Co-contaminant risks in water reuse and biosolids application for agriculture

Carter, Laura J. ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-1146-7920; Adams, Beth ORCID: https://orcid.org/0009-0001-1130-7636; Berman, Tamar; Cohen, Nririt; Cytryn, Eddie; Elder, F.C.T.; Garduño-Jiménez, Andrea-Lorena ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0001-8441-8444; Greenwald, Danny; Kasprzyk-Hordern, Barbara ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-6809-2875; Korach-Rechtman, Hila ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-0405-2532; Lahive, Elma ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0001-9975-8521; Martin, Ian; Ben Mordechay, Evyatar; Murray, Aimee K. ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-1388-754X; Murray, Laura M. ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0003-0773-8908; Nightingale, John; Radian, Adi ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0002-4975-4415; Rubin, Andrey Ethan ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0001-6205-6622; Sallach, Brett; Sela-Donenfeld, Dalit ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0001-7498-061X; Skilbeck, Olivia ORCID: https://orcid.org/0009-0008-5805-7874; Sleight, Harriet ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0003-2810-0217; Stanton, Thomas; Zucker, Ines ORCID: https://orcid.org/0000-0001-7408-6757; Chefetz, Benny. 2025 Co-contaminant risks in water reuse and biosolids application for agriculture. Environmental Pollution, 126219. 10.1016/j.envpol.2025.126219

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Abstract/Summary

Agriculture made the shift toward resource reuse years ago, incorporating materials such as treated wastewater and biosolids. Since then, research has documented the widespread presence of contaminants of emerging concern in agricultural systems. Chemicals such as pesticides, pharmaceuticals and poly- and -perfluoroalkyl substances (PFASs); particulate matter such as nanomaterials and microplastics; and biological agents such as antibiotic resistance genes (ARGs) and bacteria (ARB) are inadvertently introduced into arable soils where they can be taken up by crops and introduced to the food-web. Thus, concern about the presence of contaminants in agricultural environments has grown in recent years with evidence emerging linking agricultural exposure and accumulation in crops to ecosystem and human health effects. Our current assessment of risk is siloed by working within disciplines (i.e., chemistry and microbiology) and mostly focused on individual chemical classes. By not acknowledging the fact that contaminants are mostly introduced as a mixture, with the potential for interactions, with each other and with environmental factors, we are limiting our current approach to evaluate the real potential for ecosystem and human health effects. By uniting expertise across disciplines to integrate recent understanding regarding the risks posed by a range of chemically diverse contaminants in resources destined for reuse, this review provides a holistic perspective on the current regulatory challenges to ensure safe and sustainable reuse of wastewater and biosolids to support a sanitation-agriculture circular economy.

Item Type:	Publication - Article
Digital Object Identifier (DOI):	10.1016/j.envpol.2025.126219
UKCEH and CEH Sections/Science Areas:	Environmental Pressures and Responses (2025-)
ISSN:	0269-7491
Additional Keywords:	wastewater, biosolids, sewage sludge, irrigation, human health, antimicrobial resistance
NORA Subject Terms:	Ecology and Environment Agriculture and Soil Science
Date made live:	09 Apr 2025 11:15 +0 (UTC)
URI:	https://nora.nerc.ac.uk/id/eprint/539234

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