Per- and poly-fluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) contamination of surface waters by historic landfills via groundwater plumes : ecosystem exposure and downstream mass loading

Simple item page

Simple item page

Full item details

dc.contributor.author
Roy, James W.
Hua, Tammy
Brown, Susan J.
Brinovcar, C.
Smith, James E.
De Silva, Amila O.
dc.date.accepted
2025-03-13
dc.date.accessioned
2025-03-26T13:56:22Z
dc.date.available
2025-03-26T13:56:22Z
dc.date.issued
2025-03-18
dc.date.submitted
2024-10-10
dc.description.abstract - en
Many historic landfill sites have groundwater plumes that discharge to nearby surface waters. Recent research indicates that leachate of historic landfills can contain elevated concentrations of per- and polyfluoroalkylated substances (PFAS), but there is limited data on resulting PFAS inputs to aquatic ecosystems as might inform on this potential environmental threat. The objective of this study was to evaluate PFAS exposure in three ecological zones and PFAS mass loading downstream, over 1 year, at two historic landfill sites where landfill plumes discharge to nearby surface waters (1 pond with outlet stream, called HB site; 1 urban stream, called DC site). The three zones experienced different magnitudes and patterns of PFAS concentration exposure (i.e., contaminant presence in the zone). The endobenthic zone of the sediments receiving the landfill plumes experienced the highest concentrations (∑PFAS >4000 ng L<sup>−1</sup> (HB) and >20 000 ng L<sup>−1</sup> (DC)), often year-round and over a substantial area at each site. Dilution of landfill PFAS in surface waters was observed though concentrations were still elevated (∑PFAS: >120 ng L<sup>−1</sup> (HB) and >60 ng L<sup>−1</sup> (DC)), with evidence of year-round pelagic zone exposure. PFAS concentrations in the epibenthic zones could vary between that of the endobenthic and pelagic zones, sometimes with daily, event-based, and longer-term patterns. Together these findings suggest historic landfill plumes can lead to substantial PFAS exposure to a variety of aquatic life. Downstream PFAS mass loadings during base flows were relatively small individually (15 (HB) and 36 (DC) g per year (∑PFAS)); however, collective loadings from the numerous historic landfills in a watershed could contribute to increasing PFAS concentrations of connected water bodies, with implications for ecological health, drinking water sources, and fisheries.
dc.identifier.doi
https://doi.org/10.1039/D4EM00612G
dc.identifier.issn
2050-7895
dc.identifier.uri
https://open-science.canada.ca/handle/123456789/3551
dc.language.iso
en
dc.publisher - en
Royal Society of Chemistry
dc.rights - en
Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 4.0 International (CC BY-NC 4.0)
dc.rights - fr
Creative Commons Attribution-Pas d’Utilisation Commerciale 4.0 International (CC BY-NC 4.0)
dc.rights.openaccesslevel - en
Gold
dc.rights.openaccesslevel - fr
Or
dc.rights.uri - en
https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc/4.0/
dc.rights.uri - fr
https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc/4.0/deed.fr
dc.subject - en
Groundwater
Waste management
dc.subject - fr
Eau souterraine
Gestion des déchets
dc.subject.en - en
Groundwater
Waste management
dc.subject.fr - fr
Eau souterraine
Gestion des déchets
dc.title - en
Per- and poly-fluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) contamination of surface waters by historic landfills via groundwater plumes : ecosystem exposure and downstream mass loading
dc.type - en
Article
dc.type - fr
Article
local.article.journaltitle - en
Environmental Science: Processes & Impacts
local.pagination
14 pages
local.peerreview - en
Yes
local.peerreview - fr
Oui
local.requestdoi
No
Download(s)

Original bundle

Now showing 1 - 1 of 1

Thumbnail image

Name: PerPolyFluoroalkylSubstancesPFAScontaminationSurfaceWatersHistoricLandfillsGroundwaterPlumesEcosystemExposureDownstreamMassLoading.pdf

Size: 1.32 MB

Format: PDF

Download file

Collection(s)

Page details

Date modified: