| 1. |
- Alygizakis, Nikiforos, et al.
(författare)
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Making waves: The NORMAN antibiotic resistant bacteria and resistance genes database (NORMAN ARB&ARG)–An invitation for collaboration to tackle antibiotic resistance
- 2024
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Ingår i: Water Research. - : Elsevier Ltd. - 0043-1354 .- 1879-2448. ; 257
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Forskningsöversikt (refereegranskat)abstract
- With the global concerns on antibiotic resistance (AR) as a public health issue, it is pivotal to have data exchange platforms for studies on antibiotic resistant bacteria (ARB) and antibiotic resistance genes (ARGs) in the environment. For this purpose, the NORMAN Association is hosting the NORMAN ARB&ARG database, which was developed within the European project ANSWER. The present article provides an overview on the database functionalities, the extraction and the contribution of data to the database. In this study, AR data from three studies from China and Nepal were extracted and imported into the NORMAN ARB&ARG in addition to the existing AR data from 11 studies (mainly European studies) on the database. This feasibility study demonstrates how the scientific community can share their data on AR to generate an international evidence base to inform AR mitigation strategies. The open and FAIR data are of high potential relevance for regulatory applications, including the development of emission limit values / environmental quality standards in relation to AR. The growth in sharing of data and analytical methods will foster collaboration on risk management of AR worldwide, and facilitate the harmonization in the effort for identification and surveillance of critical hotspots of AR. The NORMAN ARB&ARG database is publicly available at: https://www.norman-network.com/nds/bacteria/.
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| 2. |
- Borris, Matthias
(författare)
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Future trends in urban stormwater quality : effects of changes in climate, catchment characteristics and processes and socio-economic factors
- 2016
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Doktorsavhandling (övrigt vetenskapligt/konstnärligt)abstract
- Climate change and progressing urbanization cause numerous environmental concerns, including the impacts on urban drainage. Such impacts were addressed during the last two decades with focus on hydraulic overloading of drainage systems and the means of overload remediation by stormwater management. However, modern urban drainage also serves to provide and protect broad environmental services chiefly by controlling stormwater quality. During the past 40 years, a sizeable investment has been made in urban drainage systems to improve stormwater quality and protect receiving water ecosystems. Such investments are at risks, because of impaired performance of stormwater quality controls now and in the future for the following reasons: (i) Hydraulic and Pollution overloading (ii) the aging of stormwater management systems and (iii) insufficient attention paid to socio-economic issues. The primary objectives of the thesis that follows is to address the above issues by examining future trends in stormwater quality and the influential factors affecting these trends. Trends in urban stormwater quality, in response to projected changes in the climate, urban catchments and their drainage systems, and environmental practices and policies, were studied by systematically describing these changes by a set of scenarios, which were then applied to several test catchments in simulations with two well-established computer models of urban drainage (US EPA SWMM and WinSLAMM). In runoff simulations, stormwater quality was described Total suspended solids (TSS) and three heavy metals, namely Cu, Pb and Zn. The assessment of uncertainties in the simulation process and potential changes in sewer pipe materials further inspired two additional studies: Potential improvements in modelling trace metal transport and control by clarifying the role of coarse sediments on road surfaces, and water quality implications of using sewer pipes made from three different materials. Simulations with up-scaled rainfall data produced changes in stormwater quality, depending on the type of storm events. Generally pollutant loads increased due to climate changes characterized by higher depths and intensities of rainfall in future scenarios. Storms with low to intermediate depths and intensities showed the highest sensitivities to climatic changes, because runoff producing areas increased with higher storm intensities (i.e., leading to contributions of pervious areas), and sufficient pollutant supplies on catchment surfaces; for high intensity events, such supplies were quickly exhausted. TSS loads exported from catchments with low imperviousness were most sensitive to climatic changes, but the magnitudes of TSS loads were low compared to those from catchments with high imperviousness. Furthermore, potential changes in catchment characteristics and drainage systems were identified to be of importance. Future scenarios combining changes in climate and socio-economic factors showed that the impacts on stormwater quality caused by climatic changes were smaller than those caused by changes in socio-economic factors. However, future urbanization impacts on stormwater quality could be controlled by incorporating modern stormwater management measures in future catchments. Simulations of such controls indicated that they were highly effective in protecting the stormwater quality. Finally it was noted that the two applied computer models produced somewhat different results and high uncertainties when assessing the future stormwater quality. This was due to their different descriptions of the underlying processes. Hence, it was desirable to examine the feasibility of improving stormwater quality modelling, particularly with respect to heavy metals. During laboratory experiments coarse particles were identified to potentially release significant amounts of heavy metals (mostly in the particulate bound phase) during runoff events. Site/runoff event specific factors (e.g., traffic intensity and street sweeping routines) and characteristics of the particles (i.e. organic content) were identified as influential factors affecting the release of heavy metals. This finding may help improve the description of pollutant transport processes in stormwater quality models. Laboratory experiments showed that various pipe materials (PVC, concrete and corrugated steel) affected the stormwater quality differently, depending on the characteristics of the stormwater used in experiments. The concrete pipe contributed to increase pH of the transported stormwater. Metal concentrations were mostly unaffected in the PVC pipe, decreased in the concrete pipe (due to particle deposition and metal adsorption to the pipe surface), and while Zn concentrations increased in the corrugated steel pipe due to elution, Cu and Pb concentrations were reduced (due to particle deposition in the corrugations). Since the impact of climatic changes on stormwater quality was relatively small compared to changes in socio-economic factors, future efforts to maintain or improve stormwater quality should focus on implementing pollutant abatement strategies, including implementation of well-designed and maintained stormwater treatment measures.
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| 3. |
- Donner, Erica, et al.
(författare)
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Presence and fate of priority substances in domestic greywater treatment and reuse systems
- 2010
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Ingår i: Science of the Total Environment. - : Elsevier BV. - 0048-9697 .- 1879-1026. ; 408:12, s. 2444-2451
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- A wide range of household sources may potentially contribute to contaminant loads in domestic greywater. The ability of greywater treatment systems to act as emission control barriers for household micropollutants, thereby providing environmental benefits in addition to potable water savings, have not been fully explored. This paper investigates the sources, presence and potential fate of a selection of xenobiotic micropollutants in on-site greywater treatment systems. All of the investigated compounds are listed under the European Water Framework Directive as either "Priority Substances" (PS) or "Priority Hazardous Substances" (PHS). Significant knowledge gaps are identified. A wide range of potential treatment trains are available for greywater treatment and reuse but treatment efficiency data for priority substances and other micropollutants is very limited. Geochemical modelling indicates that PS/PHS removal during treatment is likely to be predominantly due to sludge/solid phase adsorption, with only minor contributions to the water phase. Many PS/PHS are resistant to biodegradation and as the majority of automated greywater treatment plants periodically discharge sludge to the municipal sewerage system, greywater treatment is unlikely to act as a comprehensive PS/PHS emission barrier. Hence, it is important to ensure that other source control options (e.g. eco-labeling, substance substitution, and regulatory controls) for household items continue to be pursued, in order that PS/PHS emissions from these sources are effectively reduced and/or phased out as required under the demands of the European Water Framework Directive.
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| 4. |
- Dulio, Valeria, et al.
(författare)
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The NORMAN Association and the European Partnership for Chemicals Risk Assessment (PARC) : let’s cooperate!
- 2020
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Ingår i: Environmental Sciences Europe. - : Springer. - 2190-4707 .- 2190-4715. ; 32:1
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- The Partnership for Chemicals Risk Assessment (PARC) is currently under development as a joint research and innovation programme to strengthen the scientific basis for chemical risk assessment in the EU. The plan is to bring chemical risk assessors and managers together with scientists to accelerate method development and the production of necessary data and knowledge, and to facilitate the transition to next-generation evidence-based risk assessment, a non-toxic environment and the European Green Deal. The NORMAN Network is an independent, well-established and competent network of more than 80 organisations in the field of emerging substances and has enormous potential to contribute to the implementation of the PARC partnership. NORMAN stands ready to provide expert advice to PARC, drawing on its long experience in the development, harmonisation and testing of advanced tools in relation to chemicals of emerging concern and in support of a European Early Warning System to unravel the risks of contaminants of emerging concern (CECs) and close the gap between research and innovation and regulatory processes. In this commentary we highlight the tools developed by NORMAN that we consider most relevant to supporting the PARC initiative: (i) joint data space and cutting-edge research tools for risk assessment of contaminants of emerging concern; (ii) collaborative European framework to improve data quality and comparability; (iii) advanced data analysis tools for a European early warning system and (iv) support to national and European chemical risk assessment thanks to harnessing, combining and sharing evidence and expertise on CECs. By combining the extensive knowledge and experience of the NORMAN network with the financial and policy-related strengths of the PARC initiative, a large step towards the goal of a non-toxic environment can be taken.
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| 5. |
- Eriksson, Eva, 1973-, et al.
