{"id":14471,"date":"2019-12-05T12:05:00","date_gmt":"2019-12-05T11:05:00","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/exgdete.cluster028.hosting.ovh.net\/?p=14471"},"modified":"2026-08-28T00:49:36","modified_gmt":"2026-08-27T22:49:36","slug":"oecd-publishes-report-on-pharmaceutical-residues-in-water","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/dev.phytocontrol.com\/en\/regulatory-watch\/oecd-publishes-report-on-pharmaceutical-residues-in-water\/","title":{"rendered":"The OECD publishes a report on pharmaceutical residues in water"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

On 13 November 2019, the OECD published a report<\/a> concerning pharmaceutical residues in water.<\/p>\n\n

There are currently around 4,000 pharmaceutical active ingredients administered worldwide on prescription.<\/p>\n\n

Pharmaceutical products are designed to interact with a living organism and produce a pharmacological response, which makes them a concern even at low doses in the environment.<\/p>\n\n

They are stable molecules that degrade very slowly, and their everyday use leads to constant release into the environment.<\/p>\n\n

Pharmaceuticals administered to humans or animals are excreted in urine and faeces; 30 to 90% of oral doses are generally excreted as active substances.<\/p>\n\n

Very high concentrations, on the order of mg\/l, have also been detected in industrial effluents around the world.<\/p>\n\n

Our wastewater treatment plants are not designed to remove pharmaceutical substances from wastewater.<\/p>\n\n

The presence of pharmaceuticals in the environment raises many concerns.<\/p>\n\n

Humans may be exposed via drinking water and the ingestion of food containing pharmaceutical residues.<\/p>\n\n

Certain substances have been shown to cause adverse effects on ecosystems, including mortality, as well as changes in physiology, behaviour and reproduction.<\/p>\n\n

For example, oral contraceptives have caused the feminisation of fish and amphibians, and antidepressants have altered fish behaviour, making them more vulnerable to predators.<\/p>\n\n

On the other hand, the misuse and overuse of antibiotics is a significant contributing factor to antimicrobial resistance; up to 50% of antibiotics prescribed for human use are considered unnecessary. The figure is even higher in agriculture and aquaculture, sectors where they are mainly administered as growth factors and substitutes for good hygiene.<\/p>\n\n

The environment thus becomes a reservoir of resistance genes, as well as a breeding ground for the development and spread of resistance among pathogens.<\/p>\n\n

The OECD recommends that governments adopt a collective life-cycle approach to managing pharmaceuticals in the environment.<\/p>\n\n

Policies that cost-effectively manage pharmaceuticals to protect water quality and freshwater ecosystems rely on the following strategies:<\/p>\n\n