Volume : III, Issue : VIII, August - 2013

Antibiotics in crops as influenced by irrigation with sewage effluent water: A case study

O. P. Bansal

Abstract :

The release of pharmaceuticals particularly antibiotics into the aquatic environment and their occurrence in surface water, sewage and industrial effluents has become an increasing concern in recent years. In India, as there is a gradual decline in availability of fresh water for irrigation, the sewage and industrial effluents are being used for the irrigation of agricultural lands. A greenhouse experiment was undertaken to investigate the effect of soil properties and water quality on the uptake of two antibiotics viz. tetracycline (TC) and oxytetracycline (OTC) by tomato and cucumber plants. The data of this study denote that concentration of TC and OTC in fruits and leaves of both the plants were negatively correlated to soil organic matter content. The concentration of TC or OTC in roots and stems were relatively low and 71–82 % of antibiotics present in plants were accumulated in leaves. Bioaccumulation factor (Calculated as the ratio of antibiotics in plant to that in soil solution) in fruits was significantly positively correlated with soil organic matter; while concentration of antibiotics in soil solution was negatively correlated with soil organic matter. Greenhouse experiment using fresh water spiked with 1ug L–1 TC or OTC , sewage effluent and sewage effluent spiked with 1ug L–1 TC or OTC revealed that antibiotics can be taken up by plants and bioaccumulated from its background concentration in sewage effluent. The bioaccumulation factor for the fruits (0.81–1.18) was lower than for leaves (14.6–22.0). This study indicates the uptake of antibiotics by crops in organic matter poor soils irrigated with sewage effluent and highlights the potential risks associated with this agricultural practice.

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Article: Download PDF   DOI : 10.36106/ijar  

Cite This Article:

O.P. Bansal Antibiotics in crops as influenced by irrigation with sewage effluent water: A case study Indian Journal of Applied Research, Vol.III, Issue.VIII August 2013

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