Overview
- The peer‑reviewed research from CONICET and the National University of La Plata appears in Environmental Toxicology and Chemistry and is described as the first of this scale in South America.
- Scientists sampled seven rivers and streams from rural headwaters to urban stretches across the Buenos Aires metropolitan area, detecting nearly all 16 targeted drugs in city reaches versus two to three in rural sites.
- Carbamazepine, ibuprofen and atenolol were frequently found, and paracetamol levels were reported among the highest documented globally.
- Waterways receiving effluent from treatment plants showed the greatest contamination, yet high levels also appeared without sewer networks, indicating impacts from clandestine discharges, septic systems and poorly sealed landfills.
- Seasonal signals emerged, with sildenafil peaking in summer and respiratory medications rising in winter, and the authors urged authorities to use the baseline to strengthen monitoring and wastewater management.