We couple current findings of pesticides in surface and groundwater to the history of pesticide usage, focusing on the potential contribution of legacy pesticides to the predicted ecotoxicological impact on benthic macroinvertebrates in headwater streams. Results suggest that groundwater, in addition to precipitation and surface runoff, is an important source of pesticides (particularly legacy herbicides) entering surface water. In addition to current-use active ingredients, legacy pesticides, metabolites and impurities are important for explaining the estimated total toxicity attributable to pesticides. Sediment-bound insecticides were identified as the primary source for predicted ecotoxicity. Our results support recent studies indicating that highly sorbing chemicals contribute and even drive impacts on aquatic ecosystems. They further indicate that groundwater contaminated by legacy and contemporary pesticides may impact adjoining streams. Stream observations of soluble and sediment-bound pesticides are valuable for understanding the long-term fate of pesticides in aquifers, and should be included in stream monitoring programs.

Intact aquifer sediments were collected to obtain As-resistant bacteria from the Hetao basin. Two strains of aerobic As-resistant bacteria (Pseudomonas sp. M17-1 and Bacillus sp. M17-15) were isolated from the aquifer sediments. Those strains exhibited high resistances to both As(III) and As(V). Results showed that both strains had arr and ars genes, and led to reduction of dissolved As(V), goethite-adsorbed As(V), scorodite As(V) and sediment As(V), in the presence of organic carbon as the carbon source. After reduction of solid As(V), As release was observed from the solids to solutions. Strain M17-15 had a higher ability than strain M17-1 in reducing As(V) and promoting the release of As. These results suggested that the strains would mediate As(V) reduction to As(III), and thereafter release As(III), due to the higher mobility of As(III) in most aquifer systems. The processes would play an important role in genesis of high As groundwater.

The Chalk aquifer of Northern Europe is an internationally important source of drinking water and sustains baseflow for surface water ecosystems. The areal distribution of microorganic (MO) contaminants, particularly non-regulated emerging MOs, in this aquifer is poorly understood. This study presents results from a reconnaissance survey of MOs in Chalk groundwater, including pharmaceuticals, personal care products and pesticides and their transformation products, conducted across the major Chalk aquifers of England and France. Data from a total of 345 sites collected during 2011 were included in this study to provide a representative baseline assessment of MO occurrence in groundwater. A suite of 42 MOs were analysed for at each site including industrial compounds (n=16), pesticides (n=14) and pharmaceuticals, personal care and lifestyle products (n=12). Occurrence data is evaluated in relation to land use, aquifer exposure, well depth and depth to groundwater to provide an understanding of vulnerable groundwater settings.

Sewage input into a karst aquifer via leaking sewers and cesspits was investigated over five years in an urbanized catchment. Of 66 samples, analyzed for 25 pharmaceuticals, 91% indicated detectable concentrations. The former standard iodinated X-ray contrast medium (ICM) diatrizoic acid was detected most frequently. Remarkably, it was found more frequently in groundwater (79%, median: 54 ng/l) than in wastewater (21%, 120 ng/l), which is supposed to be the only source in this area. In contrast, iopamidol, a possible substitute, spread over the aquifer during the investigation period whereas concentrations were two orders of magnitude higher in wastewater than in groundwater. Knowledge about changing application of pharmaceuticals thus is essential to assess urban impacts on aquifers, especially when applying mass balances. Since correlated concentrations provide conclusive evidence that, for this catchment, nitrate in groundwater rather comes from urban than from rural sources, ICM are considered useful tracers.

In this study, the effectiveness of bioremediating 1,2-dichloroethane (DCA)-contaminated groundwater under different oxidation–reduction processes was evaluated. Microcosms were constructed using indigenous bacteria and activated sludge as the inocula and cane molasses and a slow polycolloid-releasing substrate (SPRS) as the primary substrates. Complete DCA removal was obtained within 30 days under aerobic and reductive dechlorinating conditions. In anaerobic microcosms with sludge and substrate addition, chloroethane, vinyl chloride, and ethene were produced. The microbial communities and DCA-degrading bacteria in microcosms were characterized by 16S rRNA-based denatured-gradient-gel electrophoresis profiling and nucleotide sequence analyses. Real-time polymerase chain reaction was applied to evaluate the variations in Dehalococcoides spp. and Desulfitobacterium spp. Increase in Desulfitobacterium spp. indicates that the growth of Desulfitobacterium might be induced by DCA. Results indicate that DCA could be used as the primary substrate under aerobic conditions. The increased ethene concentrations imply that dihaloelimination was the dominate mechanism for DCA biodegradation.

