Despite increasing attention, even from a regulatory point of view, the situation seems to be getting worse according to a team of environmental chemists who assessed river pollution in Europe. Specifically, it was the Helmoltz Centre for Environmental Research that estimated and examined the values of 610 chemicals in the continent’s waterways.
The search recovered 445 samples from 22 rivers and identified 504 substances among the 610 searched. The results showed that 229 were pesticides and biocides and 175 were pharmaceutical chemicals, surfactants, plastic and rubber additives, PFAS and corrosion inhibitors were also found.
Importantly, some samples contained more than 200 organic micropollutants closely linked to industrial agriculture, pharmaceuticals and industry in Europe. Among the rivers, the Danube was the most polluted.