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Increased ecosystem susceptibility to pests and other stressors has been attributed to climate change, resulting in unprecedented tree mortality from insect infestations. In turn, large-scale tree die-off alters physical and biogeochemical processes, such as organic matter decay and hydrologic flow paths, that could enhance leaching of natural organic matter to soil and surface waters and increase potential formation of harmful drinking water disinfection by-products (DBPs). Whereas previous studies have investigated water-quantity alterations due to climate-induced, forest die-off, impacts on water quality are unclear. Here, water-quality data sets from water-treatment facilities in Colorado were analysed to determine whether the municipal water supply has been perturbed by tree mortality. Results demonstrate higher total organic carbon concentrations along with significantly more DBPs at water-treatment facilities using mountain-pine-beetle-infested source waters when contrasted with those using water from control watersheds. In addition to this differentiation between watersheds, DBP concentrations demonstrated an increase within mountain pine beetle watersheds related to the degree of infestation. Disproportionate DBP increases and seasonal decoupling of peak DBP and total organic carbon concentrations further suggest that the total organic carbon composition is being altered in these systems. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study evaluated the occurrence and temporal variability of chlorate, perchlorate, and bromate in 26 low-strength onsite-generated (OSG) hypochlorite systems and three high-strength systems. None of the samples from the systems tested would have contributed more than 1 μg/L perchlorate to the finished water, even at a 10-mg/L chlorine dose; similarly, none of the samples exceeded the NSF International specific product allowable concentration (SPAC) for bromate of 0.5 μg/mg free chlorine. Of the samples collected, however, 10 of the 29 unique OSG systems would have exceeded the US Environmental Protection Agency (USEPA) 210-μg/L health reference level (HRL) for chlorate at a dose of only 5 mg/L chlorine, and 21 of the 29 would have exceeded 210 μg/L chlorate at the 10-mg/L maximum use level. No apparent correlation was found between chlorate production and OSG brand, age, or capacity nor was any correlation observed between chlorate production and pH, transition metals, chloride, conductivity, or temperature. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Harmful algal blooms (HABs) or higher levels of de facto water reuse (DFR) can increase the levels of certain contaminants at drinking water intakes. Therefore, the goal of this study was to use multi-class supervised machine learning (SML) classification with data collected from six online instruments measuring fourteen total water quality parameters to detect cyanobacteria (corresponding to approximately 950 cells/mL, 2900 cells/mL, and 8600 cells/mL) or DFR (0.5, 1 and 2 % of wastewater effluent) events in the raw water entering an intake. Among 56 screened models from the caret package in R, four (mda, LogitBoost, bagFDAGCV, and xgbTree) were selected for optimization. mda had the greatest testing set accuracy, 98.09 %, after optimization with 7 false alerts. Some of the most important water parameters for the different models were phycocyanin-like fluorescence, UVA 254 , and pH. SML could detect algae blending events (estimated <9000 cells/mL) due in part to the phycocyanin-like fluorescence sensor. UVA 254 helped identify higher concentrations of DFR. These results show that multi-class SML classification could be used at drinking water intakes in conjunction with online instrumentation to detect and differentiate HABs and DFR events. This could be used to create alert systems for the water utilities at the intake, rather than the finished water, so any adjustment to the treatment process could be implemented., 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 B.V. All rights reserved.)

Per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) enter surface waters from various sources such as wastewater treatment plants, fire-fighting sites, and PFAS-producing and PFAS-using industries. The Las Vegas Wash in Southern Nevada of the United States (U.S.) conveys wastewater effluent from the Las Vegas metropolitan area to Lake Mead, a drinking water source for millions of people in the U.S. Southwest. PFAS have previously been detected in the Las Vegas Wash, but PFAS sources were not identified. In this study, upstream wash tributaries, wastewater treatment effluents, and shallow groundwater wells were sampled in multiple campaigns during dry-weather conditions to investigate possible PFAS sources. Out of 19 PFAS, two short-chain PFAS-perfluoropentanoic acid (48 % of the total molar concentration) and perfluorohexanoic acid (32 %)-comprised the majority of PFAS loading measured in the Las Vegas Wash, followed by perfluorooctanoic acid (9 %). On a mass loading basis, the majority of total measured PFAS (approximately 90 %) and at least 48 % of each specific PFAS in the Las Vegas Wash likely entered via municipal wastewater effluents, of which the main source was likely residential wastewater. One of the drainage areas with a major civilian airport was identified as a potential source of relatively enriched perfluorosulfonic acids to a small wash tributary and shallow groundwater samples. Nonetheless, that tributary contributed at most 15 % of any specific PFAS to the mainstem of the Las Vegas Wash. Total PFAS concentrations were relatively low for the small tributary associated with an urban smaller airport and the lack of flow in the tributary channel immediately downgradient of an Air Force base indicates the smaller airport and base were unlikely significant PFAS sources to the Las Vegas Wash. Overall, this study demonstrated effective PFAS source investigation methodology and the importance of wastewater effluent as a PFAS environmental pathway., 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 B.V. All rights reserved.)

