In Europe, the phenomenon of aging and over-aging has led to societies where 15-20% of the population is over 65. Countries with aging populations have to increase the resources according to the demands of elderly people but it is also necessary to ensure environmental sustainability and public health. The homes for the elderly are infrastructures that articulate diverse services in response to biopsychosocial needs and have become popular in most European countries. Senior residences have a configuration of typically 50-150 individuals and provide lodging, meal services and health assistance. With a water consumption of 2000-5000 m3/month and an estimated daily release of around 2 kg of pharmaceuticals, the senior residences have become an important source of pollution of pharmaceuticals in the environment. Although sewage waters are treated in Wastewater Treatment Plants, many pharmaceuticals are not eliminated in conventional activated sludge treatments and are discharged to receiving waters, posing environmental risks. The objectives of the present study were to identify the toxicologically active pharmaceuticals originating from senior residences and to propose innovative analytical tools for their control and remediation. In this study, we have selected a few homes for the elderly in Portugal, France and Spain and have prioritized the pharmaceuticals which can represent a risk to the environment according to their high consumption, low degradability and high toxicity. Main risk compounds were analgesic and antipyretic drugs such as paracetamol, ibuprofen, metamizole and acetylcysteine, antibiotics such as amoxicillin and sulfamethoxazole, gabapentin and valproic acid for the treatment of epilepsy and neuropathic pain, sedative and hypnotic compounds such as clomethiazole and pharmaceuticals for the treatment of diabetes (metformin). For these compounds, we have developed selective extraction and detection techniques for their monitoring and are implementing on-site remediation technologies based on an innovative hybrid process coupling biodegradation and solar photo-oxidation for their total elimination. Overall, this study aims at controlling the discharge of pharmaceuticals associated with senior residences and contributes to environmental health.
Acknowledgements
This study has been financed by the SUDOE program with the project Innovec’Eau (2016-2019) / Project SOE1/P1/F0173 Interreg SUDOE funded by FEDER: 1.177.875,64 €; http://innovec-eau.univ-perp.fr. Personnel from the homes from the elderly are acknowledged for their assistance and guidance and for providing consumption data of pharmaceuticals.