perch, Perca fluviatilis) presence in 1200-L outdoor mesocosms. Microplastic exposure had time-varying effects on zooplankton abundance, with a lower abundance of zooplankton in plastic treatments at the end of the experiment. Although microplastics had no impact on total macroinvertebrate abundance, there were effects on individual taxa. In the presence of microplastics, the cased caddisfly Triplectides spp. had a significantly lower abundance, which may have led to an increase in the snail Gyraulus spp. in week eight. Across the benthic and pelagic invertebrate communities, there were near-significant compositional differences between control and plastic treatments. These findings indicate that microplastic exposure may negatively impact freshwater invertebrate communities, even at low, field-realistic concentrations representative of the densities currently found in lakes., Competing Interests: Declaration of competing interest The authors declare that they have no known competing financial interests or personal relationships that could have appeared to influence the work reported in this paper., (Copyright © 2024. Published by Elsevier Ltd.)

There are now over 7 million recognised per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS), however the majority of routine monitoring programmes and policy decisions are based on just a handful of these. There is need for a shift towards gaining a better understanding of the total PFAS present in a sample rather than relying on targeted analysis alone. Total PFAS methods help us to understand if targeted methods are missing a mass of PFAS, but they do not identify which PFAS are missing. Non-targeted methods fill this knowledge gap by using high resolution mass spectrometry to identify the PFAS present in a sample. In this manuscript we use complimentary targeted and non-targeted analysis (NTA) to detect hundreds of PFAS in five freshwater samples obtained from the Northwest of the UK. Targeted analysis revealed PFOA at a maximum concentration of 12,100 ng L -1 , over three orders of magnitude greater than the proposed environmental quality standard (EQS) of 100 ng L -1 . A conservative assessment calculated an average total PFAS concentration of approximately 40 μg L -1 across all samples. A suspect screening approach identified between 1175 (least conservative) to 89 (most conservative) PFAS at confidence level 4. Exploratory data analysis was used to identify 33 PFAS at confidence level 3 and 10 PFAS at a confidence level of 2. Only 8 of these 43 PFAS (representing 17% of the total PFAS peak area) are regularly monitored in the UK as part of the UK DWI 47 PFAS. Our results suggested the presence of a novel group of unsaturated perfluoroalkyl ether carboxylic acids (U-PFECAs) related to EEA-NH 4, a perfluoroalkyl ether carboxylic acid (PFECA), providing an example of the benefits of non-targeted screening. This study highlights the merits of non-targeted methods and demonstrates that future monitoring programmes and regulations would benefit from incorporating a non-targeted element., Competing Interests: Declaration of competing interest The authors declare that they have no known competing financial interests or personal relationships that could have appeared to influence the work reported in this paper., (Copyright © 2024 The Authors. Published by Elsevier Ltd.. All rights reserved.)

Eutrophication and the associated algal blooms is a pervasive problem affecting global health, aquaculture, agriculture, water-related industries, and freshwater ecosystems. Spring algal blooms (SABs), which are less common than summer blooms, occur during a time that is thought to be less advantageous due to mild winds, little precipitation, and a relatively small amount of NPS pollutants being transported. Thus, It is pertinent to understand further the factors influencing SABs directly and/or indirectly for improved management. Consequently, Partial least square structural equation modelling (PLS-SEM) was employed to measure the direct and indirect effects of nutrients, lake hydrodynamics (Lake HD), meteorological elements (ME), stratification, Lake Bio-Optics, and Bottom Sediment-Water interaction (BSWI) in Gaoyang Lake of the Three Gorges Reservoir which is characterized by SABs. Based on our findings, total phosphorus (TP) and total nitrogen (TN) together slightly outperformed TP alone in explaining variations in chlorophyll a (chl-a), but the difference was not statistically significant. Thus the parsimonous PLS-SEM model with TP was chosen, and it explained 66.8%, 54.0%, 21.4%, and 59.7% variation in stratification, Lake Bio-Optics, nutrients, and chl-a, respectively. Surprisingly, ME and Lake Bio-Optics had a negative total effect on chl-a during the study. The magnitude of factors influencing SAB occurrence was of the order Lake Hydrodynamics > nutrients > Bottom Sediments-Water Interphase > Lake Bio-Optics > Meteorological Elements > Stratification. This study successfully decoupled and quantified several latent variables' complex simultaneous causal effects on chl-a., Competing Interests: Declaration of competing interest The authors declare that they have no known competing financial interests or personal relationships that could have appeared to influence the work reported in this paper., (Copyright © 2024 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.)

