Using selected pharmaceutical compounds as indicators for surface water and groundwater interaction in the hyporheic zone of a low permeability riverbank

Abstract

This study investigates the applicability of selected pharmaceutical compounds (e.g. sulfamethoxazole, carbamazepine, ibuprofen) as anthropogenic indicators for the interaction of surface water and groundwater in the hyporheic zone of an alluvial stream. Differences in transport behaviour and the resulting distribution of the pharmaceuticals in the riverine groundwater were evaluated. The investigated field site in the Grand Duchy of Luxembourg, Europe is represented by low permeable sediments and confined aquifer conditions. Water samples from single‐screen and multilevel observation wells installed in the riverbank at the field site were taken and analysed for selected pharmaceuticals and major ions for a period of 6 months. Surface water and groundwater levels were recorded to detect effluent and influent aquifer conditions. Nearly all pharmaceuticals that were detected in the stream were also found in the riverine groundwater. However, concentrations were significantly lower in groundwater than in surface water. A classification into mobile and sorbing/degradable pharmaceuticals based on their transport relevant properties was made and verified by the field data. Gradients with depth for some of these pharmaceuticals were documented and a more detailed understanding of the system stream/riverbank was obtained. It was demonstrated that the selected pharmaceutical compounds can be used as anthropogenic indicators at the investigated field site. However, not all compounds seem to be suitable indicators as their transport behaviour is not fully understood. Copyright © 2012 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

Use of passive sampling and high resolution mass spectrometry using a suspect screening approach to characterise emerging pollutants in contaminated groundwater and runoff

“…5). It was previously found that sulfamethoxazole is mobile, only slightly degradable and therefore easily transported to groundwater (Banzhaf et al, 2012).…”

Groundwater and Surface Water Interaction at the Regional-scale – A Review with Focus on Regional Integrated Models

“…Allen et al 2010;Banzhaf et al 2013;Boulton et al 1998;Krause et al 2009). Much less research has been carried out at the local or flood plain scale (Langhoff et al 2006, see also section 2.1.2).…”

Comparison of environmental tracers including organic micropollutants as groundwater exfiltration indicators into a small river of a karstic catchment

“…Despite the known negative influence of these compounds on freshwater ecosystems such as toxicological effects on biological systems, they also can be used for scientific purposes: Persistent organic micropollutants may be suitable tracers to better understand and characterize hydrological processes (Clara et al, 2004). Organic micropollutant concentrations (sulfamethoxazole, carbamazepine, ibuprofen) were used as anthropogenic indicators in the hyporheic zone (Banzhaf, Krein, & Scheytt, 2012) and to understand GW–SW interactions in a lowland Chalk catchment (Manamsa, Lapworth, & Stuart, 2016). A prominent example is carbamazepine which is often considered conservative due to its long half‐life compared to the travel time of river water (Guillet et al, 2019; Kunkel & Radke, 2012; Pal, Gin, Lin, & Reinhard, 2010; Schwientek, Guillet, Rügner, Kuch, & Grathwohl, 2016).…”