293-12
Vertical Transport of Hormones in Effluent-Irrigated Cropland.

Tuesday, November 5, 2013: 11:30 AM
Tampa Convention Center, Room 33, Third Floor

Senorpe Asem-Hiablie, Pennsylvania State University, University Park, PA, Herschel Elliott, Agricultural and Biological Engineering, Pennsylvania State University, University Park, PA, Clinton D. Church, USDA-ARS, Julian, PA and John E. Watson, Ecosystem Science and Management, The Pennsylvania State University, University Park, PA
The negative health effects of endocrine-disrupting compounds demand a greater understanding of their potential to contaminate groundwater from land application of byproducts and effluents.  Over a 3-month period, we investigated the leaching of secondary effluent spiked with 17 β-estradiol (E2), estrone (E1), 17 α-ethynlestradiol (EE2), and a bromide (Br) tracer through undisturbed cubic soil lysimeters (61 cm on a side) cut from areas containing Hagerstown silt loam and Morrison sandy loam soils. The Br tracer emerged from the lysimeters after only ~0.1 pore volumes of effluent had been leached, indicating the presence of preferential flow paths that potentially enhance downward migration of solutes. The leachate estrogen concentrations were generally <10% of the applied levels, suggesting retention and or degradation by the soils. The HYDRUS 1D model was used to estimate the transport parameters of the hormones.
See more from this Division: SSSA Division: Soils & Environmental Quality
See more from this Session: Agriculture, Emerging Contaminants, and Water Quality: I

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