Fate of nonylphenol and 17beta-estradiol contained in composted sewage sludge after land application.

Many environmental problems caused by endocrine disrupters (EDs) have been reported. Because little is known about the fate of EDs accumulated in sewage sludge, we carried out a study to clarify the fate of EDs in composted sludge after its application to soil. Nonylphenol (NP) and 17beta-estradiol (E2) were measured for leachate and soil. High concentrations of NP and E2 were detected in the leachate at the early stage, but they decreased rapidly. Also, the high contents of NP and E2 in soil decreased significantly within 300 days. Because the decrease of NP and E2 in the soil was much larger than that of NP and E2 in the leachate, there must have been a physicochemical or biological decomposition mechanism in the soil layer. We also tried to clarify the transfer of NPs to plants from compost. In the experimental conditions of this study, the transfer of NPs to plants from compost was not observed.