Dataset Information

Performance Efficiency of Conventional Treatment Plants and Constructed Wetlands towards Reduction of Antibiotic Resistance.

ABSTRACT: Domestic and industrial wastewater discharges harbor rich bacterial communities, including both pathogenic and commensal organisms that are antibiotic-resistant (AR). AR pathogens pose a potential threat to human and animal health. In wastewater treatment plants (WWTP), bacteria encounter environments suitable for horizontal gene transfer, providing an opportunity for bacterial cells to acquire new antibiotic-resistant genes. With many entry points to environmental components, especially water and soil, WWTPs are considered a critical control point for antibiotic resistance. The primary and secondary units of conventional WWTPs are not designed for the reduction of resistant microbes. Constructed wetlands (CWs) are viable wastewater treatment options with the potential for mitigating AR bacteria, their genes, pathogens, and general pollutants. Encouraging performance for the removal of AR (2-4 logs) has highlighted the applicability of CW on fields. Their low cost of construction, operation and maintenance makes them well suited for applications across the globe, especially in developing and low-income countries. The present review highlights a better understanding of the performance efficiency of conventional treatment plants and CWs for the elimination/reduction of AR from wastewater. They are viable alternatives that can be used for secondary/tertiary treatment or effluent polishing in combination with WWTP or in a decentralized manner.

SUBMITTER: Hazra M

PROVIDER: S-EPMC8773441 | biostudies-literature |

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature

ACCESS DATA

Similar Datasets

Project description:BackgroundThe discharge of complex mixtures of nutrients, organic micropollutants, and antibiotic resistance genes from treated municipal wastewater into freshwater systems are global concerns for human health and aquatic organisms. Antibiotic resistance genes (ARGs) are genes that have the ability to impart resistance to antibiotics and reduce the efficacy of antibiotics in the systems in which they are found. In the rural community of Grand Marais, Manitoba, Canada, wastewater is treated passively in a sewage lagoon prior to passage through a treatment wetland and subsequent release into surface waters. Using this facility as a model system for the Canadian Prairies, the two aims of this study were to assess: (a) the presence of nutrients, micropollutants (i.e., pesticides, pharmaceuticals), and ARGs in lagoon outputs, and (b) their potential removal by the treatment wetland prior to release to surface waters in 2012.ResultsAs expected, concentrations of nitrogen and phosphorus species were greatest in the lagoon and declined with movement through the wetland treatment system. Pharmaceutical and agricultural chemicals were detected at concentrations in the ng/L range. Concentrations of these compounds spiked downstream of the lagoon following discharge and attenuation was observed as the effluent migrated through the wetland system. Hazard quotients calculated for micropollutants of interest indicated minimal toxicological risk to aquatic biota, and results suggest that the wetland attenuated atrazine and carbamazepine significantly. There was no significant targeted removal of ARGs in the wetland and our data suggest that the bacterial population in this system may have genes imparting antibiotic resistance.ConclusionsThe results of this study indicate that while the treatment wetland may effectively attenuate excess nutrients and remove some micropollutants and bacteria, it does not specifically target ARGs for removal. Additional studies would be beneficial to determine whether upgrades to extend retention time or alter plant community structure within the wetland would optimize removal of micropollutants and ARGs to fully characterize the utility of these systems on the Canadian Prairies.

Dataset Information

Performance Efficiency of Conventional Treatment Plants and Constructed Wetlands towards Reduction of Antibiotic Resistance.

Similar Datasets

OmicsDI is part of the ELIXIR infrastructure