Both quantifiable and semi-quantifiable poly- and perfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) were evaluated in the influent, effluent, and biosolids of 38 wastewater treatment plants. PFAS were detected in all streams at all facilities. For the means of the sums of detected, quantifiable PFAS concentrations were 98 ± 28 ng/L, 80 ± 24 ng/L, and 160,000 ± 46,000 ng/kg (dry weight basis) in the influent, effluent, and biosolids (respectively). In the aqueous influent and effluent streams this quantifiable PFAS mass was typically associated with perfluoroalkyl acids (PFAAs). In contrast, quantifiable PFAS in the biosolids were primarily polyfluoroalkyl substances that potentially serve as precursors to the more recalcitrant PFAAs. Results of the total oxidizable precursor (TOP) assay on select influent and effluent samples showed that semi-quantified (or, unidentified) precursors accounted for a substantial portion (21 to 88%) of the fluorine mass compared to that associated with quantified PFAS, and that this fluorine precursor mass was not appreciably transformed to perfluoroalkyl acids within the WWTPs, as influent and effluent precursor concentrations via the TOP assay were statistically identical. Evaluation of semi-quantified PFAS, consistent with results of the TOP assay, showed the presence of several classes of precursors in the influent, effluent, and biosolids; perfluorophosphonic acids (PFPAs) and fluorotelomer phosphate diesters (di-PAPs) occurred in 100 and 92% of biosolid samples, respectively. Analysis of mass flows showed that, for both quantified (on a fluorine mass basis) and semi-quantified PFAS, the majority of PFAS exited WWTPs through the aqueous effluent compared to the biosolids stream. Overall, these results highlight the importance of semi-quantified PFAS precursors in WWTPs, and the need to further understand the impacts of their ultimate fate in the environment., 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 © 2023 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.)

The application of ion exchange (IX) resins to remove disinfection byproduct (DBP) precursors in wastewater effluents is challenging due to relatively high concentrations of competing anions. This study examined various pretreatment strategies to target competing ions to improve IX removal of DBP precursors, bromide and dissolved organic matter (DOM), measured as trihalomethane and haloacetic acid formation potentials (THMFP and HAAFP). IX batch experiments were performed with four commercial anion exchange (AIX) resins selective for bromide (BrP), DOM (A860), sulfate (MTA) and PFOA/PFOS (PFA), and one cation exchange (CIX) resin selective for iodide (CT). For single AIX treatments the bromide removal ranking was the following: PFA (58%) > MTA (51%) > BrP (43%) > A860 (16%), which corresponded with decreasing brominated THMFP removals and increasing bromine incorporation factors. For dual AIX combinations (PFA and BrP, MTA and BrP), either simultaneous or sequential treatments had the highest bromide (PFA + BrP [69%], MTA + BrP [67%], (PFA→BrP [77%], MTA→BrP [74%]) and Br-THMFP (THMFP [∼80%]) and Br-HAAFP (HAAFP [∼77%]) removals, and therefore the lowest fractions of brominated DBPs (Br-DBPs). Despite ozone (O 3 ), biological active carbon (BAC), and granular activated carbon (GAC) pretreatments reducing the overall DOM concentration (33%), these pretreatment steps did not improve the bromide removals of the resins, although it did increase the Br-THMFP and Br-HAAFP removals by 2-38% and 13-20%, respectively. Nanofiltration (NF) pretreatment significantly removed sulfate (97%) resulting in an increased bromide removal of 19% by the AIX resins, which led to increased removal of Br-THMFP and Br-HAAFP by 93% and 96%, respectively. Among all the IX resins the CT resin had the highest bromide removal (83%) and lowest fraction of Br-DBPs. The results reveal pretreatment with existing technologies including AIX, O 3 /BAC/GAC, or NF can potentially enhance the removal of brominated DBP precursors by IX resins during potable reuse applications., (Published by Elsevier Ltd.)

