The fate of emerging pollutants in aquatic systems: An overview

The presence of emerging pollutants in aquatic systems such as rivers, lakes, groundwater, glaciers, wetlands, the ocean poses significant risks to human and environmental health. Emerging pollutants are natural or synthetic chemicals, microorganisms, or particles that are generally not monitored in the environment. Several studies have detected various classes of emerging pollutants in aquatic environments at concentrations ranging from several μg L−1 to even ng L−1 levels. This chapter introduces the fate of emerging pollutants in aquatic environments. It starts by presenting a brief overview of the distribution of emerging contaminants in various aquatic compartments. It then explains the effect of physicochemical properties in the environmental distribution and transport of organic and inorganic emerging contaminants. A full discussion on various transformation processes responsible for the removal of emerging contaminants in the aquatic environment, the effects of chirality on biotransformation of organic emerging contaminants, and mechanisms of plant uptake will be included.