Contaminants of Emerging Concern (CECs) are pollutants that can cause the deleterious effect on aquatic life and human health but are not yet included in routine monitoring programs. CECs include persistent organic pollutants, pharmaceuticals and personal chare product, veterinary medicines, endocrine-disrupting chemicals, nanomaterial, and antibiotic-resistant bacteria and genes.

PANIWATER’s  is currently targeting some of the major CECs in drinking water and wastewater, such as:

Sulfamethoxazole

Sulfamethoxazole is a sulfonamide bacteriostatic antibiotic that is most commonly used in combination with trimethoprim as the drug Bactrim.

Trimethoprim

Trimethoprim is a synthetic derivative of trimethoxybenzyl-pyrimidine with antibacterial and antiprotozoal properties.

Diclofenac

Diclofenac (DFC) is a non-steroidal anti-inflammatory drug (NSAID) mostly used to treat inflammatory and painful diseases (Basavaraju, 2012; Vogna et al., 2004).

Acetaminophen

Acetaminophen is a medication widely used to reduce fever and pain. It is used in many brands of non-prescription medications and can be combined with other drugs in some prescription pain medications. (Wikipedia)

Carbamazepine

Carbamazepine is widely used to help people with epilepsy control seizures. It is also used to treat bipolar and nerve disorders

Caffeine

Caffeine is a central nervous system (CNS) stimulant of the methylxanthine class. It is the world’s most widely consumed psychoactive drug.

“Contaminants of emerging concern (CECs), including pharmaceuticals and personal care products (PPCPs), are increasingly being detected at low levels in surface water, and there is concern that these compounds may have an impact on aquatic life. It is important for EPA to be able to evaluate the potential impact of CECs and PPCPs on aquatic life and have an approach for determining protective levels for aquatic organisms.” (Source: EPA)