Journal of Ecology and Rural Environment ›› 2022, Vol. 38 ›› Issue (12): 1586-1592.doi: 10.19741/j.issn.1673-4831.2021.0604

Previous Articles     Next Articles

Distribution of Triclosan and Triclocarban in the Surface Soils of Foshan, China, and a Preliminary Assessment of Their Ecological Risks

CHEN Min1, CHEN Li2, ZHONG Zhen-yi1   

  1. 1. Guangdong Polytechnic of Environmental Protection Engineering, Foshan 528216, China;
    2. Institute of Plant Protection, Beijing Academy of Agricultural and Forestry Science, Beijing 100097, China
  • Received:2021-10-08 Online:2022-12-25 Published:2023-01-03

Abstract: Triclosan (TCS) and triclocarban (TCC) are popular broad-spectrum antibacterial agents that are widely added to daily care products. They can be reintroduced into soil through anthropogenic washing activities and the reuse of effluent and sediment from sewage treatment plants. In this study, 21 surface soil samples were collected from land with diverse uses in Foshan, China. The pollution characteristics of TCS and TCC, as 2 typical pharmaceutical and personal care product pollutants, in the soil samples were analyzed. The ecological risks of TCS and TCC were evaluated by using the ecological risk entropy method. The detection rates of TCS and TCC in the surface soils were 66.67% and 85.71%, respectively; the concentrations of TCS and TCC ranged from ND to 6.62 μg·kg-1 and ND to 9.11 μg·kg-1, respectively. Soil organic matter is an important factor affecting the distribution of TCS and TCC, and the pH had a minor effect on the distribution of TCS and TCC. Analysis of the ecological risk quotient (RQ) revealed that the RQ values of TCS in the 21 surface samples were all less than 0.1, indicating that the ecological risk of TCS in this region was low, and the soil was relatively safe. The RQ values of TCC at two of the 21 sample points were between 0.1 and 1, and TCC was mainly detected at sampling points on both sides of the river, indicating that the ecological risk of TCC in this region is moderate, which might be related to local economic development, the growing human population, and sewage discharge. Compare with the other regions home and abroad, the ecological risk caused by TCS and TCC in the surface soil of this region belong to lower level. Nevertheless, areas with soil possessing high concentrations of these pollutants merit increased attention.

Key words: TCS (triclocarban), TCC (triclosan), contamination, ecological risk assessment, soil

CLC Number: