Traces of drugs and personal care products in surface marine waters and waste in the Kongsfjordena fjord of the archipelago Arctic of the Svalbard islands.
This is what emerges from a research published in the magazine Science of the Total Environmentcoordinated by the Institute of Polar Sciences of the National Research Council in Rome (CNR-ISP) and created in collaboration with the University of Rome Sapienza and the Norwegian Sintef Ocean research institute.
The study detected the presence of antibiotics, antipyretics, hormones, anti-inflammatory, antiiepileptics, stimulants, disinfectants, caffeine and repellents for insects, both at sea and in the waste water from the international research bases in NY-ålesund.
These compounds showed a high persistence in the marine environment, acute by the arctic conditions that slow down the natural degradation processes-explains Jasmin Rauseo, researcher of the CNR-ISP. By performing an assessment of ecological risk, we discovered that the mixture of these contaminants can compromise the health of aquatic organisms at different levels of the trophic chain, altering the functionality of the endocrine and hormonal system, with a potential increase in antibiotic resistance.
According to the study, this presence is also caused by the lack of adequate waste water treatment systems, while the environmental stability of contaminants is favored by low temperatures and low sunlight.
These evidence show the potential long -term risk for arctic ecosystems and local populations. The Arctic is currently facing environmental challenges linked to the presence of new pollutants, against whom containment measures have not yet been adopted worldwide.
For this reason, it is urgent to intensify the monitoring programs, giving priorities to studies that can help promote global policies to limit the contamination of the Arctic seas, safeguarding their biodiversity, so unique and fragile, concludes Luisa Patrolecco, researcher of the CNR-ISP responsible for the research group.
