Journal
CHEMOSPHERE
Volume 75, Issue 8, Pages 1057-1064Publisher
PERGAMON-ELSEVIER SCIENCE LTD
DOI: 10.1016/j.chemosphere.2009.01.036
Keywords
Herault watershed; Groundwater; Positive gadolinium anomaly; Rare Earth Elements; River water; Wastewater
Categories
Funding
- Conseil General de l'Herault
- Institut Languedocien de l'Eau et de l'Environment [IFR 123 ILEE]
- French Ministry of Ecology
Ask authors/readers for more resources
Anthropogenic gadolinium (Gd), used as a contrast agent in magnetic resonance imaging, may enter rivers and groundwaters; with the effluents of wastewater treatment plant (WWTP). Such contaminations, which are mainly found in densely populated areas with highly developed medical systems, induce positive gadolinium anomalies in waters. This study reports on the occurrence of positive Gd anomaly in wastewaters, surface and groundwaters in a slightly populated Mediterranean watershed. Water samples have been collected along the Herault River, in its tributaries, in wells and springs supplying drinking water and in WWTP effluents during two sampling campaigns in February and July 2003. Systematically pronounced positive gadolinium anomalies (Gd/Gd-center dot) were observed in WWTP effluents with values reaching 306. These observations have shown that Gd/Gd-center dot can also be found in wastewater drained from rural communities, not equipped with MRI facilities. Positive gadolinium anomalies were detected in two tributaries of the Herault River and in some wells supplying drinking water, corresponding to an excess of anthropogenic Gd in water up to 15.4 pM. A monthly monitoring on one well has confirmed the persistence of gadolinium anomalies all along the year, suggesting a continual wastewater contamination on this site. A spatial monitoring on one tributary showed that wastewater contribution modifies completely the normalized REE pattern of river water, resulting in a decrease of REE amount correlated to the Gd anomaly appearance. (C) 2009 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.
Authors
I am an author on this paper
Click your name to claim this paper and add it to your profile.
Reviews
Recommended
No Data Available