The increasing consumption of medicines and the lack of efficient technologies in wastewater treatment plants (WWTPs) can release pharmaceutically active compounds (PhACs) into any given river with the subsequent risk to the environment and human health. To assess the occurrence and transfer pathways of PhACs through the river ecosystem, 22 PhACs and one metabolite were analyzed in WWTPs, river sediments and fish collected alongside the Tagus River basin between 2020 and 2022. All the matrices presented at least two drugs being azithromycin the only one quantified in all of them. Analgesics, anti-inflammatories, antihypertensives, antidepressants and beta-blockers were the main PhACs in influents, with median concentrations up to 19 μg/L. In effluents, antihypertensives and antidepressants were the PhACs with the highest contribution. For acetaminophen, ibuprofen, ketoprofen, naproxen, atorvastatin, azithromycin, clarithromycin, sulfamethoxazole, trimethoprim, and valsartan WWTPs treatments reached removal efficiencies above 75%. Compounds with a high tendency to bind to organic matter were retained in sludge (clotrimazole, 96 ng/g before digester, 100%). However, results showed that applied treatments were not effective in removing PhACs from this matrix. Although the total mass balance revealed a high removal rate of some PhACs, many of them were still present in the effluent and their release into rivers became the main source of PhAC pollution of the aquatic ecosystem. The most hydrophobic ones (irbesartan, 24 ng/g, 61%), positively charged (o-desmethylvenlafaxine, 95 ng/g, 68%) and those with affinity to organic matter (clotrimazole, 21 ng/g, 61%) reached sediment samples. Only clotrimazole (7.8 ng/g) and azithromycin (160 ng/g) were found in fish samples. Risk assessment revealed a high risk for (i) acetaminophen, clarithromycin, erythromycin A, and venlafaxine in phototrophic organisms and (ii) acetaminophen and venlafaxine in fish., Competing Interests: Declaration of competing interest The authors declare that they have no known competing financial interests or personal relationships that could have appeared to influence the work reported in this paper., (Copyright © 2024. Published by Elsevier Ltd.)

Microplastic (MP) pollution has garnered significant attention due to its detrimental effects on ecosystems and human health. If MPs contaminate farmed animals, they are more likely to enter the human body through the food chain, thereby impacting human health. Exploring MPs in breeding industry can provide a theoretical basis for breeding industry to prevent MP pollution. However, there is currently a lack of comprehensive summaries and overviews of MPs research in the industry as a whole. The core focus of the review is to improve our understanding of MPs in the breeding industry and provide valuable references and support for the development of mitigation strategies and policies. The review found that there are more studies related to MP pollution in the breeding industry, but there is inadequate information on the prevention and control technology. This review proposes strategies for prevention and control and discusses future research directions., Competing Interests: Declaration of competing interest The authors declare that they have no known competing financial interests or personal relationships that could have appeared to influence the work reported in this paper., (Copyright © 2024 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.)

