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Future Directions of Research on Emerging Pollutants in Drinking Water
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Emerging pollutants including microplastics and pharmaceuticals are increasingly threatening drinking water security, but traditional treatment methods and regulatory frameworks are insufficient to address them. Closing this gap requires affordable real-time monitoring, advanced treatment technologies, improved mixture-toxicity risk assessments, and coordinated international policy to protect global drinking water quality.
Emerging pollutants (EPs) are a diverse range of substances, including pharmaceuticals, microplastics, and industrial chemicals, that pose a threat to water security and public health. Their persistence and biological effects at trace levels reveal limitations in traditional water treatment and regulation, obstructing progress toward SDG 6. This chapter reviews current knowledge of common pollution sources and advanced detection methods. It highlights complex challenges, including scientific uncertainties, regulatory fragmentation, technological gaps, and socioeconomic disparities in access to solutions, as well as a noticeable global capacity gap. To tackle these issues, the chapter advocates forward-thinking strategies focused on four main areas: creating affordable, real-time monitoring technologies; developing advanced treatment methods; enhancing risk assessments for long-term exposure and mixture toxicity; and boosting international cooperation through policy harmonization and capacity building. The improvement and protection of drinking water quality require an integrated, worldwide effort that combines research, policy, and technology to address this growing threat.
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Effects and Global Diversity of Emerging Contaminants in Drinking Water
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Emerging contaminants including microplastics, PFAS, and pharmaceuticals are widely distributed in drinking water globally, with conventional treatment methods inadequate to remove many of them and significant regulatory gaps in low- and middle-income nations. Advanced treatment technologies and sustainable approaches like biochar adsorption and bioremediation show promise but require stronger policy frameworks to achieve meaningful protection.
Environmental Policy and Governance of Emerging Contaminants in Drinking Water: A Comparative Analysis of Global Regulations and Remediation Strategies
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This review compares how different countries and international bodies regulate emerging contaminants in drinking water, including microplastics, pharmaceuticals, and endocrine-disrupting chemicals. Researchers found significant gaps and inconsistencies between regulatory frameworks, with many countries lacking specific standards for these newer pollutants. The study calls for more harmonized global policies and investments in advanced water treatment technologies to address these growing threats to drinking water safety.
Introduction—Emerging Pollutants in Water: Threats, Challenges, and Research Needs
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This review examines contaminants of emerging concern in water, including microplastics, pharmaceuticals, and endocrine-disrupting compounds, that are not adequately addressed by current water treatment and regulation. These pollutants enter water through wastewater, industrial discharge, and agricultural runoff and persist in the environment. The authors call for better monitoring and innovative treatment strategies to protect human health and water resources.
Global Permissible Limits of Emerging Contaminants
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Global regulatory limits for emerging contaminants — including microplastics, PFAS, pharmaceuticals, and endocrine disruptors — remain fragmented and inconsistent across countries, with most lacking enforceable standards despite documented chronic health effects. Harmonizing international thresholds and adopting a One Health framework are identified as essential steps to translate growing scientific evidence on microplastic risks into protective policy.
Sources and Types of Emerging Contaminants in Drinking Water
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Microplastics are identified as a major class of emerging drinking water contaminants alongside PFAS, pharmaceuticals, and endocrine disruptors, entering water supplies through inadequately treated wastewater, agricultural runoff, landfill leachate, and aging infrastructure. Even at trace concentrations, these contaminants bioaccumulate and pose long-term health risks including hormonal disruption and carcinogenicity, underscoring the need for advanced detection and treatment standards.
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