Human health risk assessment based on direct and indirect exposure to endocrine disrupting herbicides in drinking, ground, and surface water in Croatia

• Published in: Environmental science and pollution research international Vol. 30; no. 48; pp. 106330 - 106341
• Main Authors: Mendaš, Gordana, Milićević, Tijana, Fingler, Sanja, Drevenkar, Vlasta, Romanić, Snježana Herceg, Popović, Aleksandar, Relić, Dubravka
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Berlin/Heidelberg Springer Berlin Heidelberg 01.10.2023; Springer Nature B.V
• Subjects: Acetochlor; Aquatic Pollution; Atmospheric Protection/Air Quality Control/Air Pollution; Atrazine; Atrazine - analysis; Bathing; Carcinogens; Croatia; Disruption; Drinking; Drinking water; Drinking Water - analysis; Earth and Environmental Science; Ecotoxicology; Endocrine disruptors; Endocrine system; Environment; Environmental Chemistry; Environmental Health; Exposure; Groundwater; Groundwater irrigation; Groundwater treatment; Health risks; Herbicides; Herbicides - analysis; Humans; Lakes; Metolachlor; Pesticides; Principal components analysis; Research Article; Risk Assessment; Statistical methods; Streams; Surface water; Swimming; Waste Water Technology; Water - analysis; Water Management; Water Pollutants, Chemical - analysis; Water Pollution Control; Water sampling; Croatia; Drinking water; Human health risks; Groundwater; Cocktail exposure effect; Surface water; Pesticides
• DOI: 10.1007/s11356-023-29561-y
• ISSN: 1614-7499; 0944-1344

The recognition of certain herbicides as endocrine disrupting compounds has raised concerns due to their ability to interfere with the normal functioning of the endocrine system, which regulates various physiological processes in organisms. The objective of this study was to assess the possible human health risks associated with terbuthylazine and endocrine-disrupting herbicides atrazine, acetochlor, and metolachlor in the drinking, surface, and groundwater of the Zagreb city region, Croatia. We relied on advanced statistical methods and principal component analysis (PCA), which revealed higher levels of atrazine and acetochlor in drinking and groundwater samples and higher presence of metolachlor and terbuthylazine in surface waters. To evaluate the danger to human health, various exposure scenarios have been assessed. The risk of direct human exposure to analyzed herbicides through drinking or bathing with drinking (tap) or groundwater, as well as from recreational activities like swimming in rivers, streams, and lakes, has been quantified. In addition to these direct exposure scenarios, indirect ones based on consumer goods, fruits, and vegetables, treated with surface and groundwater for irrigation, were assessed to investigate the danger to human health. Judging by the reported herbicide levels there was no significant risk of carcinogenic (CR ≤ 1 × 10 −6 ) or non-carcinogenic (HI < 1) diseases, not even when we assessed the so-called “cocktail effect” of combined the herbicide exposure in different waters.