Plastic pollution has emerged as a growing environmental concern, affecting even the most remote regions of the planet as the Antarctic continent, endangering its ecosystem and contributing to climate change. In this context, a continuous atmospheric microplastics monitoring study was conducted at Carlini Argentine Antarctic Station located in the southwest of 25 de Mayo (King George) Island (South Shetlands). Passive samplers were installed at three locations throughout the station, chosen based on the intensity of human activity and proved to be effective in collecting atmospheric particles over a one-year study period. Micro-FTIR and micro-Raman spectroscopies were used to characterize the suspected microplastic particles. These techniques revealed a wide variety of plastic polymers compositions and industrial dyes associated with textile and plastic materials. Microfibers were found to be the predominant particle form, constituting approximately 80% of the particles detected at each sampling point. Semi-synthetic cotton, polyester, and polyamide were widely detected, along with other plastic compositions. Micro-Raman spectroscopy confirmed the presence of indigo blue, reactive blue 238, and copper phthalocyanine on both synthetic and semi-synthetic fibers, representing the first report of these types of anthropogenic pigments in the Antarctic atmosphere. The results suggest a significant role of short-range transport from local human activities; however, the potential influence of large-scale atmospheric patterns should also be evaluated. Our findings highlight the need to expand the monitoring network to additional scientific stations and remote regions with minimal human activity. Increasing the number of observational sites and conducting complementary studies on airborne dispersion will strengthen assessments of potential long-range pollution sources., Competing Interests: Declaration of competing interest The authors declare that they have no known competing financial interests or personal relationships that could have appeared to influence the work reported in this paper., (Copyright © 2024 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.)

Particulate matter (PM) and ozone (O 3 ) pollution have been attracting increasing attention recently due to their severe harm to human health. PM and O 3 are secondary pollutants, and there remain significant challenges in accurately and efficiently predicting their concentrations in the atmosphere. In this study, one-year monitoring data of PM 1 , PM 2.5 , PM 10 , and O 3 concentrations as well as meteorological parameters and concentrations of various precursors (i.e., nitrogen oxides, SO 2 , CO, alkanes, aldehydes, and ketones) are obtained at a monitoring site in central China's Hunan province. The eXtreme Gradient Boosting model is trained and tested to achieve efficient and accurate predictions of the concentrations of the four pollutants. The effects of different datasets, input features, and model parameters on the prediction accuracy are investigated. Principal component analysis is employed to further reduce the dimensions of features, increasing the prediction efficiency. Finally, all model training and prediction processes are incorporated in an executable application using the PyQt5 framework to build a user interface. The customized software supports user-defined modeling. The software can simultaneously predict PM 1 , PM 2.5 , PM 10 , and O 3 concentrations, making the prediction process convenient., Competing Interests: Declaration of Competing Interest The authors declare that they have no known competing financial interests or personal relationships that could have appeared to influence the work reported in this paper., (Copyright © 2024 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.)

Urbanization and industrialization are important transformations shaping the current statement of the society, enhancing significantly the combustion emissions which are threatening the global climate system, air quality, and human health. These emissions contain polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) which are well known for their high toxicity. The present study is the first assessing the seasonal variation of 17 PAHs in size segregated fractions of atmospheric aerosol particles from a Romanian metropolitan area. In addition to sources apportionment and health risks, the potential role of PAHs on the atmospheric chemistry in the area was also addressed. Higher PAHs concentrations were determined in winter season, the highest values being quantified for benzo[b]fluoranthene, benzo[a]pyrene, and indeno[1,2,3-cd]pyrene. Each analyzed PAH exhibited a dominant peak in the accumulation mode (0.1-1.0 μm), with maxima at 381 nm. Gasoline combustion was identified as a significant contributor to the PAHs levels in the atmospheric aerosols from the area. Biomass-burning contributions were highlighted during the winter and autumn seasons. The positive matrix factorization (PMF) model apportioned four PAHs sources, as follows: vehicular (31%), mixed combustion (33%), biomass and wood burning (19%), and coal and natural gas combustion (18%) sources. Concentration-weighted trajectory (CWT) analysis method revealed clear contributions to PAHs abundances from local and regional air masses. Alveolar region of adults seems to have the highest susceptibility for PAHs deposition. Values exceeding acceptable limits for carcinogenic risk throughout the year are associated with benzo[a]pyrene, benzo[b]fluoranthene, indeno[1,2,3-cd]pyrene, benzo[a]anthracene etc. The present study can be considered as a reference in the region in order measures of mitigation and control for PAHs emission sources to be introduced., Competing Interests: Declaration of Competing Interest The authors declare that they have no known competing financial interests or personal relationships that could have appeared to influence the work reported in this paper., (Copyright © 2024 The Authors. Published by Elsevier Ltd.. All rights reserved.)

