Presence of illicit drugs and metabolites in influents and effluents of 25 sewage water treatment plants and map of drug consumption in France.

Consumption of illicit drugs is a new concern for water management that must be considered not only because of the social and public health aspects but also in an environmental context in relation with the contamination of surface waters. Indeed, sewage treatment plant (STP) effluents contain drug residues that have not been eliminated since STP treatments are not completely efficient in their removal. We developed and validated an HPLC-MS/MS analytical method to assess the concentrations of 17 illicit drugs and metabolites in raw urban wastewaters: cocaine and its metabolites, amphetamine and amphetamine-likes (methamphetamine, MDMA, MDEA, MDA), opiates and opiate substitutes (methadone and buprenorphine), and THC-COOH cannabis metabolite. This method has been applied to the analysis of influent and effluent samples from 25 STPs located in France all over the country. The results allowed evaluating the drug consumption in the areas connected to the STPs and the efficiency of the treatment technology implied. We selected STPs according to their volume capacity, their treatment technologies (biofilters, activated sludges, MBR) and their geographical location. In influents, the concentrations varied between 6 ng/L for EDDP (main metabolite of methadone) and 3050 ng/L for benzoylecgonine (cocaine metabolite). Consumption maps were drawn for cocaine, MDMA, opiates, cannabis and amphetamine-like compounds. Geographical significant differences were observed and highlighted the fact that drug consumption inside a country is not homogeneous. In parallel, comparisons between STP technology processes showed differences of efficiency. More, some compounds appear very resistant to STP processes leading to the contamination of receiving water.

Nefau T ，Karolak S ，Castillo L ，Boireau V ，Levi Y ... -  《-》

Simultaneous ultra-high-pressure liquid chromatography-tandem mass spectrometry determination of amphetamine and amphetamine-like stimulants, cocaine and its metabolites, and a cannabis metabolite in surface water and urban wastewater.

Bijlsma L ，Sancho JV ，Pitarch E ，Ibáñez M ，Hernández F ... -  《-》

Investigation of drugs of abuse and relevant metabolites in Dutch sewage water by liquid chromatography coupled to high resolution mass spectrometry.

An extensive study on the presence of illicit drugs and pharmaceuticals with potential for abuse in sewage waters was made for the first time in the Netherlands. A total number of 24 target drugs were investigated in influent and effluent wastewater using liquid chromatography coupled to a high resolution Orbitrap mass spectrometer. This powerful analyzer has allowed not only the detection and identification of the compounds under investigation, but also their quantification at very low levels, which is highly innovative in the field of drugs of abuse. Samples were taken from five sewage treatment plants (STPs) during a whole week. The selected STPs served four cities of different size and an international airport. Daily variances of drug loads were demonstrated and removal efficiencies calculated for each drug and STP individually. Twelve target compounds were found in at least one influent or effluent, and highest concentrations were observed in influents collected from more urbanized areas. The compounds more frequently detected were amphetamine, benzoylecgonine, cocaine and THCCOOH together with the pharmaceuticals codeine, oxazepam and temazepam. Established week trends in consumption of drugs showed distinct differences between individual drugs. A slightly different occurrence pattern was observed in wastewaters from the airport. Thus, methamphetamine was only detected at Schiphol, a fact that was interpreted to be caused by consumption of this drug by travelers. Despite the fact that the Netherlands has frequently been criticized for its liberal drug policy the results from this study did not reveal higher drug consumption than found elsewhere, with the exception of cannabis.

Bijlsma L ，Emke E ，Hernández F ，de Voogt P ... -  《-》

Analysis of llicit and illicit drugs in waste, surface and lake water samples using large volume direct injection high performance liquid chromatography--electrospray tandem mass spectrometry (HPLC-MS/MS).

Llicit and illicit drugs represent a recent group of emerging contaminants and have been found in the aquatic environment. A HPLC-MS/MS method was developed using direct injection (DI) of larger volumes and a polar endcapped reversed-phase (RP) column to measure drug components in water samples belonging to the cocaine group, opiates, amphetamine-like stimulants and metabolites thereof. After validation, including sensitivity, linearity, recovery, precision and matrix effect studies, most drugs could be detected with limits of quantitation (LOQ) of 20 ng L(-1) in wastewater (WW) and 0.2 ng L(-1) in surface water. The major substances found in influents and effluents were cocaine (COC), benzoylecgonine (BE), morphine (MO), methadone (MD) and its main metabolite 2-ethylidene-1,5-dimethyl-3,3-diphenylpyrrolidine (EDDP) with concentrations up to 2 μg L(-1), followed by codeine (COD) and the amphetamines which ranged between 20 and 400 ng L(-1). Except for MO, COD and EDDP levels were generally lower in the effluents. River and lake water contained trace amounts of mainly BE, MD and EDDP from the high pg L(-1) to the low ng L(-1) level. Monitoring COC and BE levels over 11 consecutive days in influents and effluents suggests a consumption preference on week-end days. Finally, measuring an influent after a major music event revealed that sewage treatment plants (STPs) are exposed, for a limited period of time, to high concentration peaks of COC and BE as well as amphetamine-like stimulants such as ecstasy (MDMA).

Berset JD ，Brenneisen R ，Mathieu C 《-》

Assessment of illicit drugs in wastewater and estimation of drugs of abuse in Adana Province, Turkey.

Wastewater-based epidemiology (WBE) is a rapidly developing discipline that has the potential to monitor real-time data on regional and temporal differences regarding the use of illicit drugs. With WBE, metabolic products discharged for drug consumption are rapidly collected by sewage systems, which provide valuable evidence on the types and quantities of drugs consumed by a given community. In this study, the samples were collected from the wastewaters entering the facilities in Seyhan and Yuregir Waste Water Treatment Plants (WWTPs), in Adana Province. Composite wastewater analysis was performed by using liquid chromatography tandem mass spectrometry (LC-MS/MS) and the analysis revealed multiple drugs including cocaine and its main metabolite, benzoylecgonine, amphetamine-like stimulants including amphetamine, methamphetamine, 3,4-methylenedioxymethamphetamine (MDMA), 3,4-methylenedioxyamphetamine (MDA), and 3,4-methylenedioxyethamphetamine (MDEA), opiates including morphine, codeine, heroin metabolite 6-acetylmorphine (6-MAM), the metabolite of cannabis, 11-nor-carboxy-THC (THC-COOH), and the main metabolite of Δ9-tetrahydrocannabinol (THC), 11-hydroxy (THC-OH). Mean drug consumption rates were as follows: cocaine, 0.18; amphetamine, 0.43; methamphetamine, 0.06; MDMA (ecstasy), 1.30; heroin, 1.03; THC (marijuana), 28.60 doses/day/1000 persons (15-64years). The consumption rates for some illicit drugs showed a significant difference between seasons, regions, and weekdays-weekends.

Daglioglu N ，Guzel EY ，Kilercioglu S 《-》