Mechanization in agriculture & Conserving of the resources
Vol. 69 (2025), Issue 3, pg(s) 89-91

MECHANIZATION IN AGRICULTURE

In situ partitioning of selected antibiotics in the water-sediment system: effect of pH

  • 1 Justus Liebig University Giessen, Giessen, Germany; Agricultural University of Tirana, Tirana, Albania
  • 2 Ruhr University Bochum, Bochum, Germany
  • 3 Agricultural University of Tirana, Tirana, Albania
  • 4 Justus Liebig University Giessen, Giessen, Germany

Abstract

The presence of antibiotic residues in aquatic ecosystems has become an increasing environmental and public health concern due to their persistence, potential to disrupt microbial communities, and contribution to the development of antimicrobial resistance. These contaminants are often insufficiently removed by conventional wastewater treatment systems, allowing them to accumulate in surface waters and sediments, where they pose ecological risks. Understanding their occurrence, environmental behavior, and interactions with sediment is therefore essential for effective risk assessment and mitigation strategies. This study investigates the environmental occurrence and sediment-water partitioning behavior of the antibiotics ciprofloxacin (CFC) and clindamycin (CMC) in the Ishmi River basin, Albania. Both compounds were frequently detected in surface waters and sediments, with the highest concentrations found near urban sewage discharge points, where CFC and CMC reached up to 1.8 and 0.2 μg L-1 in water and 1068 and 37.8 μg kg-1 in sediments, respectively. Declining concentrations with decreasing urban impact were observed. The sediment-water partition coefficient (Kd) indicates high sorption tendencies for CFC and low to moderate for CMC. Partitioning behavior for CFC was influenced significantly by sediment pH, organic carbon and cations content. In case of CMC, however, organic carbon and iron (Fe) content were the main determining factors. The pH dependent n-octanol-water distribution coefficient (Dow), highlights the prominent sediment pH effect on CFC partitioning, and suggests that electrostatic interactions with negatively charged functional groups influence its environmental fate. These findings underscore the role of physicochemical interactions in controlling antibiotic distribution in sediments and highlight CFC and CMC as priority contaminants in regions with insufficient wastewater treatment.

Keywords

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