Occurrence, Sources and Risk Assessment of Pharmaceutical Active Compounds in the Surface Waters of Latin America

Pharmaceutical active compounds (PhACs) are reputed to cause environmental damage given their constant presence/release in the environment, their design that makes them act on non-targeted organisms, and a lack of an environmental regulatory framework. Even though PhACs are now ubiquitous in the aquatic environment around the world, there is still little knowledge of the magnitude, the conditions of their occurrence and the consequences of their presence in the water bodies of Latin America (LATAM). Therefore, the present work revises the occurrence, concentrations, sources (the most probable origins being raw and treated wastewaters (WW)), and environmental risk of PhACs and ethinylestradiol (EE2), a hormone used as a contraceptive, in the surface water compartment of LATAM. Data on the occurrence of PhACs in the continental aquatic environment has been produced in only ten of these countries, however, it has proven enough to disclose the presence of 57 PhACs, among which nineteen are the most analyzed while three analgesics and antiinflamatories (naproxen, ibuprofen (IBF) and ketoprofen) stand out given the concentrations and frequency of their detection. Although the environmental content of these compounds is most often in the range of few nanograms to few micrograms per litter (μg/L), extraordinary concentrations on the order of several tens to several hundreds of μg/L have been reported in water bodies from various countries in this region. For instance, carbamazepine (CBZ), a psychiatric drug, and EE2 have been found in concentrations high enough to cause stressed environmental damage in rivers that act as receptors of urban discharges of untreated wastewater of diverse origins, and also serve as sources of potable water. The individual ecological risk assessment of the maximum concentrations found in LATAM indicates that four of these compounds, CBZ, sufametoxazol (antibiotic), EE2 and IBF, pose a medium to high risk to aquatic organisms in all of the LATAM countries where measurements were made. Given that urban WW seems to be the source of these stressed environmental conditions, this analysis suggests that LATAM countries should focus their efforts on WW management strategies to prevent even greater environmental damage in the near future.