Fate of 4-nonylphenol in a biosolids amended soil

The fate of the endocrine disrupting compound 4-nonylphenol (NP) in an agricultural soil amended with biosolids was assessed in a greenhouse study. A biosolids with a total NP concentration of 900 mg kg(-1) was incorporated into the 4 cm surface layer of soil columns at an agronomic rate equivalent to 1.7 kg m(2). Half of the columns were planted with Triticum aestivum L., red hardy winter wheat seeds, whereas the remaining columns were unplanted to evaluate the influence of plant growth on the fate of NP. The degradation of total NP and eight NP isomers was monitored over 45 d. The half-life of NP in this soil system ranged from 16 to 23 d depending on treatment. After 45 d from the start of the trail, 15% of the initial biosolids-NP remained in the planted columns, whereas approximately 30% remained in the unplanted columns, indicating enhanced degradation in the presence of plants. The eight NP isomers exhibited different degradation rates, but minimal amounts of all isomers persisted after 45 d. Movement of NP below the zone of incorporation was slight (<2% of total NP present at any sampling interval) and no NP was detected in column leachates or in wheat leaves.