Dr. Damià Barceló President,

Water JPI Scientific and Technological Board

IDAEA-CSIC, Barcelona, Spain

ICRA, Girona, Spain

Water and food security

The challenge of feeding 9 billion people Will the World face a Perfect Storm

of problems by 2030?

Prof. John Beddington (Science, 2010):

Through 1963-2011 global meat

consumption increased from 72 to

297 Million Tonnes (meat–based diets)

Water, Food and Energy problems are

intimately connected

In the agricultural sector, farmers do

not want to use water per se… they

just want to grow crops profitably.

Water and food security

The challenge of feeding 9 billion people

China has destroyed 28,000 rivers in 1993-

2013… equivalent to Mississippi river flow of

16.790 m3/s

“It has become a truism that Water Scarcity will

be an important issue worldwide in the 21st

century. We need to change in water

management and use” (The Big Thirst: The

Secret life and Turbulent Future of Water, by

Charles Fishman, 2011)

From water scarcity to resource scarcity

• 80% of human population

under risk

• 72% of large rivers show

high threat level

Effects on water availability and biodiversity

Water scarcity world map

Key European Water Challenges A few highlights are presented

This is of course a non-exhaustive list

The Water JPI SRIA contains the views of

the Scientific and Technological Board and

additional stakeholders on European Water

Challenges

This event permits me to elaborate on the

scientific aspects of selected challenges…

… presenting problems, methods, progress

and some solutions

Illustrating European

problems through a case

study

River hydrology: Multiple stressors affect

response to scarcity Higher hydrological variability

Higher frequency of extreme events (floods, droughts)

Higher water temperature

Higher nutrient concentrations

Presence of inorganic pollutants

Presence of emerging contaminants

Higher temperatures facilitate introduction of new pathogens

Higher Indirect Human Exposure (via food) to pathogens and chemicals from agriculture

↑ hydrologic

variability

Climate change:

•G

lobal

change

Human activity:

Seasonality:

↓ natural

hydrodynamics

Water quantity and quality are altered due to global change

↑Conductivity

↑Nutrients

↑Toxicants

(i.e. biofilms) Predicts ↑

extreme

hydrological

situations

Natu

ral

condit

ions

Drougths Floods

Epilithic biofilms

are subject to

river

characteristics

and respond very

quickly when

confronting stress

conditions

Mediterranean rivers

1. Between 30-60 % of global river network is temporary, that is, waterways

that cease to flow at some points in space and time along their course are as

abundant as permanently flowing waterways. Moreover, some large

permanent rivers are shifting to temporary because of climate change and

extraction of water.

2. Temporary waterways have a non-negligible ecological and economical

value, with unique aquatic and terrestrial diversities and crucial ecosystem

services in semi-arid regions worldwide. Acuña et al 2014 Science 343: 1080-1081

Why should we care

about temporary waterways?

GLOBAQUA and

SCARCE projects Addressing these issues

requires moving from

stressors to receptors,

and then to the

implications for

biodiversity and humans.

Recommendations can

then be provided for

management

A problem of increasing

magnitude…

JÚCAR

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GUADALQUIVIR

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EBRO

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LLo3

% Pesticides (Pest)

% Endocrine Disruptors (ED)

% Perfluorinted compounds (PFC)

% Pharmaceuticals (Pharm)

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LLOBREGAT

Emerging Contaminants in water:

Selected watersheds in Spain

*na: compound not analysed

--8 - 1252TCEP

22 - 1735 - 5984 - 134TBEP

--39 - 1932Propylparaben

na128 - 1836naNonylphenol

3 - 6311-11 - 1887Methylparaben

4 - 240-naCaffeine

17 - 904-4 - 2862Bisphenol A

239 - 403--Benzylparaben

--280 - 1415Diclofenac

nana162- 1638Azythromycin

FishMacro-invertebrates

BiofilmCompound/

Matrix

--8 - 1252TCEP

22 - 1735 - 5984 - 134TBEP

--39 - 1932Propylparaben

na128 - 1836naNonylphenol

3 - 6311-11 - 1887Methylparaben

4 - 240-naCaffeine

17 - 904-4 - 2862Bisphenol A

239 - 403--Benzylparaben

--280 - 1415Diclofenac

nana162- 1638Azythromycin

FishMacro-invertebrates

BiofilmCompound/

Matrix

Bioaccumulation of emerging pollutants

Fish in the mood…

The pharmaceutical market

Experimental techniques

approaching deployment

1-naproxen

2-ketoprofen

3-ibuprofen

4-diclofenac

5-indomethacin

6-acetaminophen

7-mefenamic acid

8-propyphenazone

9-ranitidine

10- loratidine

11-carbamazepine

12- ofloxacin

13- sulfamethoxazole

14- erythromycine

15- atenolol

16- metoprolol

17- hydrochlorothiazide

18- glibenclamide

19- gemfibrozil

20- bezafibrate

21- famotidine

22- pravastatin

23-sotalol

24-propranolol

25-trimethoprim

0

0

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40

60

80

100

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30

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70

90

CAS elimination, %

MBR

elim

inati

on,

%

2

10-70% >70% <10%

20 40 60 80 100 10 30 50 70 90

1

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Comparison of

CAS and pilot-

scale MBR

performances

Radjenović et al. Wat. Res. 43 (2009), 831-841

Fate, removal and distribution of PhACs in

wastewater treatment (MBR vs. CAS)

Hospital batch bioreactor

Non-Sterile treatment

Antibiotics (53 compounds)

Cruz-Morato et al., STOTEN, submitted

Trametes Versicolor

Case Study: Removing pharmaceuticals,

hospital wastewater treated with fungi

Radjenović et al.

Fate of PhACs in AOP

(TiO2 vs. Photo-Fenton treatment) Solar pilot-plant Compound

Parabolic Collector (CPC)

Batch operation

Two modules connected in series:

Each has 8 parallel aluminium reflectors , 3.2 m2)

UV transparent tubular receivers (i.d. 48 mm)

overall capacity: 150 L

(36 L irradiated volume)

Almería Solar Platform

0 25 50 75 100 125 150 175 200

0.0

0.2

0.4

0.6

0.8

1.0

ME

T/M

ET

0

t30w

(min)

0.0

0.2

0.4

0.6

0.8

1.0

DO

C/D

OC

0

MET/MET0 in DW

DOC/DOC0 in DW

MET/MET0 in SW

eff

DOC/DOC0 in SW

eff

f) Photo-Fenton of MET

0 25 50 75 100 125 150 175

0.0

0.2

0.4

0.6

0.8

1.0 CO/CO

0 in DW

DOC/DOC0 in DW

CO/CO0 in SW

eff

DOC/DOC0 in SW

eff

t30w

(min)

CO

/CO

0

c) Photo-Fenton of CO

0.0

0.2

0.4

0.6

0.8

1.0

DO

C/D

OC

0

t30w: normalized irradiation time (30 W m-2)

UV=average solar irradiation during Δtn; Vt= total volume, Vi = irradiated volume

COCAINE METHADONE

Transformation of COC and MET and DOC

mineralization during solar photo-Fenton

COCAINE

Photolysis TiO2 photocatalysis

S0 S1 S2 S3 S4 S5 S6 S7 S8 S9

0

10

20

30

40

50Dissapearance

of MET

Inh

ibitio

n b

iolu

min

escen

ce

(%

)

S0 S1 S2 S3 S4 S5 S6 S7

0

10

20

30

40

50Dissapearance

of MET

Inh

ibitio

n o

f b

iolu

min

escen

ce

(%

)

- t30w -+ t

30w

METHADONE

Photolysis TiO2 photocatalysis

Evaluation of acute toxicity

Partial conclusions to

scientific views on

partial challenges

Hinting some solutions… Increased knowledge for protecting ecosystems

and human life

Need for more information on pharmaceutical residues in the environment

Advanced and low cost (if possible) Waste Water Treatment options

The Low-Dose Prescribing Concept and the implications of the Pharmaceutical Industry

Seven Water JPI projects on Emerging Pollutants involving scientists and companies are about to kick off… tackling the challenge!