(författare)
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Water management in cities of the future using emission control strategies for priority hazardous substances
- 2011
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Ingår i: Water Science and Technology. - : IWA Publishing. - 0273-1223 .- 1996-9732. ; 64:10, s. 2109-2118
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- Cities of the future face challenges with respect to the quantity and quality of water resources, and multiple managerial options need to be considered in order to safeguard urban surface water quality. In a recently completed project on “Source Control Options for Reducing Emissions of Priority Pollutants” (ScorePP), seven emission control strategies (ECS) have been developed and tested on a semi-hypothetical case city (SHCCA) for selected European priority pollutants (PPs). The SHCCA approach was chosen to facilitate transparency, to mitigate data gaps and to decrease the level of uncertainty in the results. The selected PPs differ in their uses and environmental fate and therefore accumulate in different urban environmental compartment. To achieve the required reduction in PP levels in urban waters the full implementation of existing EU regulation is essential and appropriate combinations of managerial and technological options (source control and treatment) can be highly relevant.
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| 6. |
- Fältström, Emma, 1987-
(författare)
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Mitigating Microplastics Pollution in Urban Water Systems : Flow, actors, and control measures
- 2023
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Doktorsavhandling (övrigt vetenskapligt/konstnärligt)abstract
- Water pollution has long been considered a challenge in urban areas. Urban wastewater and stormwater act as transport pathways for pollutants from urban areas to receiving waters. Microplastics are a pollution problem of growing concern. As part of the zero-pollution action plan for 2050, the European Commission has set the target to reduce emissions of microplastics to the environment by 30% from 2016 to 2030. The majority of the microplastics originate from sources on land, and urban areas are viewed as particular hotspots. More knowledge is needed on the sources and pathways of microplastics within the urban area, such as to and from urban water systems. To be able to reduce microplastics pollution, there is also a need to understand where control measures can be introduced and make an impact in terms of reduced loads to the environment. For control measures to be implemented, there is also a need to understand the incentives and challenges that the actors, who have a responsibility related to the flows, encounter when working with pollution control. The aim of this thesis was to contribute to enhanced understanding of flows of microplastics in urban water systems and how the flows can be controlled, in order to facilitate mitigation actions for these flows. This aim was addressed by identifying and quantifying sources with emissions to urban wastewater and stormwater and pathways from the urban water system, with inspiration from the method substance flow analysis. The estimated sources were also compared to measurements in raw wastewater and stormwater from four different catchments to identify matches and differences. Further, control measures were introduced to the quantified sources and pathways. Municipal officials, who can implement the control measures, were also interviewed about their incentives and challenges when controlling microplastics and other pollutants in the urban water system. The emissions of microplastics to stormwater were estimated to be much higher than those to wastewater. Tyre wear particles and cigarette butts were estimated to be the largest sources. While stormwater measurements confirmed tyre wear particles, cigarette butts, and paint particles, which was another large source according to the source estimates, could not be confirmed. Instead, the samples contained other types of microplastics. These mismatches indicate that large flows of microplastics may come from sources that have yet to be identified and quantified. The largest source to wastewater was estimated to be synthetic fibres (mainly polyester) released during laundry washing. Polyester also had the largest share in the wastewater measurements. Untreated stormwater was the largest pathway to receiving waters, followed by treated stormwater. Treated wastewater and overflows had comparatively small emissions. The measures introduced to wastewater had the potential to reduce the load of microplastics in the wastewater by half. However, as wastewater treatment retain most of the microplastics, and because the largest emissions came from stormwater, this reduction made a small difference in terms of total loads to receiving waters. Reduced urban traffic, changed driving behaviour, and more stormwater treatment, were also required to reduce emissions of microplastics from the urban water system to receiving waters by 30% in accordance with the EU target. Three types of incentives for pollution control among the municipal officials were identified. One incentive was that pollution control positively affected other aspects that were seen as important, such as that it had economic benefits or increased water- and sludge quality. Another incentive was a perceived responsibility for water quality, for the environment, or to be role models. A third incentive was a “pressure” to act from the local environmental control authorities or through local politics. The challenges for pollution control were primarily related to insufficient resources in terms of time, finances, and knowledge. Changing, limited, or lack of legislation was also identified as a challenge. Other identified challenges, such as unclear responsibilities and unclear expectations of the work, can be alleviated with a strategy or plan, but a plan did not ease all challenges. Support, in terms of financial means and guidance, is also needed so that actions set out in the plans can be implemented. So far, the control measures for microplastics related to urban water systems have primarily been preventive and focused on restricting use of microplastics in certain applications. There are no restrictions on emissions yet. If such restrictions come, where they are placed will impact the type of measures that will be introduced. This, in turn, will have consequences at the system level: for example, if it will lead to emissions in another part of the system, and which actors will be responsible for managing the pollution.
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| 7. |
- Gavrić, Snežana, et al.
(författare)
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Accumulation and contamination of gully pot sediments from varied land-use types: metal loads, concentrations and speciation
- 2023
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Ingår i: Environmental Science and Pollution Research. - : Springer. - 0944-1344 .- 1614-7499. ; 30, s. 109825-109840
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- Urban stormwater typically enters sewer networks through gully pots, which allow a primary sedimentation of solids upstream of the piped network. The regular removal and disposal of retained sediment are necessary, costly and can involve environmental risks due to the contamination of sediments with substances from the urban environment such as metals. The concentrations and speciation of Cd, Cr, Cu, Ni, Pb and Zn were analysed in sediments from 26 gully pots located in different land use areas in Stockholm, Sweden. In addition, accumulation rates of both sediment and metal masses were evaluated, providing a basis for optimising maintenance practices and better understanding of impacts of characteristic urban land use types. Metal concentrations varied by at most a factor of eight between samples and were always below Swedish polluted site guidelines for less sensitive land use, with only eight samples exceeding the guideline values for Cu and Zn for sensitive land use. Sequential extraction showed Pb and Zn to be the most mobile metals. Sediment accumulation rates varied from 0.003 to 0.197 kg/m2 impermeable surface/year. Metal accumulation rates were much more variable than metal concentrations, with a factor of up to 172 between the highest and lowest rates and the highest metal accumulation rates corresponding to the lower range of mass loads in road runoff. Differences in metal concentrations, sediment or metal mass accumulations could not be solely attributed to either traffic or catchment land use. In contrast, traction grit used for winter road maintenance, which has low (but detectable) metal concentrations, is identified as a major component of gully pot sediments, with a combined effect of both moderating metal concentrations and contributing to total mass.
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| 8. |
- Isaksson, Frida, et al.
(författare)
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Evaluating the Use of Alternative Normalization Approaches on SARS-CoV-2 Concentrations in Wastewater: Experiences from Two Catchments in Northern Sweden
- 2022
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Ingår i: Environments. - : MDPI. - 2076-3298. ; 9:3
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- The detection of SARS-CoV-2 RNA fragments in feces has paved the way for wastewater-based epidemiology to contribute to COVID-19 mitigation measures, with its use in a public health context still under development. As a way to facilitate data comparison, this paper explores the impact of using alternative normalization approaches (wastewater treatment plant (WWTP) flow, population size estimates (derived using total nitrogen (TN), total phosphorus (TP) and census data) and pepper mild mottle virus (PMMoV)) on the relationship between viral wastewater data and clinical case numbers. Influent wastewater samples were collected at two WWTPs in Luleå, northern Sweden, between January and March 2021. TN and TP were determined upon sample collection, with RNA analysis undertaken on samples after one freeze–thaw cycle. The strength of the correlation between normalization approaches and clinical cases differed between WWTPs (r ≤ 0.73 or r ≥ 0.78 at the larger WWTP and r ≤ 0.23 or r ≥ 0.43 at the smaller WWTP), indicating that the use of wastewater as an epidemiological tool is context-dependent. Depending on the normalization approach utilized, time-shifted analyses imply that wastewater data on SARS-CoV-2 RNA pre-dated a rise in clinical cases by 0–2 and 5–8 days, for the lager and smaller WWTPs, respectively. SARS-CoV-2 viral loads normalized to the population or PMMoV better reflect the number of clinical cases when comparing wastewater data between sewer catchments.
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| 9. |
- Kolarević, Stoimir, et al.
(författare)
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Detection of SARS-CoV-2 RNA in the Danube River in Serbia associated with the discharge of untreated wastewaters
- 2021
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Ingår i: Science of the Total Environment. - : Elsevier. - 0048-9697 .- 1879-1026. ; 783
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Tidskriftsartikel (refereegranskat)abstract
- In Serbia less than 13% of collected municipal wastewaters is being treated before their release in the environment. This includes all municipal wastewater discharges from Belgrade (capital city of Serbia; population 1,700,000). Previous research has identified the impacts of raw wastewater discharges from Belgrade on the Danube River, and this study investigated if such discharges also provided a pathway for SARS-CoV-2 RNA material. Samples were collected during the most critical circumstances that occurred so far within the COVID-19 pandemics in Serbia. Grab and composite samples were collected in December 2020, during the peak of the third wave (in terms of reported cases) at the site which receives the wastewater loads in Belgrade. Grab samples collected upstream and downstream of Belgrade were also analyzed. RNA was quantified using RT-qPCR with primer sets targeting nucleocapsid (N1 and N2) and envelope (E) protein genes. SARS-CoV-2 RNA (5.97 × 103 to 1.32 × 104 copies/L) was detected only in samples collected at the site strongly impacted by the wastewaters where all three applied primer sets gave positive signals. Determined concentrations correspond to those reported in wastewater influents sampled at treatment plants in other countries indicating an epidemiological indicator function of used approach for rivers with high pollution loads in countries with poor wastewater treatment.
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| 10. |
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