Antibiotics in the global river system arising from human consumption

Area of Science:

• Environmental Science
• Ecotoxicology
• Antimicrobial Resistance

Background:

• Antibiotics in surface waters pose risks to aquatic ecosystems and human health.
• Antibiotic residues enter waterways through excretion after human consumption and metabolism.
• These residues undergo complex processes of accumulation and decay.

Purpose of the Study:

• To quantify the environmental release of antibiotics from human consumption.
• To assess the extent of river contamination by antibiotics globally.
• To identify the primary antibiotic contributors to river pollution.

Main Methods:

• Utilized a global contaminant fate model.
• Estimated environmental release based on annual consumption of the 40 most used antibiotics.
• Modeled antibiotic concentrations in rivers under low streamflow conditions.

Main Results:

• 8,500 tonnes (29%) of consumed antibiotics enter river systems annually.
• 3,300 tonnes (11%) reach oceans or inland sinks.
• 6 million km of rivers worldwide exceed safe antibiotic concentration thresholds, primarily due to amoxicillin, ceftriaxone, and cefixime.

Conclusions:

• Human antibiotic consumption is a significant driver of global river contamination.
• Southeast Asia shows the largest affected river extents.
• Increasing global antibiotic use necessitates urgent strategies for water quality protection and health safeguarding.