Although pollution during crude oil production has been paid attention, there is lack of studies on organic pollutants generated/emitted from oil-production wastewater (OPW) treatment processes, especially advanced oxidation process. Based on GC-Q-Orbitrap-HRMS, the present study performed non-target analysis of volatile/semi-volatile organic compounds in physical and electro-oxidation units of OPW treatment stations located in Shengli Oilfield of China. Overall, 64-227 organic compounds were respectively identified in different units, and electro-oxidation was found elevating (by 2.7-66 times) specie numbers (25-71) of CHO, CHNO and halogenated compounds as well as inducing generation of 38 alkanes and 6 alkyl-PAHs in wastewater, indicating the important roles of reactive oxygen and halogen species in pollutant transformation. In soils (n = 22) closed to OPW treatment stations, 580 compounds were identified with hydrocarbons (45%), esters (24.3%), and others (30.7%, including aldehydes, ketones, phenols, amines, nitriles and heteroatomic compounds), while esters had largest concentration contribution (up to 53.0%) to total compounds. The calculated hazard quotients (HQ) showed 55 compounds in OPW effluents and 314 compounds in soils having medium-high risks, considerable portions of which (23.6% for effluent and 12.7% for soil) were generated from electro-oxidation process, especially including esters and halogenated hydrocarbons, highlighting the contribution of OPW electro-oxidation treatment to ecological risk in oil-production areas., Competing Interests: Declaration of competing interest The authors declare that they have no known competing financial interests or personal relationships that could have appeared to influence the work reported in this paper., (Copyright © 2024 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.)

Substantial quantities of fine tailings and oil sands process affected water (OSPW) require reclamation in the Athabasca oil sands (AOS) region, Canada. Towards this end, Lake Miwasin was created as a pilot-scale pit lake containing treated fluid tailings (bottom sediment) capped with a blend of OSPW and surface water. This is a recent approach to waste reclamation and long-term monitoring is ongoing to determine the trajectory of water quality in this test lake. The current study characterized spatial and temporal changes in surface water chemistry using a wireless sensor network (WSN), particularly to identify contaminant release from the consolidating tailings and potential periods of sediment resuspension. The WSN technology was deployed during the open water season from September 2020 to October 2022 to remotely measure water quality parameters at different depths of the water column. Field measurements and manual water sampling were conducted periodically to validate sensor measurements and to analyse additional variables requiring more complex analysis. During the study, increased electrical conductivity (EC) near the sediment-water interface during water column stratification indicated expression of pore water with elevated salt content, as the bottom tailings progressively consolidated. A decreasing trend in EC towards the end of the monitoring season suggested water input from the surrounding catchment and possibly a decline in porewater expression. A Tier 1 screening-level risk assessment using hazard quotients (HQs) was conducted for individual metals using Canadian water quality benchmarks and published toxicity data. Total osmolarity was used to identify risks associated with major ions. Cumulative HQs for trace elements were >1 but decreased over time. The risk due to major ions was <1 for all years and seasons except 2019 and winter 2020. Modelling results indicated that the predicted 90 th percentile HQs for Se and As were 1.6 and 0.44, respectively, suggesting that Se represents a potential ecotoxicological risk and should be further investigated. Overall, water quality monitoring and modelling insights gained from this study have the potential to inform AOS pit lake design and prediction of reclamation trajectories., Competing Interests: Declaration of competing interest The authors declare that they have no known competing financial interests or personal relationships that could have appeared to influence the work reported in this paper., (Copyright © 2024 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.)

