Coline Druart

Snails as indicators of pesticide drift, deposit, transfer and effects in the vineyard.

This paper presents a field-study of real pesticide application conditions in a vineyard. The objective was to measure the exposure, the transfer and the effects of pesticides on a non-target soil invertebrate, the land snail Helix aspersa. There was no drift of the herbicides (glyphosate and glufosinate) whereas the fungicides (cymoxanil, folpet, tebuconazole and pyraclostrobin) were detected up to 20 m from the treated area. For folpet and particularly tebuconazole, spray deposits on soil (corresponding to losses for the intended target i.e. the vine leaves) were high (41.1% and 88.8% loss of applied dose, respectively). For herbicides, the target was the soil and losses (percentage of compounds which did not reach the soil) were of 22% for glufosinate and 52% for glyphosate. In the study plot, glyphosate was transferred to and accumulated in snail tissues (4 mg kg(-1) dry weight, dw), as was its metabolite AMPA (8 mg kg(-1) dw) which could be in relation with the reduced growth observed in snails. No effects on snail survival or growth were found after exposure to the other organic compounds or to copper and sulphur-fungicides, although transfer of tebuconazole, pyraclostrobin and copper occurred. This study brings original field data on the fate of pesticides in a vineyard agro-ecosystem under real conditions of application and shows that transfer and effects of pesticides to a non-target organism occurred.

Towards the development of an embryotoxicity bioassay with terrestrial snails: screening approach for cadmium and pesticides.

Currently no bioassays are available to assess the embryotoxicity of chemicals with terrestrial soil invertebrates. We therefore presented a new method for embryotoxicity testing with snail eggs: a relevant biological material that incubates in soil and that can be exposed to contaminants from leachates and soil solution. The effects of aqueous solutions of two herbicide formulations, Reglone(®) (active ingredient (a.i.), diquat) and Roundup(®) or its a.i., glyphosate, of a surfactant (Agral(®) 90, a.i., nonylphenol polyethoxylates) and of cadmium (Cd) were studied. Endpoints were the hatching success and observations of embryo abnormalities after exposure. Roundup(®) was found to be more toxic than its a.i. alone (EC50(a.i.)=18 mg/l and about 1300 mg/l, respectively). Reglone(®) (EC50(a.i.)=0.72 mg/l) and Agral(®) (EC50(a.i.) ≈ 50 mg/l) were also tested together, revealing that Reglone(®) accounted for more than 99% of the mixtures toxicity. An antagonistic interaction between the two substances was found. For Cd (EC50=3.9 mg/l), a significant transfer from exposure medium to eggs was emphasized, particularly affecting the albumen. Abnormalities of embryogenesis in non-hatched embryos depended on the substance and the concentration considered.

Responses of wild small mammals to arsenic pollution at a partially remediated mining site in Southern France

Partial remediation actions at a former gold mine in Southern France led to a mosaic of contaminated and rehabilitated zones. In this study, the distribution of arsenic and its potential adverse effects on small mammals were investigated. The effectiveness of remediation for reducing the transfer of this element into wildlife was also discussed. Arsenic levels were measured in the soil and in the stomach contents, livers, kidneys, and lungs of four small mammal species (the wood mouse (Apodemus sylvaticus), the Algerian mouse (Mus spretus), the common vole (Microtus arvalis), and the greater white-toothed shrew (Crocidura russula)). The animals were caught at the former extraction site, in zones with three different levels of remediation treatments, and at a control site. Arsenic concentrations in the soil were highly spatially heterogeneous (ranging from 29 to 18,900 μg g(-1)). Despite the decrease in arsenic concentrations in the remediated soils, both wood mice and Algerian mice experienced higher oral exposure to arsenic in remediated zones than in the control area. The accumulated arsenic in their organs showed higher intra-zonal variability than the arsenic distribution in the soil, suggesting that, in addition to remediation processes, other variables can help explain arsenic transfer to wildlife, such as the habitat and diet preferences of the animals or their mobility. A weak but significant correlation between arsenic concentration and body condition was observed, and weak relationships between the liver/kidney/lung mass and arsenic levels were also detected, suggesting possible histological alterations.

Cross-linked cyclodextrin-based material for treatment of metals and organic substances present in industrial discharge waters

Summary In this study, a polymer, prepared by crosslinking cyclodextrin (CD) by means of a polycarboxylic acid, was used for the removal of pollutants from spiked solutions and discharge waters from the surface treatment industry. In spiked solutions containing five metals, sixteen polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAH) and three alkylphenols (AP), the material exhibited high adsorption capacities: >99% of Co2+, Ni2+ and Zn2+ were removed, between 65 and 82% of the PAHs, as well as 69 to 90% of the APs. Due to the structure of the polymer and its specific characteristics, such as the presence of carboxylic groups and CD cavities, the adsorption mechanism involves four main interactions: ion exchange, electrostatic interactions and precipitation for metal removal, and inclusion complexes for organics removal. In industrial discharge waters, competition effects appeared, especially because of the presence of calcium at high concentrations, which competed with other pollutants for the adsorption sites of the adsorbent.

Towards A Convenient Procedure to Characterize Polycyclic Aromatic Hydrocarbons in Sediments Receiving Industrial Effluents

Using pressurized liquid extraction and GC-MS/MS, Polycyclic Aromatic Hydrocarbons (PAH) levels were determined in pond and river sediments receiving effluents from a Chemicals Installation (CI) and a Surface Treatment Installation (STI), respectively. Maximum values were obtained for the STI site with total PAH concentrations of 3000-4000 ng g-1 compared to 200-2500 ng g-1 for the CI site. Furthermore, in the river (STI), for two PAHs (phenanthrene and acenaphthylene), one sample presented concentrations that exceeded the probable effect concentrations leading to this sediment being classified as toxic. However, PAH levels were higher upstream of the STI discharge water than downstream, indicating sediment PAH accumulation was not exclusively due to this industrial activity. At the CI site, the concentrations found at different points showed that in the pond, PAHs were derived from industrial activities but were rapidly diluted in the water mass. PAH fingerprinting following various guidelines, revealed the prevalence of a pyrolytic origin.

Ecotoxicity evaluation of industrial discharge waters and metallic solutions using two organisms (Lactuca sativa and Daphnia magna

Surface treatment industrial discharge water is a complex anthropogenic source of pollutants, including organic pollutants (PAHs, VOCs…) and numerous metal ions. We attempted to identify the main toxicants comparing impact assessment of real polycontaminated effluents and reconstituted polymetallic solutions via ecotoxicological bioassays performed with Daphnia magna immobilization test (24 h) and Lactuca sativa germination test (168 h). We focused first on 2 (Ni and Zn) then on 5 metals (Ni, Zn, Co, Cr, Al). Our results showed differences between metal toxicity order: Zn>Al>Ni>Cr~Co, for daphnids and Ni>Zn>Al~Co>Cr for lettuce. However, discharge waters remained more toxic than synthetic solutions: those 5 metals were not entirely responsible for the discharge water ecotoxicity. We also found D. magna to be more sensitive than L. sativa. This last assessment should be interpreted with care, knowing that immobilization and germination tests are respectively acute and chronic toxicity bioassays. Thus, battery tests are appropriate to evaluate industrial discharge water samples, and should be increasingly used as eco toxicological standards.

A full life-cycle bioassay with Cantareus aspersus shows reproductive effects of a glyphosate-based herbicide suggesting potential endocrine disruption ☆

A full life-cycle (240 days) bioassay using the terrestrial snail, Cantareus aspersus, allowing exposure during embryogenesis and/or the growth and reproduction phases, was used to assess the effects of Bypass®, a glyphosate-based herbicide (GlyBH), on a range of endpoints, including parameters under endocrine control. As a positive control, a mixture (R-A) made of diquat (Reglone®) and nonylphenols (NP, Agral®), known for its endocrine disrupting effects in other organisms, was tested. At environmental concentrations, both pesticides (R-A mixture and GlyBH) enhanced growth but reduced reproduction. The R-A mixture acted mainly on the fecundity through a delay in egg-laying of approximately 20 days and a strongly reduced number of clutches. This latter dysfunction may be caused by a permanent eversion of the penis, suggesting a disrupting effect at the neuro-endocrine level, which prevented normal mating. GlyBH acted on fertility, possibly due to a decrease in the fertilization of eggs laid by adults exposed during their embryonic development. These results, associated with the absence of observed effects on gonad histology of GlyBH exposed snails, suggested that the underlying mechanisms are neuro-endocrine.

Monitoring and Origin of Polycyclic Aromatic Hydrocarbons (PAHs) in Effluents from a Surface Treatment Industry

ABSTRACT In Europe, polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) are a source of concern due to their toxic effects and are considered as priority pollutants by water authorities. In this study, we reported the results of qualitative and quantitative monitoring of 16 PAHs in effluents from a surface treatment industry to determine their origin. The results indicated that PAHs were present in the discharge waters at a concentration of 500 ng L−1 (in average for the PAH sum). However, the further we returned to the start of the industrial process, the more the PAH concentrations increased. Indeed, the highest concentrations (>20,000 ng L−1 for the PAH sum) were found in the degreasing baths – the first step in the part treatment. The final analyses showed that the PAHs came from the oils left on the metal parts by the suppliers. The important difference in concentrations between the upstream (first baths in the production line) and the downstream (discharge water) of the effluent showed that phenomena including dilution or potentially degradation occurred but that the major part of the PAHs tended to adsorb to sludge during the settling step in the effluent treatment plant.