Fish Endocrine Disruption
Responses to a Major Wastewater
Treatment Facility Upgrade
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Abstract
The urban-water cycle modifies natural stream hydrology,
and domestic
and commercial activities increase the burden of endocrine-disrupting
chemicals, such as steroidal hormones and 4-nonylphenol, that can
disrupt endocrine system function in aquatic organisms. This paper
presents a series of integrated chemical and biological investigations
into the occurrence, fate, and effects of endocrine-disrupting chemicals
in the City of Boulder Colorado’s WWTF and Boulder Creek, the
receiving stream. Results are presented showing the effects of a full-scale
upgrade of the WWTF (that treats 0.6 m<sup>3</sup> s<sup>–1</sup> of sewage) from a trickling filter/solids contact process to an
activated sludge process on the removal of endocrine-disrupting compounds
and other contaminants (including nutrients, boron, bismuth, gadolinium,
and ethylenediaminetetraacetic acid) through each major treatment
unit. Corresponding impacts of pre- and postupgrade effluent chemistry
on fish reproductive end points were evaluated using on-site, continuous-flow
experiments, in which male fathead minnows (<i>Pimephales promelas</i>) were exposed for 28 days to upstream Boulder Creek water and WWTF
effluent under controlled conditions. The upgrade of the WWTF resulted
in improved removal efficiency for many endocrine-disrupting chemicals,
particularly 17β-estradiol and estrone, and fish exposed to
the postupgrade effluent indicated reduction in endocrine disruption
relative to preupgrade conditions