Reliable identification and precise quantification of microplastics pollution of the environment are essential prerequisites to comprehend the impact of microplastics on Earth's ecosystems. In this study, we propose a workflow to examine polyethylene terephthalate (PET) contamination of environmental surface waters by applying high-resolution nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) spectroscopic approaches. The detection of PET by high-resolution NMR spectroscopy enables the unambiguous identification and - at the same time - precise quantification at atomic resolution independent from the size of the particles obtained from surface waters. Monitoring the properties of translational diffusion and relaxation of PET chains present in the samples obtained from Lake Constance water by filtration ('Manta trawls'), extraction and dissolving, hints towards a rather heterogeneous distribution in length of the PET chains. The workflow developed here achieved a limit of detection of 192.2 ng PET and a recovery rate of 88 ± 25% for PET microplastics that was spiked to the Manta trawls. The NMR driven analysis led to a concentration determination of 335 ± 200 ng PET per cubic meter of Lake Constance water. The workflow developed here offers not only a simple and reliable quantitative determination of the mass of PET in environmental samples independent of particle size but is additionally providing insights into the inherent polymeric features of PET, which are not accessible through other established methods of microplastics detection. Therefore, a broad application of the NMR spectroscopic approach presented here can be assumed., Competing Interests: Declaration of competing interest The authors declare that they have no known competing financial interests or personal relationships that could have appeared to influence the work reported in this paper., (Copyright © 2024 The Authors. Published by Elsevier Ltd.. All rights reserved.)

The use of polymeric passive samplers (often polydimethylsiloxane, PDMS, or low-density polyethylene, LDPE) to indicate water concentrations of hydrophobic organic compounds under environmental conditions generally requires two key parameters, a compound-specific polymer-water equilibrium partition coefficient (K pw ), and the degree of equilibration achieved in a given environmental exposure scenario. Herein, we have developed model to extrapolate equilibration of performance reference compounds between polymer and pore water across different compound classes that is also dependent upon accurate estimates of K pw . We have also developed quantitative structure-activity relationship (QSAR) models, to estimate K pw for PAHs, PCBs, DDx, and dioxin/furans for the two most common polymeric samplers, PDMS and LDPE. The QSAR models developed in this study provide high accuracy consistent estimates for K pw across the different HOC families. The root mean square error of the QSAR for K LDPE-w was 0.226 log units based upon measured values for 159 compounds and 0.184 log units for K PDMS-w based upon measured values for 131 compounds., Competing Interests: Declaration of competing interest The authors declare that they have no known competing financial interests or personal relationships that could have appeared to influence the work reported in this paper., (Copyright © 2024. Published by Elsevier Ltd.)

This study investigated the characteristics of 23 PAHs in road dust from various areas in Ho Chi Minh City (HCMC), focusing on spatial distribution, pollution levels, human health risks, and source apportionment. PAH levels in urban samples (residential and industrial sites) ranged from 208 to 7665 (μg/kg), significantly higher than background levels (135 ± 42.2 μg/kg). A west > east gradient in PAH distribution, particularly in crowded traffic intersections, suggested traffic activities as a major source. Pollution load indices indicated moderate to very high pollution in most urban sites. Incremental lifetime cancer risk assessments showed moderate to high risks, especially for children. Statistical analyses and diagnostic ratios identified vehicular emissions as the primary PAH sources, with Positive Matrix Factorization analysis attributing 46.6% to gasoline vehicles, 21.9% to diesel vehicles and petroleum evaporation, 18.3% to tar oil, and 10.2% to coal burning. This study fills a significant information gap on PAHs in road dust, which has not been previously reported in southern Vietnam, specifically in HCMC-a dynamic and rapidly developing city in Southeast Asia. The findings highlight the need for synchronized management and technical solutions to mitigate PAH risks in road dust, contributing valuable knowledge on PAH accumulation in a major southern city of Vietnam., Competing Interests: Declaration of competing interest The authors declare that they have no known competing financial interests or personal relationships that could have appeared to influence the work reported in this paper., (Copyright © 2024 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.)

