Legacy & Emerging Contaminants in the Aquatic Environment

About this Research Topic

Background

Topic summary: The collection of articles focuses on various environmental contaminants, including pesticides, nanoparticles, microplastics, chlorinated paraffins, neonicotinoids, and others, examining their distribution, impact, and management in aquatic ecosystems. In the European Union context, the distribution and toxicity of 148 pesticide active substances are quantified, revealing both the limitations of current monitoring efforts and the widespread risks these chemicals pose to streams and soils. In Nigeria, atrazine levels in drinking water are measured, highlighting potential health risks, particularly to children. The collection also examines nanoecotoxicology, emphasizing the control organisms have over nanoparticle fate and the concept of biomolecular corona. In marine organisms, the accumulation of brominated flame retardants and their selective bioisomerization are investigated, while pesticides and pharmaceuticals in the Hranice karst region surface and groundwater are studied for their environmental implications. Additional topics include the impact of microplastics on marine microorganisms, bioaccumulation of chlorinated paraffins and Dechloranes in Arctic environments, the synthesis and degradation of odorous molecules in water, phosphorus runoff from sheep farms, and the toxicity of neonicotinoid mixtures in zebrafish embryos. These studies collectively reveal a need for improved monitoring, regulatory measures, and an in-depth understanding of the complex interactions and ecological consequences of these pollutants.
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Thousands of chemicals have been in use since the industrial revolution. Indeed, chemicals have benefited humankind in various ways, from personal care products to industrial-scale applications. However, not all chemicals are safe; harmful chemicals can seriously impact human health, the environment, and the ecology.

Many harmful past chemicals (legacy) have been banned due to their serious toxicities and replaced with new (emerging) chemicals. Legacy chemicals/contaminants are largely under control, but their residues are still present in the environment, especially for “persistent organic compounds (POPs) such as polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs), organochlorine pesticides (OCPs) etc. In contrast, emerging contaminants are more recently introduced and sometimes turn out to be regrettable substitutions. Therefore, an understanding of legacy & emerging contaminants in the environment is important, and this topic specifically focuses on the aquatic environment. The topic includes but is not limited to their current residue levels, method development, multimedia transfer mechanisms, environment modeling, risks, aquatic food web dynamics, and bioaccumulation.
We welcome the following types of articles:

1. Research article 2. Critical reviews 3. Perspective article 4. Policy analysis 5. Editorial News & Views (only for editors & leading experts). Perspective analysis and editorial news & view are only for leading subject experts.

Scope of the topic includes but is not limited to

• Contaminants in aquatic ecosystems (including ocean and lakes)
• Method development
• Their fate & multiphase transfer processes
• Bioaccumulation and aquatic food web transfer mechanisms
• Ecological and health risks/toxicities
• Modeling their environmental fate and risks

Keywords: Legacy and Emerging Contaminants, Aquatic Ecosystems, Risks, Pesticides, Atrazine, Microplastics, Neonicotinoids, Nanoparticles, Brominated Flame Retardants, Environmental Risk Assessment

Important note: All contributions to this Research Topic must be within the scope of the section and journal to which they are submitted, as defined in their mission statements. Frontiers reserves the right to guide an out-of-scope manuscript to a more suitable section or journal at any stage of peer review.

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