Transfer of organic pollutants from sewage sludge to earthworms and barley under field conditions

We investigated dissipation, earthworm and plant accumulation of organic contaminants in soil amended with three types of sewage sludge in the presence and absence of plants. After 3 months, soil, plants and earthworms were analyzed for their content of organic contaminants. The results showed that the presence of plant roots did not affect dissipation rates, except for galaxolide. Transfer of galaxolide and triclosan to earthworms was significant, with transfer factors of 10–60 for galaxolide and 140–620 for triclosan in the presence of plants. In the absence of plants, transfer factors were 2–9 times higher. The reduced transfer to worms in the presence of plants was most likely due to roots serving as an alternative food source. Nonylphenol monoethoxylate rapidly dissipated in soil, but initial exposure resulted in uptake in worms, which was detected even 3 months after sewage sludge application. These values were higher than the soil concentration at the start of the exposure period. This indicates that a chemical's short half-life in soil is no guarantee that it poses a minimal environmental risk, as even short-term exposure may cause bioaccumulation and risks for chronic or even transgenerational effects.