The European Union authorization procedure for pesticides includes an assessment of the leaching risk posed by pesticides and their degradation products (DP) with the aim of avoiding any unacceptable influence on groundwater. Twelve-year's results of the Danish Pesticide Leaching Assessment Programme reveal shortcomings to the procedure by having assessed leaching into groundwater of 43 pesticides applied in accordance with current regulations on agricultural fields, and 47 of their DP. Three types of leaching scenario were not fully captured by the procedure: long-term leaching of DP of pesticides applied on potato crops cultivated in sand, leaching of strongly sorbing pesticides after autumn application on loam, and leaching of various pesticides and their DP following early summer application on loam. Rapid preferential transport that bypasses the retardation of the plow layer primarily in autumn, but also during early summer, seems to dominate leaching in a number of those scenarios.

GeoChip, a comprehensive gene microarray, was used to examine changes in microbial functional gene structure throughout the 4-year life cycle of a pilot-scale ethanol blend plume, including 2-year continuous released followed by plume disappearance after source removal. Canonical correlation analysis (CCA) and Mantel tests showed that dissolved O2 (which was depleted within 5 days of initiating the release and rebounded 194 days after source removal) was the most influential environmental factor on community structure. Initially, the abundance of anaerobic BTEX degradation genes increased significantly while that of aerobic BTEX degradation genes decreased. Gene abundance for N fixation, nitrification, P utilization, sulfate reduction and S oxidation also increased, potentially changing associated biogeochemical cycle dynamics. After plume disappearance, most genes returned to pre-release abundance levels, but the final functional structure significantly differed from pre-release conditions. Overall, observed successions of functional structure reflected adaptive responses that were conducive to biodegradation of ethanol-blend releases.

Adsorption by carbonaceous sorbents is among the most feasible processes to remove perfluorooctane sulfonic (PFOS) and carboxylic acids (PFOA) from drinking and ground waters. However, carbon surface chemistry, which has long been recognized essential for dictating performance of such sorbents, has never been considered for PFOS and PFOA adsorption. Thus, the role of surface chemistry was systematically investigated using sorbents with a wide range in precursor material, pore structure, and surface chemistry. Sorbent surface chemistry overwhelmed physical properties in controlling the extent of uptake. The adsorption affinity was positively correlated carbon surface basicity, suggesting that high acid neutralizing or anion exchange capacity was critical for substantial uptake of PFOS and PFOA. Carbon polarity or hydrophobicity had insignificant impact on the extent of adsorption. Synthetic polymer-based Ambersorb and activated carbon fibers were more effective than activated carbon made of natural materials in removing PFOS and PFOA from aqueous solutions.

The decline of groundwater table and deterioration of water quality related to seawater have long been regarded as a crucial problem in coastal regions. In this work, a hydrogeologic investigation using combined hydrochemical and isotopic approaches was conducted in the coastal region of the South China Sea near the Leizhou peninsular to provide primary insight into seawater intrusion and groundwater circulation. Hydrochemical and isotopic data show that local groundwater is subjected to anthropogenic activities and geochemical processes, such as evaporation, water–rock interaction, and ion exchange. However, seawater intrusion driven by the over-exploitation of groundwater and insufficient recharge is the predominant factor controlling groundwater salinization. Systematic and homologic isotopic characteristics of most samples suggest that groundwater in volcanic area is locally recharged and likely caused by modern precipitation. However, very depleted stable isotopes and extremely low tritium of groundwater in some isolated aquifers imply a dominant role of palaeowater.

Food with elevated arsenic concentrations is becoming widely recognized as a global threat to human health. This review describes the current state of knowledge of soil pollution derived from irrigation with arsenic-contaminated groundwater, highlighting processes controlling arsenic cycling in soils and resulting arsenic impacts on crop and human health. Irrigation practices utilized for both flooded and upland crops have the potential to load arsenic to soils, with a host of environmental and anthropogenic factors ultimately determining the fate of arsenic. Continual use of contaminated groundwater for irrigation may result in soils with concentrations sufficient to create dangerous arsenic concentrations in the edible portions of crops. Recent advances in low-cost water and soil management options show promise for mitigating arsenic impacts of polluted soils. Better understanding of arsenic transfer from soil to crops and the controls on long-term soil arsenic accumulation is needed to establish effective arsenic mitigation strategies within vulnerable agronomic systems.