Groundwater contamination with heavy metals is a critical environmental issue, especially in regions heavily reliant on groundwater for drinking purpose. These metals can seep into groundwater from soil and rock weathering or through improper disposal of industrial waste and effluents. Access to safe drinking water is essential for maintaining public health. This study aimed to assess heavy metal contamination in groundwater and its implications for dental and public health. The objective of the study was to measure the concentration of the heavy metals in the dentine of extracted tooth of the study population. The study concurrently measured heavy metal concentrations in groundwater and tooth dentine samples, analyzing demographic profiles, heavy metal correlations, and underlying structures using Principal Component Analysis (PCA). The average level of heavy metals in the groundwater samples varied from 9.763 ± 3.362 μg/L for Cd to 3426.204 ± 875.264 μg/L for Fe. The mean concentrations (μg/g) in teeth dentine showed significant variations, with iron (Fe) ranging from 0.149 ± 0.03 μg/g in water purifiers to 4.62 ± 0.578 μg/g in local water sources. Similar variations were observed for other heavy metals across different water sources. Principal component analysis (PCA) revealed seven principal components, with the first two components explaining 96.1% of the total variance. The findings revealed varied concentrations of heavy metals across all water sources. Statistical analyses underscored the complex relationship between water sources and heavy metal contamination levels, highlighting the need for targeted interventions to improve water quality and mitigate health risks. The study highlights the urgent need for monitoring and mitigation efforts to ensure safe drinking water and mitigate health risks associated with heavy metal contamination., Competing Interests: Declaration of competing interest The authors declare that they have no known competing financial interests or personal relationships that could have appeared to influence the work reported in this paper., (Copyright © 2024 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.)

Climate change impacts the Mediterranean region, transforming it from region with a semi-arid climate to a region with an arid climate. Under this situation, while groundwater is an essential hydric resource, its existence is in danger due to anthropogenic pressures. Persistent mobile organic compounds (PMOCs) have recently been recognised as an emerging problem; however, PMOCs in groundwater need to be better characterised. Here, we present a new analytical method to characterise the profile of PMOCs in groundwater based on two parallel solid-phase extraction (SPE), using weak anion exchange and weak cation exchange. Extracts were analysed by ultraperformance liquid chromatography (UPLC) using mix-mode chromatography for those compounds analysed under negative ionisation conditions and hydrophilic interaction liquid chromatography (HILIC) under positive conditions coupled to high-resolution mass-spectrometry (HRMS) using a Q-Exactive Orbitrap™ analyser. For the suspect screening of PMOCs in groundwater, the acquisition mode was in full scan (FS) by "independent scan of all ion fragmentation". For the tentative identification, different online databases such as Environmental and Food Safety (EFS) HRAM Compound database, PFAS NIST database, ChemSpider for chemical structural information, MzCloud as a mass spectral database, and an in-house list with 1280 PMOC structures have been used. The performance of the method was assessed with 29 representative PMOCs which were selected based on the previous literature. The recovery rates have been between 63 and 110 % for 90 % of the target compounds and method limits of quantification (MLQ) between 0.3 and 10.5 ng/L. The optimised approach was applied to assess PMOCs in the Besòs River aquifer, NE Spain, showing 148 tentatively identified structures at confidence levels 1-3. Among them, 66 suspects were tentatively identified at level 3, 54 at level 2, and 28 confirmed at level 1. Most of these compounds were polar and highly polar compounds which are difficult to retain with other extraction approaches. Major detected compounds were pharmaceuticals and personal care products (46), followed by perfluoroalkyl and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) (32), industrial additives (27), and pesticides (23), among other groups. Some compounds, such as ultrashort chain PFAS and fluorinated betaines, were detected for the first time in groundwaters in Spain., Competing Interests: Declaration of competing interest The authors declare that they have no known competing financial interests or personal relationships that could have appeared to influence the work reported in this paper., (Copyright © 2024 The Authors. Published by Elsevier Ltd.. All rights reserved.)

