July 2005

U.S. Water News Online

ALBUQUERQUE — Maceo Martinet, a graduate student in biology at University of New Mexico, set out to find out how effluent from the Albuquerque wastewater treatment plant was altering the nutrient level of the river and shallow groundwater around it and with what.

The water samples he took with a syringe three times a day from five different locations on the river found antibiotics, nonprescription drugs, insecticides, fire retardant and other compounds.

"There were some interesting results that came back from the lab," he said.

Martinet said he was mostly surprised by the concentration of the insect repellent DEET in shallow groundwater downstream from the plant.

"This indicates that potentially DEET could be concentrating within the soil," he said.

Martinet's research was supported with funds from the Water Resources Research Institute at New Mexico State University. His findings were reported in a paper that he wrote documenting how human activities affect biogeochemical cycles.

The contaminants result from human and veterinary use of pharmaceuticals and products that range from prescription drugs to fragrances and sunscreens, he said.

Martinet said little information is available on how chronic exposure to such contaminants affects crustaceans, algae and bacteria.

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