Water quality events such as increases in stormwater or wastewater effluent in drinking water sources pose hazards to drinking water consumers. Stormwater and wastewater effluent enter Lake Mead-an important drinking water source in the southwest USA-via the Las Vegas Wash. Previous studies have applied machine learning and online instruments to detect contamination in water distribution systems. However, alert systems at drinking water intakes would provide more time for corrective action. An array of online instruments measuring pH, conductivity, redox potential, turbidity, temperature, tryptophan-like fluorescence, UV absorbance (UVA 254 ), TOC, and chlorophyll-a was fed raw water directly from Lake Mead. Wastewater effluent, dry weather Las Vegas Wash, and storm-impacted Las Vegas Wash samples were blended into the instrument inlets at known ratios to simulate three types of adverse water quality events. Data preprocessing was conducted to correct for diurnal patterns or instrument drift. Supervised machine learning was conducted using previously published models in R. Ninety-nine models were screened on the raw data. Eight high-performing models were evaluated in-depth and optimized. Weighted k-Nearest Neighbors, Single C5.0 Ruleset, Mixture Discriminant Analysis, and an ensemble of these three models had accuracy over 97% when assigning test set data among three classes (Normal, Event, or Maintenance). The ensemble detected all event types at the earliest timepoint and had one false positive that was not a lag error (i.e., consecutively following a true positive). Omitting Maintenance, the Adaboost model had over 99% test set accuracy and zero false positives that were not lag errors. Data preprocessing was beneficial, but the optimal methods were model-specific. All nine water quality variables were useful for most models, but UVA 254 and turbidity were most important., (Copyright © 2021. Published by Elsevier Ltd.)

This study measured chlorine- and chloramine-reactive precursors using formation potential (FP) tests of nine U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) regulated and 57 unregulated disinfection byproducts (DBPs) in tertiary-filtered wastewater before and after pilot-scale granular activated carbon (GAC) adsorption. Using breakthrough of precursor concentration and of concentration associated calculated cytotoxicity and genotoxicity (by correlating known lethal concentrations reported elsewhere), the performance of three parallel GAC treatment trains were compared against tertiary-filtered wastewater: ozone/GAC, chlorine/GAC, and GAC alone. Results show GAC alone was the primary process, versus ozone or chlorine alone, to remove the largest fraction of total chlorine- and chloramine-reactive DBP precursors and calculated cytotoxicity and genotoxicity potencies. GAC with pre-ozonation removed the most chlorine- and chloramine-reactive DBP precursors followed by GAC with pre-chlorination and lastly GAC without pre-treatment. GAC with pre-ozonation produced an effluent with cytotoxicity and genotoxicity of DBPs from FP that generally matched that of GAC without pre-oxidation; meanwhile removal of toxicity was greater by GAC with pre-chlorination. The cytotoxicity and genotoxicity of DBPs from FP tests did not scale with DBP concentration; for example, more than 90% of the calculated cytotoxicity resulted from 20% of the DBPs, principally from haloacetaldehydes, haloacetamides, and haloacetonitriles. The calculated cytotoxicity and genotoxicity from DBPs associated with FP-chloramination were at times higher than with FP-chlorination though the concentration of DBPs was five times higher with FP-chlorination. The removal of DBP precursors using GAC based treatment was at least as effective as removal of DOC (except for halonitromethanes for GAC without pre-oxidation and with pre-chlorination), indicating DOC can be used as an indicator for DBP precursor adsorption efficacy. However, the DOC was not a good surrogate for total cytotoxicity and genotoxicity breakthrough behavior, therefore, unregulated DBPs could have negative health implications that are disconnected from general water quality parameters, such as DOC, and regulated classes of DBPs. Instead, cytotoxicity and genotoxicity correlate with the concentration of specific classes of unregulated DBPs., Competing Interests: 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., (© 2020 The Authors.)

