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Water
Vera Jones
Atkins Technical Fellow, Associate Director Environment Practice & Water Quality Technical Authority, United Kingdom contact form+44 1454 66 2780
Identifying new chemical hazards
Good water quality underpins the health of our aquatic ecosystems. There is also substantial evidence that access to nature, our green and blue spaces, has a significant impact on our quality of life.
Ultimately, good water quality is key to the wellbeing of our communities and our environment.
Keeping our water free of damaging chemicals is paramount. But the number of chemicals we use has increased dramatically over the last few decades, including those we utilise at home. We use chemicals in our personal care products, pharmaceuticals, cleaning products or synthetic scents. Two substances that have recently come to prominence are fipronil and imidacloprid1,2, often used as flea treatments on pets.
Here in the water quality team at AtkinsRéalis we have been studying a range of emerging chemicals, including fipronil and imidacloprid, as part of a Water Quality Stocktake3 undertaken on behalf of the Office for Environmental Protection and in collaboration with wca environment. Having recently been published, the study is included on this season’s BBC Springwatch in a feature highlighting the potential negative impact of dog flea treatment chemicals on our rivers.
The impact of fipronil and imidacloprid
Fipronil and imidacloprid are ectoparasiticide veterinary medicinal products, and they are both potent pesticides. While they do protect our pets from fleas, unfortunately they also affect other invertebrate species once released into the wider environment. Fipronil is a broad-use insecticide from the phenylpyrazole family4 and imidacloprid is a neonicotinoid pesticide, which can have a damaging effect on bees and other invertebrates5.
Our Water Quality Stocktake study rated fipronil as 'very high risk’, while imidacloprid is characterised as ‘one of the most toxic chemicals detected in UK rivers’6. Both substances are banned in agriculture, due to their significant environmental impact.
Fipronil and imidacloprid can reach our waterways in a number of different ways; for example, when pet bedding is washed, the chemical residue enters the wastewater system7. These harmful chemicals can also enter the aquatic environment when dogs splash in rivers, or simply when runoff flows into drains.
Both fipronil and imidacloprid are now widespread in our rivers. For example, the Freshwater Biological Association stated that fipronil was found in 99% of samples obtained from 20 English rivers (2016-2018), and imidacloprid in 66% of samples from 20 English rivers8. A multi-compartment and cross-species monitoring study also found widespread contamination by imidacloprid in sediments and biota in the Colne estuary9.
Finding a balance
As with all chemicals, we need to balance negative environmental impacts against the positive impact of using a particular substance. This is exceptionally complex when it comes to pharmaceuticals, which are often indispensable. In the case of fipronil and imidacloprid, we need to weigh up the power of these chemicals to improve pet health and wellbeing, against the potential harm they can do to our aquatic ecosystems, the wider environment – and human health.
With careful and considered use, and by following advice from the veterinary profession, it is possible to find the right balance. The President of the British Veterinary Association has noted: “Parasiticides play an important role in preventing and treating parasites in animals...we encourage vets to consider the risks of an animal’s exposure to fleas or ticks when prescribing or recommending parasiticides, such as evaluating if a single house cat needs treatment at all."10
More research is needed to better understand the presence of fipronil and imidacloprid in the environment, through more intensive monitoring. But for now, it seems that these chemicals have the potential to cause a significant negative impact on our waterways. Learning lessons from the past, we need to act now to prevent further damage before it's too late.
References/sources:
1. The Guardian
3. Office for Environmental Protection
5. Nature.com
7. Pub Med
8. Freshwater Biological Association
10. The Guardian
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