Volatile organic compounds (VOCs) are of vital importance in the formation of secondary organic aerosol (SOA). Understanding SOA formation remains challenging, requiring further investigation of both oxygenated VOCs (OVOCs) and SOA composition with novel measurement techniques. In this work, we deployed a proton-transfer-reaction time-of-flight mass spectrometer (PTR-TOF-MS) to measure VOCs and their oxidation products in urban Zurich in summer 2016. The positive matrix factorization (PMF) source apportionment method identified five sources, including two primary sources (traffic and local), and three OVOC sources associated with different oxidation processes in the atmosphere. Together with the deployment of an extractive electrospray ionization time-of-flight mass spectrometer (EESI-TOF-MS), this enabled a detailed understanding of the SOA components which were dominated by biogenic SOA and distinguished by daytime and nighttime chemistry. The combination of the two instruments provided new insights in the understanding of atmospheric processes by comparison of molecular-level secondary components between gas phase and particle phase. In the gas phase, two OVOC factors (32.1% and 16.7%) showed strong influence from the oxidation of aromatic compounds, exhibiting low atomic H to C ratios, and were distinguished by daytime and night-time chemistry. The third OVOC factor (19.3%) was characterized by strong biogenic influence. Similar temporal variations were found for the gas and aerosol phase, indicating co-evolution of OVOCs and SOA in summer. Besides, comparisons of OVOC compounds and SOA composition exhibited similar H to C ratio distributions for both the gas phase and particle phase., Competing Interests: Declaration of competing interest The authors declare that they have no known competing financial interests or personal relationships that could have appeared to influence the work reported in this paper., (Copyright © 2024 The Authors. Published by Elsevier Ltd.. All rights reserved.)

We investigated the contaminations of phthalates (PAEs), organophosphate esters (OPEs), and polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) in the vegetables and their corresponding soils from 26 plastic greenhouses of Northeast China. PAEs, OPEs, and PAHs in the edible portion of vegetables were in the range of 2620-21800, 115-852, and 32.4-602 ng/g, while the levels of these chemicals in the greenhouse soils were 5770-18800, 196-935, and 109-1600 ng/g, respectively. PAEs are the main organic pollutants in greenhouses, which were 1-2 orders of magnitude higher than that of OPEs and PAHs. Leafy vegetables showed the highest contamination level, which is ∼1-3 times that of root and fruit vegetables. Bioaccumulation factors (BAFs) of chemicals are significantly negatively correlated with their physicochemical properties, e.g., octanol-water partition coefficient and organic carbon partition coefficient. The partition-limited model can accurately predict the contamination level of greenhouse vegetables to a certain extent based on the chemical's concentration in the corresponding soil. We assessed the hazard quotients of target compounds through daily intake of greenhouse vegetables, and found a low risk for di(2-ethylhexyl) phthalate. This research emphasized the potential dietary exposure risks caused by greenhouse leafy vegetables, and proposed a method for evaluating the risk of greenhouse vegetables through soil monitoring., Competing Interests: Declaration of Competing Interest The authors declare that they have no known competing financial interests or personal relationships that could have appeared to influence the work reported in this paper., (Copyright © 2024 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.)

The Adriatic Sea is an enclosed basin threatened by marine pollution due to its hydrographic features and anthropogenic pressure. Although zooplankton has been worldwide regarded as an immediate warning signal of contamination, limited information is available on the contamination of these organisms at the Adriatic level. Hence, this study provides comprehensive data on the presence and levels of multiple pollutants in zooplankton collected from 46 locations. With regards to legacy contaminants, both PCB and DDT levels have declined since the 1980s. Specifically, most samples were characterized by low DDT contamination (average of 3 ± 2.7 ng g - 1 dry weight) and only few of these accumulated levels of concern for what concerns PCB, pointing out possible hotspots of contamination in the central-eastern Adriatic Sea. As regards metal(loid)s, the Metal Pollution Index identified areas of concern in the north Adriatic Sea (Gulf of Venice) with high levels of Co, Cu, Hg, Cr and Pb; in the Central Adriatic Sea (Tremiti islands) with high levels of Co, Ni, Hg, Cr and Pb; in the Southern Adriatic Sea (Taranto and offshore Corfu), with high levels of most metal(loid)s, especially Cr, Ni and Zn. Certain metal(loid)s (e.g. Cd, Pb and Hg) have declined over time and most of them are lower than well-known contaminated worldwide marine ecosystems. Only Cu appears to be particularly high in the Mediterranean zooplankton. Overall, this work suggests a general improvement of the status of contamination of the Adriatic Sea., Competing Interests: Declaration of competing interest The authors declare that they have no known competing financial interests or personal relationships that could have appeared to influence the work reported in this paper., (Copyright © 2024 The Authors. Published by Elsevier Ltd.. All rights reserved.)

