jf503850v_si_001.pdf (236.38 kB)
Distribution of Antibiotics in Wastewater-Irrigated Soils and Their Accumulation in Vegetable Crops in the Pearl River Delta, Southern China
journal contribution
posted on 2014-11-19, 00:00 authored by Min Pan, Chris K. C. Wong, L. M. ChuWastewater
is increasingly being used to irrigate agricultural
land in many countries around the world. However, limited research
has examined the occurrence of antibiotics in soil irrigated with
wastewater and their accumulation in plants. This study aimed to determine
the distribution of various types of antibiotics in different environmental
matrices in the Pearl River Delta (PRD) region and to evaluate their
accumulation and translocation in edible crops. Samples were collected
from six sites in the PRD where either domestic wastewater or fishpond
water was used for irrigation. Results showed that fishpond water
irrigated soils had higher concentrations of antibiotics than wastewater-irrigated
soils. Different trends were observed in the accumulation of antibiotics
in the different edible parts of various crops. Despite the low human
annual exposure to antibiotics through the consumption of edible crops
(1.10 to 7950 μg/y), the potential adverse effects of antibiotics
along the food chain should not be neglected.