The main objective of this study was to compare the efficacy of ozone (O 3 ) and O 3 with granular activated carbon (GAC) (O 3 /GAC) at pilot-scale for the enhanced removal of micropollutants (MPs) from wastewater effluent. The results revealed enhanced removal of tris (2-carboxylethyl) phosphine (TCEP), sucralose, and meprobamate during the O 3 /GAC treatment experiments compared to the sum of their removal during isolated ozonation and GAC adsorption experiments. The long-term O 3 /GAC experiment showed the promotive effect of GAC substantially decreased after 20 h of O 3 exposure. This decreased performance correlates with changes to GAC surface properties caused by O 3 . After 6 h of operation, O 3 initially led to an increase in Brunauer-Emmett-Teller (BET) surface area on the GAC improving the elimination level of investigated MPs (except N-nitrosomorpholine (NMOR)). However, after 20 h of exposure, O 3 ultimately caused structural damages to the GAC surface, decreased the BET surface area in the final stages of the experiment, and a 4-fold increase in O 1s :C 1s ratio on the GAC surface was observed due to an increase in surface acidic functional groups caused by O 3 treatment., (Copyright © 2019. Published by Elsevier Ltd.)

As potable reuse guidelines and regulations continue to develop, the presence of N-nitrosamines is a primary concern because of their associated health concerns. In this study, bench-, pilot-, and full-scale tests were conducted to focus on the occurrence and treatment of N-nitrosomorpholine (NMOR) in United States (U.S.) potable reuse systems. Out of twelve U.S. wastewater effluents collected, ambient NMOR was detected in eleven (average = 20 ± 18 ng/L); in contrast, only two of the thirteen surface water and stormwater samples had NMOR. Across all of these samples maximum formation potential by chloramination produced an average increase of 3.6 ± 1.8 ng/L. This result underscores the need to understand the sources of NMOR as it is not likely a disinfection byproduct and it is not known to be commercially produced within the U.S. At the pilot-scale, three potable reuse systems were evaluated for ambient NMOR with oxidation (i.e., chlorination and ozonation), biofiltration, and granular activated carbon (GAC). Both pre-oxidation and biofiltration were ineffective at mitigating NMOR during long-term pilot plant operation (at least eight-months). GAC adsorbers were the only pilot-scale treatment to remove NMOR; however, complete breakthrough occurred rapidly from <2000 to 10,000 bed volumes. For comparison, a full-scale reverse osmosis (RO) potable reuse system was monitored for a year and confirmed that RO effectively removes NMOR. Systematic bench-scale UV-advanced oxidation experiments were undertaken to assess the mitigation potential for NMOR. At a fluence dose of 325 ± 10 mJ/cm 2 , UV alone degraded 90% of the NMOR present. The addition of 5 mg/L hydrogen peroxide did not significantly decrease the UV dose required for one-log removal. These data illustrate that efficient NMOR removal from potable reuse systems is limited to RO or UV treatment., (Copyright © 2018 The Authors. Published by Elsevier Ltd.. All rights reserved.)

Perfluoroalkyl and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFASs) are a group of persistent contaminants that have been identified throughout the aquatic environment. In this study, ten targeted perfluoroalkyl acids (PFAAs), three targeted PFAA precursors, and non-targeted PFAA precursors were monitored in four full- and pilot-scale potable reuse plants at each stage of advanced treatment. Non-targeted PFAA precursors were quantified by applying a total oxidizable precursor assay in which PFAA precursors are oxidized by hydroxyl radicals to targeted PFAAs. Two of the potable reuse systems had membrane-based treatments with reverse osmosis and UV-advanced oxidation (RO-UV/AOP) and two used ozone, biological activated carbon filtration and granular activated carbon adsorption (O 3 -BAC-GAC). The total targeted PFAAs in the four tertiary effluents, the influent sources for the potable reuse systems, ranged from 52 to 227 ng/L with non-targeted PFAA precursors accounting for 30-67% of total PFASs on a molar basis. The RO-UV/AOP treatment trains reduced PFAAs and PFAA precursors to below their method reporting limits through the barrier provided by RO. The O 3 -BAC-GAC based treatment trains reduced, but did not completely remove PFAAs or PFAA precursors and the PFASs present in the product water were primarily shorter-chain PFAAs, some of which lack human health guidance values for drinking water. The relative fraction of targeted shorter-chain PFAAs increased after each treatment step indicating that there was preferential removal of the PFAA precursors and longer-chain PFAAs. This study provides new insight on the concentrations and treatment of PFAA precursors through potable reuse treatment systems., (Copyright © 2018 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.)

