Environmentalists are led to think that the hyped environmental pollutants are the major cause of pollution that should occupy their attention, however, a subtle group of chemicals should be watched out for. The following study addresses the role that pharmaceuticals and personal care products (PPCPs) play in the environmental pollution, their mode of entry into the environment and the role that users and scientists have played in their spread. It emphasizes the fact that these substances are equally pollutant and are more dangerous than the agrochemicals and other forms of pollutants as Daughton and Ternes (1999) presents.
PPCPs have a major impact on the aquatic ecology causing transformations by slow action or rapid depending on the chemical nature of the PPCPs released. These substances are washed to the water body, and a progressive accumulation is likely to result in adverse effects now and the future. The concentration of PPCPs in the environment is determined by the dosage of pharmaceuticals and the rate of consumption of personal care products (Daughton & Ternes, 1999). Their control can be achieved by managing their levels of production, the rate of use and methods of disposal.
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Little data is available, and ignorance prevails on the effect of PPCPs, which demands a screening of such substances and a proper research study to evaluate their impacts. These substances are carried to the water bodies by sewage and water erosions; their migration to aquatic life is further increased in moist weather conditions. The substances have more adverse effect when they interact and could result in dangerous chemicals whose impacts cannot be figured out until late; this reactive property makes them very unpredictable (Daughton & Ternes, 1999). The subject should receive equal attention, drainage systems should be treated effectively, proper disposal of pharmaceutical waste be emphasized, drug prescription controlled and more reforms to control pollutions resulting from PPCPs (Daughton & Ternes, 1999).
Overall, the article brings into view the subtle impacts of PPCPs on the environment and the lack of scientific research on the impacts of these chemicals on the environment and aquatic life. A wide range of pharmaceuticals and personal care products are mentioned that are extremely poisonous and reactive.
References
Daughton, C. G., & Ternes, T. A. (1999). Pharmaceuticals and personal care products in the environment: agents of subtle change?. Environmental health perspectives , 107 (suppl 6), 907-938.
