Rivers Overwhelmed: Antibiotic Pollution Fuels Global Environmental Crisis
A recent study reveals that global river systems are heavily contaminated by antibiotics, threatening aquatic life and advancing drug resistance. Despite passing through wastewater treatment, a significant portion of human antibiotic use ends up in rivers, calling for urgent management strategies to mitigate environmental impact.
- Country:
- United States
A groundbreaking study highlighted a disturbing reality: millions of kilometers of the world's rivers are riddled with antibiotic pollution, posing a significant threat to aquatic ecosystems and potentially fostering drug resistance. Researchers found that approximately 8,500 tons of antibiotics, representing nearly a third of annual human consumption, make their way into river systems yearly, even after wastewater treatment.
Published in PNAS Nexus, the research stands as the first of its kind to quantify the global scale of river contamination due to human antibiotics usage. Lead author Heloisa Ehalt Macedo from McGill University emphasized that while individual antibiotic concentrations remain challenging to detect, the persistent and cumulative exposure to these substances could endanger human health and aquatic ecosystems.
The study utilized a comprehensive global model, corroborated by field data from 900 river sites, identifying amoxicillin as a primary contaminant, particularly pervasive in Southeast Asia. Co-author Bernhard Lehner stressed the need for strategic mitigation against the unexpected environmental consequences of antibiotic use, underscoring the absence of industrial and livestock sources in this alarming finding.
(With inputs from agencies.)
Google News