The evolving demands of drinking water treatment necessitate processes capable of removing a diverse suite of contaminants. Biofiltration can employ biotransformation and sorption to remove various classes of chemicals from water. Here, pilot-scale virgin anthracite-sand and previously used biological activated carbon (BAC)-sand dual media filters were operated for ∼250 days to assess removals of 0.4 mg/L ammonia as nitrogen, 50-140 μg/L manganese, and ∼100 ng/L each of trace organic compounds (TOrCs) spiked into pre-ozonated Colorado River water. Anthracite achieved complete nitrification within 200 days and started removing ibuprofen at 85 days. Limited manganese (10%) removal occurred. In contrast, BAC completely nitrified ammonia within 113 days, removed all manganese at 43 days, and exhibited steady state removal of most TOrCs by 140 days. However, during the first 140 days, removal of caffeine, DEET, gemfibrozil, naproxen, and trimethoprim decreased, suggesting a shift from sorption to biotransformation. Acetaminophen and sulfamethoxazole were removed at consistent levels, with complete removal of acetaminophen achieved throughout the study; ibuprofen removal increased with time. When subjected to elevated (1 μg/L) concentrations of TOrCs, BAC removed larger masses of chemicals; with a subsequent decrease and ultimate cease in the TOrCs spike, caffeine, DEET, gemfibrozil, and trimethoprim notably desorbed. By the end of operation, anthracite and BAC exhibited equivalent quantities of biomass measured as adenosine triphosphate, but BAC harbored greater microbial diversity (examined with 16S rRNA sequencing). Improved insight was gained regarding concurrent biotransformation, sorption, and desorption of multiple organic and inorganic contaminants in pilot-scale drinking water biofilters., (Copyright © 2018 The Authors. Published by Elsevier Ltd.. All rights reserved.)

Bench- and pilot-scale sorption tests were used to probe the performance of several biochars at removing perfluoroalkyl acids (PFAA) from field waters, compared to granular activated carbon (GAC). Screening tests using organic matter-free water resulted in hardwood (HWC) (K d  = 41 L g -1 ) and pinewood (PWC) (K d  = 49 L g -1 ) biochars having the highest perfluorooctanoic acid (PFOA) removal performance that was comparable to bituminous coal GAC (K d  = 41 L g -1 ). PWC and HWC had a stronger affinity for PFOA sorbed in Lake Mead surface water (K F  = 11 mg (1-n) L n g -1 ) containing a lower (2 mg L -1 ) dissolved organic carbon (DOC) concentration than in a tertiary-filtered wastewater (K F  = 8 mg (1-n) L n g -1 ) with DOC of 4.9 mg L -1 . A pilot-scale study was performed using three parallel adsorbers (GAC, anthracite, and HWC biochar) treating the same tertiary-filtered wastewater. Compared to HWC, and anthracite, GAC was the most effective in mitigating perfluoropentanoic acid (PFPnA), perfluorohexanoic acid (PHxA), PFOA, perfluorooctane sulfonic acid (PFOS), and DOC (45-67% removed at 4354 bed volumes) followed by HWC, and then anthracite. Based on bench- and pilot-scale results, shorter-chain PFAA [perfluorobutanoic acid (PFBA), PFPnA, or PFHxA] were more difficult to remove with both biochar and GAC than the longer-chain, PFOS and PFOA., (Copyright © 2017 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.)

This study examined the potential of using a novel bulk amine assay as an approximation for the tertiary and quaternary amine load in wastewaters and surface water samples, and this approximation was compared to N-nitrosodimethylamine (NDMA) formation potential using chloramines. An existing colorimetric method was examined and optimized for the detection of amines in environmental water samples. The method consists of liquid-liquid extraction followed by a catalyzed reaction to form a yet-undefined product that is known to be both a strong chromophore and fluorophore. Previous work verified that this reaction was effectively catalyzed by a number of compounds containing tertiary and quaternary amine moieties. Many tertiary and quaternary compounds are also efficient producers of NDMA under chloramination conditions, and a linear correlation was consequently derived from the bulk amine signals vs. NDMA formation potential in various wastewater samples (R 2  = 0.74; n = 24; p-value < 0.05). The results provide evidence that approximately 2% of the tertiary and quaternary amines measured can form NDMA and an estimated 0.01-1.3% of nitrogen in dissolved organic nitrogen originates from these bulk amines. The normalization of NDMA concentration by the amine measurement revealed that ozone effectively destroyed those tertiary and quaternary amine structures more likely to form NDMA in treated wastewater samples. This bulk amine assay illustrates that proxy measurements of tertiary and quaternary amines can be linked to the NDMA formation potential of a given sample, and this approach may prove useful as a characterizing tool for NDMA precursors in wastewater., (Copyright © 2017 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.)

