The research, part of the OneAquaHealth project, analyzed 102 streams located in the cities of Benevento (Italy), Coimbra (Portugal), Ghent (Belgium), Toulouse (France), and Oslo (Norway), according to a statement from the University of Coimbra (FCTUC).
The study results indicate the presence of 16 pharmaceuticals from six therapeutic groups, detected in 91% of the sampling sites.
Pharmaceutical mixtures were found in 79% of the analyzed points.
“The most frequent compounds include irbesartan and bisoprolol (antihypertensives), as well as carbamazepine (anticonvulsant), identified in more than half of the urban streams,” said FCTUC doctoral student Fernanda Rodrigues.
The statement noted, “Paracetamol showed higher concentrations, while irbesartan, bisoprolol, and fluoxetine reached record levels compared to previous scientific literature.”
In Coimbra, 14 pharmaceuticals were detected in urban streams, highlighting carbamazepine, irbesartan, losartan, atenolol, and venlafaxine.
Maria João Feio, a researcher from the Marine and Environmental Sciences Center (MARE) at FCTUC, noted, “One sampling site in the city presented 70% of the analyzed compounds,” with the highest concentrations corresponding to the antihypertensives irbesartan and atenolol.
“Although less frequent, four of the seven tested antibiotics were also found in Coimbra’s waters, a particularly concerning finding in the face of increasing antimicrobial resistance, which is considered one of the most severe threats to global public health,” she warned.
Significant statistical differences were identified in contamination patterns between the cities, with Coimbra and Oslo showing lower levels.
In Portugal, the presence of pharmaceuticals was statistically associated with the morphological and ecological condition of the streams and the degree of urban impermeabilization, according to FCTUC.
These results demonstrate that pollution does not only depend on drug consumption but also on the ecological quality and conservation state of riparian ecosystems.
Researchers pointed out “the urgent need to restore freshwater ecosystems and to implement new drug removal technologies in wastewater treatment plants.”
