Additional projects granted by the Swedish EPA
Urban Water Engineering / Stormwater&Sewers at Luleå University of Technology has been granted funding by the Swedish Environmental Protection Agency to supplement ongoing projects with additional sampling and analysis.
Effects-based analysis methods and recipient impact: Bottom sediments in urban watercourses
In an ongoing Swedish EPA project, the impact of urban stormwater on recipients in Uppsala, Norrköping, Söderköping and Arlanda has been investigated (both stormwater and sediment, analysis of metals, organic substances and PFAS and impact on ecology with eDNA). Sampling is now complemented with effects-based analyses of the sediment in the watercourses. This allows a coordinated assessment of a possible toxic effect on organisms due to contaminant levels.
Metals, PFAS and other organic pollutants in roadside ditches
The presence of pollutants in road ditch sediments differs between different roads, e.g. depending on traffic load and speed. Sampling of ditch and roadside sediments has been carried out for different types of roads: two residential streets (2,500 annual average daily traffic, AADT), two urban and rural roads (25,000 AADT), 4 highways with different traffic loads (55,000 and 100,000 AADT). At each road 20 sub-samples have been taken. So far, the samples have been analyzed for microplastics. In this new project, we will complement the analyses with metals, PAHs and PFAS.
Pharmaceutical treatment in reed beds for wastewater systems
In this project, the potential of reed beds for wastewater treatment will be investigated with a focus on micropollutants. By sampling a pilot reed bed, the accumulation of micropollutants in "soil", biota and plants will be assessed. The results of the project provide a basis for assessing how the treatment of micropollutants can be implemented even at smaller treatment plants and also contribute to increased knowledge of how micropollutants are broken down or spread in the environment.
Participating researchers from Luleå University of Technology in this project are:
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