The recent bark beetle epidemic across western North America may impact water quality as a result of elevated organic carbon release and hydrologic shifts associated with extensive tree dieback. Analysis of quarterly municipal monitoring data from 2004 to 2014 with discretization of six water treatment facilities in the Rocky Mountains by extent of beetle impact revealed a significant increasing trend in total organic carbon (TOC) and total trihalomethane (TTHM) production within high (≳50% areal infestation) beetle-impacted watersheds while no or insignificant trends were found in watersheds with lower impact levels. Alarmingly, the TTHM concentration trend in the high impact sites exceeded regulatory maximum contaminant levels during the most recent two years of analysis (2013-14). To evaluate seasonal differences, explore the interplay of water quality and hydrologic processes, and eliminate variability associated with municipal reporting, these treatment facilities were targeted for more detailed surface water sampling and characterization. Surface water samples collected from high impact watersheds exhibited significantly higher TOC, aromatic signatures, and disinfection byproduct (DBP) formation potential than watersheds with lower infestation levels. Spectroscopic analyses of surface water samples indicated that these heightened DBP precursor levels are a function of both elevated TOC loading and increased aromatic character. This association was heightened during precipitation and runoff events in high impact sites, supporting the hypothesis that altered hydrologic flow paths resulting from tree mortality mobilize organic carbon and elevate DBP formation potential for several months after runoff ceases. The historical trends found here likely underestimate the full extent of TTHM shifts due to monitoring biases with the extended seasonal release of DBP precursors increasing the potential for human exposure. Collectively, our analysis suggests that while water quality impacts continue to rise nearly one decade after infestation, significant increases in TOC mobilization and DBP precursors are limited to watersheds that experience extensive tree mortality., (Copyright © 2016 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.)

N-Nitrosodimethylamine (NDMA) is a disinfection by-product (DBP) that is potentially carcinogenic and has been found to occur in drinking water treatment systems impacted with treated wastewater. A major gap in NDMA research is an understanding of the persistence of wastewater-derived precursors within the natural environment. This research sought to fill this knowledge gap by surveying NDMA precursors across the length of a wastewater effluent-dominated wash. Significant precursor reduction (17%) was found to occur from introduction into the wash to a point 9 h downstream. This reduction translates into a half-life of roughly 32 h for bulk NDMA precursors. Further laboratory experiments examining rates of photolysis, biodegradation and loss to sediments, illustrated that both photolytic and biological degradation were effective removal mechanisms for NDMA precursors. Loss to sediments that were acquired from the wash did not appear to reduce NDMA precursors in the water column, although a control conducted with DI water provided evidence that significant NDMA precursors could be released from autoclaved sediments (suggesting that sorption does occur). Microbial experiments revealed that microbes associated with sediments were much more effective at degrading precursors than microbes within the water column. Overall, this study demonstrated that natural processes are capable of attenuating NDMA precursors relatively quickly within the environment, and that utilities might benefit from maximizing source water residency time in the environment, prior to introduction into treatment plants., (Copyright © 2015 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.)

Contaminants of emerging concern present in domestic waste streams include a highly diverse group of potentially biologically active compounds that can be detected at trace levels in wastewater. Concerns about potential uptake into crops arise when reclaimed water is used in food crop production. The present study investigated how 9 contaminants of emerging concern in reclaimed water are taken up into edible portions of two food crops. Two flame retardant chemicals, tris(1-chloro-2-propyl) phosphate (TCPP) and tris(2-chloroethyl) phosphate (TCEP) and several polar pharmaceuticals (carbamazepine, diphenhydramine, sulfamethoxazole, and trimethoprim) accumulated in a linear, concentration-dependent manner in lettuce (Lactuca sativa) irrigated with reclaimed water, suggesting passive uptake of both neutral and ionizable chemical contaminants in lettuce. Furthermore, concentration-dependent accumulation of TCEP and TCPP from reclaimed water was also observed in strawberry fruits (Fragaria ananassa). Collectively, these data suggest that highly polar or charged contaminants can be taken up by crops from water bearing contaminants of emerging concern and can be accumulated in the edible portions. Using these data, however, estimates of human exposure to these contaminants from reclaimed water food crop accumulation suggest that exposure to the contaminants of emerging concern examined in the present study is likely substantially lower than current exposure guidelines., (© 2015 SETAC.)

