Occurrence of antibiotics, estrogenic hormones, and UV-filters in water, sediment, and oyster tissue from the Chesapeake Bay

Globally, the occurrence of contaminants of emerging concern (CECs) in the environment has raised critical questions on ecological and human health, but few efforts have focused on the Chesapeake Bay, the largest estuary in the United States. Here, 43 antibiotics, 3 estrogenic hormones, and 5 ultraviolet-filters (UV-filters), which are active ingredients in a variety of personal care products, were measured in water, sediment, and oyster tissue from 14 sites along the Eastern Shore of the Chesapeake Bay in Maryland. Fluoroquinolone, macrolide, and sulfonamide antibiotics were detected in water samples. As both human- and animal-labeled antibiotics were found, wastewater effluent and agricultural runoff were identified as potential sources. The highest aqueous-phase concentrations were recorded for norfloxacin (94.1 ng/L), enrofloxacin (17.8 ng/L), sulfamethoxazole (14.8 ng/L), and clarithromycin (9.7 ng/L). Estrone and four UV-filters, namely 2-ethylhexyl-4-methoxycinnamate, benzophenone-3, homosalate, and octocrylene, were frequently detected in Chesapeake Bay water (93–100%), sediment (100%), and oyster tissue (79–100%). High sediment-phase concentrations of estrone (58.4 ng/g) and 17β-estradiol (11.5 ng/g) were detected at the mouth of the Manokin River. Homosalate and benzophenone-3 were present at concentrations as high as 187.9 and 113.7 ng/L in water, 74.2 and 10.8 ng/g in sediment, and 158.3 and 118.0 ng/g in oyster tissue, respectively. These results demonstrate the ubiquitous presence of CECs in the Chesapeake Bay, confirm UV-filter bioaccumulation in oysters, and suggest the need for improved CEC removal during municipal wastewater treatment and agricultural waste management within the Chesapeake Bay watershed.