Geospatial maps can show how the ineffective operations of inactive mines affect water and aquifer quality. As such, the purpose of this study is to assess the impact of mining and irrigation on the aquifer ecosystem through the evaluation of LULC and slope maps through the application of Landsat 8 OLI/TIRS and DEM data. A total of 50 groundwater samples were prepared from villages in the close proximity to inactive mines during pre and post monsoon periods in 2021. The results of the analysis revealed alarming statistics, that 14% of groundwater samples exceeded the WHO nitrate limit in pre & post monsoon season, indicating a high-risk in the study area. According to guidelines (USEPA, 2014), 34% in pre-monsoon and 26% post-monsoon of samples exceeded the THI levels for adults and children respectively, indicating non-carcinogenic health risks. In addition, 80% of the samples in both seasons exhibited high NPI values, indicating nitrate contamination associated with blue baby syndrome. From the Geospatial analysis the findings from the LULC classification indicate that there has been a significant increase in cropland area from 2016 to 2021 due to changes in forest land, fallow land, and water resources. These problems have been exacerbated by the expansion of cultivated land, which has increased from 71.1 square kilometers in 2016 to 118 square kilometers in 2021, accounting for 13.1% of the total area. This expansion, coupled with elevated water body resource availability, has compounded the nitrate pollution including in intensely irrigated regions. The slope map analysis revealed that the inactive mines occur at low slope, high rainfall areas and these are compounded by runoff from other sources such as domestic and agricultural wastes. For these matters, sealing and remediating these inactive mines is essential so as to prevent further nitrate leakage., Competing Interests: Declaration of competing interest The authors declare that they have no known competing financial interests or personal relationships that could have appeared to influence the work reported in this paper., (Copyright © 2024. Published by Elsevier Ltd.)

Despite the detection of poly- and perfluorinated alkyl substances (PFAS) in the water system in Africa, the effort towards mitigating PFAS in water in Africa needs to be better understood. Therefore, this review evaluated the contamination status and mitigation methods for handling PFAS-contaminated water systems in Africa. The findings revealed the presence of PFAS in wastewater treatment plant (WWTP) effluents, surface water and commercially available bottled and tap water in African countries. The concentration of PFAS in drinking water sources reviewed ranged from < limits of quantification to 778 ng L -1 . The sources of PFAS in water systems in Africa are linked to uncontrolled importation of PFAS-containing products, WWTP effluents and inappropriate disposal of PFAS-containing materials. The information on treatment methods for PFAS-contaminated water systems is scanty. Unfortunately, the treatment method is challenged by poor water research infrastructure and facilities, lack of awareness, poor research funding and weak legislation; however, adsorption and membrane technology seem favourable for removing PFAS from water systems in Africa. It is essential to focus on monitoring and assessing drinking water quality in Africa to reduce the disease burden that this may cause. Most African countries' currently implemented water treatment facilities cannot efficiently remove PFAS during treatment. Therefore, governments in Africa need to fund more research to develop an efficient water treatment technique that is sustainable in Africa., Competing Interests: Declaration of competing interest The authors declare that they have no known competing financial interests or personal relationships that could have appeared to influence the work reported in this paper., (Copyright © 2024 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.)