Nitrosamines are considered to pose greater health risks than currently regulated DBPs and are subsequently listed as a priority pollutant by the EPA, with potential for future regulation. Denver Water, as part of the EPA's Unregulated Contaminant Monitoring Rule 2 (UCMR2) monitoring campaign, found detectable levels of N-nitrosodimethylamine (NDMA) at all sites of maximum residency within the distribution system. To better understand the occurrence of nitrosamines and nitrosamine precursors, Denver Water undertook a comprehensive year-long monitoring campaign. Samples were taken every two weeks to monitor for NDMA in the distribution system, and quarterly sampling events further examined 9 nitrosamines and nitrosamine precursors throughout the treatment and distribution systems. NDMA levels within the distribution system were typically low (>1.3 to 7.2 ng/L) with a remote distribution site (frequently >200 h of residency) experiencing the highest concentrations found. Eight other nitrosamines (N-nitrosomethylethylamine, N-nitrosodiethylamine, N-nitroso-di-n-propylamine, N-nitroso-di-n-butylamine, N-nitroso-di-phenylamine, N-nitrosopyrrolidine, N-nitrosopiperidine, N-nitrosomorpholine) were also monitored but none of these 8, or precursors of these 8 [as estimated with formation potential (FP) tests], were detected anywhere in raw, partially-treated or distribution samples. Throughout the year, there was evidence that seasonality may impact NDMA formation, such that lower temperatures (~5-10°C) produced greater NDMA than during warmer months. The year of sampling further provided evidence that water quality and weather events may impact NDMA precursor loads. Precursor loading estimates demonstrated that NDMA precursors increased during treatment (potentially from cationic polymer coagulant aids). The precursor analysis also provided evidence that precursors may have increased further within the distribution system itself. This comprehensive study of a large-scale drinking water system provides insight into the variability of NDMA occurrence in a chloraminated system, which may be impacted by seasonality, water quality changes and/or the varied origins of NDMA precursors within a given system., (Copyright © 2015 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.)

Nitrosamines are a class of toxic disinfection byproducts commonly associated with chloramination, of which several were included on the most recent U.S. EPA Contaminant Candidate List. Nitrosamine formation may be a significant barrier to ozonation in water reuse applications, particularly for direct or indirect potable reuse, since recent studies show direct formation during ozonation of natural water and treated wastewaters. Only a few studies have identified precursors which react with ozone to form N-nitrosodimethylamine (NDMA). In this study, several precursor compound solutions, prepared in ultrapure water and treated wastewater, were subjected to a 10 M excess of ozone. In parallel experiments, the precursor solutions in ultrapure water were exposed to gamma radiation to determine NDMA formation as a byproduct of reactions of precursor compounds with hydroxyl radicals. The results show six new NDMA precursor compounds that have not been previously reported in the literature, including compounds with hydrazone and carbamate moieties. Molar yields in deionized water were 61-78% for 3 precursors, 12-23% for 5 precursors and <4% for 2 precursors. Bromide concentration was important for three compounds (1,1-dimethylhydrazine, acetone dimethylhydrazone and dimethylsulfamide), but did not enhance NDMA formation for the other precursors. NDMA formation due to chloramination was minimal compared to formation due to ozonation, suggesting distinct groups of precursor compounds for these two oxidants. Hydroxyl radical reactions with the precursors will produce NDMA, but formation is much greater in the presence of molecular ozone. Also, hydroxyl radical scavenging during ozonation leads to increased NDMA formation. Molar conversion yields were higher for several precursors in wastewater as compared to deionized water, which could be due to catalyzed reactions with constituents found in wastewater or hydroxyl radical scavenging., (Copyright © 2014 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.)

