E-Paper
Cauvery majorly polluted by pharma industry: Study
Pharmaceutical contaminants in Cauvery river included anti-inflammatories such as ibuprofen and diclofenac, anti-hypertensives (atenolol and isoprenaline), stimulants like caffeine, antidepressants such as carbamazepine, and antibiotics such as ciprofloxacin
A team of researchers from IIT-Madras in a study have found that river Cauvery and its tributaries are polluted by a range of contaminants that includes pharmaceutically active compounds, personal care products, plastics, flame retardants, heavy metals, and pesticides, among others.
The findings of the study, which the team said is “alarming” was published in an international peer-reviewed journal, Science of the Total Environment in their August issue.
Pharmaceutical contaminants included anti-inflammatories such as ibuprofen and diclofenac, anti-hypertensives (atenolol and isoprenaline), stimulants like caffeine, antidepressants such as carbamazepine, and antibiotics such as ciprofloxacin. There was significant contamination by metals such as arsenic, zinc, chromium, lead and nickel. Freshwater intake points were also found to be loaded with extraordinarily high concentrations of pharmaceutical contaminants.
According to the paper co-authored by Jayakumar Renganathan, Insamam Ul Huq S, Kamaraj Ramakrishnan, Manthiram Karthik Ravichandran, and professor Ligy Philip, the team monitored the water quality of the Cauvery River for two years to assess the seasonal variation of emerging contaminants, especially pharmaceutically active compounds. The Study commenced in 2018 and the process of taking samples was completed by 2020, said a spokesperson for the institute.“Our observations are alarming. So far, not much is known about how pharmaceutical contaminants affect human health and the ecosystem over time,” said Philip. According to the environmental risk assessed by the team, it shows that pharmaceutical contaminants pose medium to high risk to aquatic life forms in the river.
SIGNIFICANCE OF CAUVERY IN TAMIL NADU & KARNATAKA? WHICH MAJOR CITIES USE THEIR WATER?
The team collected water from 22 locations along the entire stretch of the river, which originates in Karnataka and also irrigates the rice bowls of Tamil Nadu. Cauvery river has been mired in disputes between the two neighbouring states for decades. “We also set up 11 sampling stations near discharge points of partially treated or untreated wastewater and 11 locations near intake points of water supply systems. The quality of water at the catchment sites was also monitored,” Philip said.
Pointing out that river networks contribute to 0.006% of global freshwater serving for domestic and industrial usage, whose quality across the world has been deteriorating, the institute stated that south India’s Cauvery river has been subjected to the constant human threat.
“Of these, pharmaceutical contamination is serious in India, which is the second-largest pharmaceutical manufacturing country in the world,” the institute said in a statement. “These drug compounds, when released even in minuscule amounts into water bodies, can harm human beings and the ecosystem in the long run.”
The team found that the monsoon season influences the quality of water quality and levels of pharmaceutical contaminants. “The post-monsoon period showed an increased level of various types of contaminants, including pharmaceuticals, due to reduced riverine flow and continuous waste discharge from multiple sources,” their statement read.
The quality examination of the river water was done to understand the factors that influence the distribution of contaminants and their impacts on the ecosystem. The team said that the study shows it is essential to regularly monitor rivers and their tributaries and upgrade the wastewater treatment systems to reduce the levels of emerging contaminants in receiving water bodies such as rivers. The findings of this work also point to the need for more research into assessing the long-term impacts of emerging contaminants on human health and the environment.
Experts said that the polluting situation in the Cauvery basin and its tributaries have gone from bad to worse. President of SaciWATERs and former professor of Madras Institute of Development Students, S Janakarajan, who has conducted several surveys on the Cauvery river basin and delta since 2003, said, “As far as Cauvery in Tamil Nadu is concerned, it has got four-five major tributaries. Whatever pollution load that is let into the river, goes up to the delta and then to the sea.” Noyyal, Kodaganar, Amaravathi and Bhavani are the major tributaries, which are located along with polluting industries such as dyeing and bleaching units. “In the Cauvery basin, where several towns are located starting from Mettupalayam, Coimbatore, Tripur and downstream Trichy, the sewage, solid waste, debris is all dumped into the river and its tributaries. Because of the sewage and effluents that the river carries, it looks black in the summer.”
This study has been carried out with joint funding from Water Technology Initiatives of the Department of Science and Technology, Government of India and the UK Natural Environment Research Council.
