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Addressing the challenges of new pollutants in China: current status, knowledge gaps, and strategic recommendations
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This review examines China's approach to managing new pollutants including persistent organic pollutants, endocrine disruptors, antibiotics, and microplastics, which are characterized by their persistence and tendency to accumulate in living organisms. Researchers identified significant gaps between existing regulations and the complex ecological health risks these substances pose. The study recommends strengthening lifecycle management strategies and improving risk assessment frameworks to better address these emerging environmental threats.
Abstract New pollutants, including but not limited to persistent organic pollutants, endocrine disrupting compounds, antibiotics and microplastics, are characterized by their persistence, bioaccumulation and toxicity. These pollutants pose potential risks to ecological environment and human health. To mitigate the risks of new pollutants, it is imperative to implement comprehensive environmental risk control measures throughout their lifecycle, including the prohibition of production and usage, reduction of process emissions, and implementation of end-of-pipe treatment. However, significant gaps remain in addressing the multifaceted challenges by the emergence of ecological health risks, which present substantial obstacles to prevention and control efforts. Although China has implemented pollution prevention and control policies that have demonstrated effectiveness in specific domains, challenges persist due to factors such as a weak industrial foundation, delayed research and development of technologies, and inadequate governance capacity. To overcome these hurdles, this paper proposes a series of measures aimed at enhancing China's research capabilities on new pollutants, thereby contributing to the advancement of sustainable development and the safeguarding of public health. Graphical Abstract
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Research progress on source, risk assessment, and management of emerging pollutants in drinking water.
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This Chinese review covers emerging drinking water pollutants including microplastics, endocrine-disrupting chemicals, per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS), and antibiotics, examining their sources, environmental pathways, and health risk frameworks. The authors highlight microplastics as a particularly complex challenge due to their ability to adsorb and co-transport other toxic contaminants into drinking water supplies.
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This study identified 18 high-risk emerging contaminants in Chinese wastewater treatment plant effluent, including pharmaceuticals and endocrine-disrupting chemicals like bisphenol-A, that need stricter regulation. While focused on chemical contaminants rather than microplastics directly, these pollutants often coexist with microplastics in wastewater and can bind to plastic particle surfaces. Better regulation of wastewater discharge is essential for reducing the combined health risks from microplastics and the chemicals they carry.
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This review summarizes microplastic pollution across China's water ecosystems, covering rivers, lakes, coastal waters, and groundwater, analyzing abundance, characteristics, fate, and ecological risk. China faces significant microplastic challenges given its large coastline, population, and economic development.
Comprehensive Review on Environmental Biogeochemistry of Nonylphenol and Suggestions for the Management of Emerging Contaminants
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When a large batch of papers lands in the Atlas, we read through it and send a short write-up of what stood out.