The near ubiquitous presence of poly- and perfluoroalkyl substances (PFASs) in humans has raised concerns about potential human health effects from these chemicals, some of which are both extremely persistent and bioaccumulative. Because some of these chemicals are highly water soluble, one major pathway for human exposure is the consumption of contaminated drinking water. This study measured concentrations of PFASs in 18 raw drinking water sources and 2 treated wastewater effluents and evaluated 15 full-scale treatment systems for the attenuation of PFASs in water treatment utilities throughout the U.S. A liquid-chromatography tandem mass-spectrometry method was used to enable measurement of a suite of 23 PFASs, including perfluorocarboxylic acids (PFCAs) and perfluorosulfonic acids (PFSAs). Despite the differences in reporting levels, the PFASs that were detected in >70% of the source water samples (n = 39) included PFSAs, perfluorobutane sulfonic acid (74%), perfluorohexane sulfonic acid (79%), and perfluorooctane sulfonic acid (84%), and PFCAs, perfluoropentanoic acid (74%), perfluorohexanoic acid (79%), perfluoroheptanoic acid (74%), and perfluorooctanoic acid (74%). More importantly, water treatment techniques such as ferric or alum coagulation, granular/micro-/ultra- filtration, aeration, oxidation (i.e., permanganate, ultraviolet/hydrogen peroxide), and disinfection (i.e., ozonation, chlorine dioxide, chlorination, and chloramination) were mostly ineffective in removing PFASs. However, anion exchange and granular activated carbon treatment preferably removed longer-chain PFASs and the PFSAs compared to the PFCAs, and reverse osmosis demonstrated significant removal for all the PFASs, including the smallest PFAS, perfluorobutanoic acid., (Copyright © 2013 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.)

Perfluoroalkyl acids (PFAAs) are of concern because of their persistence in the environment and the potential toxicological effects on humans exposed to PFAAs through a variety of possible exposure routes, including contaminated drinking water. This study evaluated the efficacy of nanofiltration (NF) and granular activated carbon (GAC) adsorption in removing a suite of PFAAs from water. Virgin flat-sheet NF membranes (NF270, Dow/Filmtec) were tested at permeate fluxes of 17-75 Lm(-2)h(-1) using deionized (DI) water and artificial groundwater. The effects of membrane fouling by humic acid on PFAA rejection were also tested under constant permeate flux conditions. Both virgin and fouled NF270 membranes demonstrated >93% removal for all PFAAs under all conditions tested. GAC efficacy was tested using rapid small-scale columns packed with Calgon Filtrasorb300 (F300) carbon and DI water with and without dissolved organic matter (DOM). DOM effects were also evaluated with F600 and Siemens AquaCarb1240C. The F300 GAC had <20% breakthrough of all PFAAs in DI water for up to 125,000 bed volumes (BVs). When DOM was present, >20% breakthrough of all PFAAs by 10,000 BVs was observed for all carbons., (Copyright © 2013 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.)

It is widely recognized that efficient biological attenuation of bulk organic matter and trace organic chemicals (TOrC) can occur in managed aquifer recharge (MAR) systems receiving reclaimed water. The heterotrophic microbial activity in these subsurface systems is a function of the availability of biodegradable dissolved organic carbon (BDOC) present in reclaimed water. This study examined the influence of environmental factors, such as BDOC-rich (>1.6 mg/L) and BDOC-starving (<1mg/L) conditions and microbial adaptation, on the attenuation of TOrC, including clofibric acid, dichlorprop, gemfibrozil, ibuprofen, ketoprofen, mecoprop, and naproxen, within soil-columns mimicking groundwater recharge. Under conditions that were characterized by a lack of BDOC and a biocommunity that was not yet adapted to these conditions, attenuation of biodegradable TOrC was less than 15%. After a three-month adaptation period, biotransformation increased to more than 80% for the biodegradable TOrC. This suggests that adaptation likely initiates enzyme expressions that eventually results in TOrC transformations even under seemingly less favorable conditions (i.e., lack of biodegradable carbon). For both non-adapted (stressed) and adapted conditions in the presence of higher concentrations of BDOC and travel times of 7 days, the degree of biotransformation was variable across compounds but generally exceeded 25%. This suggests that BDOC above a minimum level (>1.6 mg/L) can provide favorable microbial conditions resulting in TOrC removal, even for non-adapted systems. However, it is noteworthy that adapted MAR systems that were fed with low BDOC levels performed similarly or better with respect to TOrC biotransformation than systems that received BDOC levels above 1.6 mg/L. These findings are important for field-scale applications. They suggest that MAR facilities that are microbiologically active and are fed with highly treated water with effluent concentrations of less than 1 mg/L (i.e., nanofiltration permeate) can still attenuate biodegradable TOrC., (Copyright © 2012 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.)