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. 2020 Jun:155:111153.
doi: 10.1016/j.marpolbul.2020.111153. Epub 2020 May 8.

Contaminants, mutagenicity and toxicity in the surface waters of Kyiv, Ukraine

Kay T Ho  1 , Igor M Konovets  2 , Anna V Terletskaya  3 , Mykhailo V Milyukin  3 , Artem V Lyashenko  2 , Larisa I Shitikova  4 , Lyudmila I Shevchuk  4 , Sergey A Afanasyev  2 , Yurii G Krot  2 , Kateryna Ye Zorina-Sakharova  2 , Vladislav V Goncharuk  3 , Maksym M Skrynnyk  3 , Michaela A Cashman  5 , Robert M Burgess  6
Affiliations

Contaminants, mutagenicity and toxicity in the surface waters of Kyiv, Ukraine

Kay T Ho et al. Mar Pollut Bull. 2020 Jun.

Abstract

Kyiv is Ukraine's capital and largest city. Home to 3 million people, this area has a rich history of agriculture and industry. The Dnieper River is Ukraine's largest river and it passes through the center of Kyiv. Little information on emerging and legacy compounds or their toxicity in the Dnieper River exists. For this investigation, water was sampled for PAHs, PCBs, metals and emerging contaminants including pharmaceuticals and personal care products. The effects of surface waters in the Dnieper were evaluated using the Ames, chronic and acute daphnia, and a ciliate (Colpoda stennii) assays. Concentrations of legacy and emerging contaminants were found in seven stations near the municipal water treatment plant (MWTP) and receiving waters. The MWTP appeared to remove some of the emerging contaminants, however the legacy compounds (PCBs and PAHs) were not affected by the MWTP and appeared to be more wide-spread indicating a number of sources to the Dnieper River. Acute and chronic toxicity were associated with the influent and effluent of the MWTP, however mutagenicity was noted in surface waters throughout the Dnieper River including upstream of the MWTP. This study provides the first snapshot of possible human health and ecological risks associated with surface waters of the Dnieper. More research on seasonal changes and sources of toxicity, mutagenicity and contaminants would aid in completing a more comprehensive risk assessment of surface waters of the Dnieper River.

Keywords: Aquatic toxicity; Dnieper; Emerging contaminants; Kyiv, Ukraine; Legacy contaminants; Mutagenicity.

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Conflict of interest statement

Declaration of competing interest The authors declare that they have no known competing financial interests or personal relationships that could have appeared to influence the work reported in this paper.

Figures

Figure 1.
Figure 1.
Geographical location of sampling stations.
Figure 2.
Figure 2.
Dissolved concentrations (μg/L) of (a) total emerging contaminants (EC) and (b) total metals in surface waters collected in Fall 2011, Spring 2012 and Fall 2013 from stations around the Kyiv municipal wastewater treatment plant. Classes of ECs and individual metal contributions are also shown. Concentrations of emerging contaminants were below detection limits for Stations 5, 6 and 7. See supplemental information Tables S3 and S4 for specific EC and metal concentrations.
Figure 3.
Figure 3.
Concentrations (ng/L) of (a) total PCBs and (b) total PAHs in surface waters collected in Fall 2011, Spring 2012 and Fall 2013 from stations around the Kyiv municipal wastewater treatment plant. See supplemental information Tables S5 and S6 for specific PCB and PAH concentrations.
Figure 4.
Figure 4.
Concentrations (ng/L) of (a) total DDTs and (b) total non-DDT pesticides in surface waters collected in Fall 2011 and Spring 2012 from stations around the Kyiv municipal wastewater treatment plant. Individual pesticide contributions are also shown. See supplemental information Tables S7 and S8 for specific pesticide concentrations.
Figure 5.
Figure 5.
Acute toxicity measured by the D. magna, C dubia and C. stenni toxicity tests in water samples collected from the Dnieper River located in Kyiv, Ukraine. Results are (a) Fall 2011, (b) Spring 2012, and (c) Fall 2013. * indicates a significant difference from the control.
Figure 6.
Figure 6.
Chronic toxicity measured by the C. dubia three-brood assay in water samples collected from the Dnieper River located in Kyiv, Ukraine for Fall 2011, Spring 2012 and Fall 2013. * indicate a significant difference from the control.
Figure 7.
Figure 7.
Mutagenicity results measured by the Ames assay on water samples collected from the Dnieper River located in Kyiv, Ukraine. Results are (a) Fall 2011 whole concentrate TA98, (b) Fall 2011 whole concentrate TA100, (c) Spring 2012 whole concentrate TA98, (d) Spring 2012 whole concentrate TA100, (e) Fall 2013 coarse fraction TA98, (f) Fall 2013 coarse fraction TA100, (g) Fall 2013 fine fraction TA98, (h) Fall 2013 fine fraction TA100, (i) Fall 2013 dissolved TA98, and (j) Fall 2013 dissolved TA100.
Figure 7.
Figure 7.
Mutagenicity results measured by the Ames assay on water samples collected from the Dnieper River located in Kyiv, Ukraine. Results are (a) Fall 2011 whole concentrate TA98, (b) Fall 2011 whole concentrate TA100, (c) Spring 2012 whole concentrate TA98, (d) Spring 2012 whole concentrate TA100, (e) Fall 2013 coarse fraction TA98, (f) Fall 2013 coarse fraction TA100, (g) Fall 2013 fine fraction TA98, (h) Fall 2013 fine fraction TA100, (i) Fall 2013 dissolved TA98, and (j) Fall 2013 dissolved TA100.
Figure 7.
Figure 7.
Mutagenicity results measured by the Ames assay on water samples collected from the Dnieper River located in Kyiv, Ukraine. Results are (a) Fall 2011 whole concentrate TA98, (b) Fall 2011 whole concentrate TA100, (c) Spring 2012 whole concentrate TA98, (d) Spring 2012 whole concentrate TA100, (e) Fall 2013 coarse fraction TA98, (f) Fall 2013 coarse fraction TA100, (g) Fall 2013 fine fraction TA98, (h) Fall 2013 fine fraction TA100, (i) Fall 2013 dissolved TA98, and (j) Fall 2013 dissolved TA100.
Figure 7.
Figure 7.
Mutagenicity results measured by the Ames assay on water samples collected from the Dnieper River located in Kyiv, Ukraine. Results are (a) Fall 2011 whole concentrate TA98, (b) Fall 2011 whole concentrate TA100, (c) Spring 2012 whole concentrate TA98, (d) Spring 2012 whole concentrate TA100, (e) Fall 2013 coarse fraction TA98, (f) Fall 2013 coarse fraction TA100, (g) Fall 2013 fine fraction TA98, (h) Fall 2013 fine fraction TA100, (i) Fall 2013 dissolved TA98, and (j) Fall 2013 dissolved TA100.
Figure 7.
Figure 7.
Mutagenicity results measured by the Ames assay on water samples collected from the Dnieper River located in Kyiv, Ukraine. Results are (a) Fall 2011 whole concentrate TA98, (b) Fall 2011 whole concentrate TA100, (c) Spring 2012 whole concentrate TA98, (d) Spring 2012 whole concentrate TA100, (e) Fall 2013 coarse fraction TA98, (f) Fall 2013 coarse fraction TA100, (g) Fall 2013 fine fraction TA98, (h) Fall 2013 fine fraction TA100, (i) Fall 2013 dissolved TA98, and (j) Fall 2013 dissolved TA100.
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