Veterinary antibiotics contamination in water, sediment, and soil near a swine manure composting facility

Antibiotics have been commonly used to prevent animal diseases and promote livestock productivity. However, its release into the surrounding environments leads to ecological disturbance and risks to human health. This study was conducted to monitor the occurrence and seasonal variations of antibiotics in water, sediment, and soil close to a swine manure composting facility, Korea. Various types of antibiotics such as tetracyclines (TCs) including tetracycline, chlortetracycline, and oxytetracycline, and sulfonamides (SAs) including sulfamethazine, sulfamethoxazole, and sulfathiazole were measured by the high-performance liquid chromatography-tandem mass spectrometry via a solid-phase extraction. In the results it was identified that the variations of measured antibiotics’ concentrations in water, sediment, and soil are depending on the season. The observed concentration levels of TCs were higher in winter than in summer season, indicating that the low temperature is a parameter attributing to interruption of its degradation in water, sediment, and soil. The concentration levels of SAs were significantly higher than those of TCs and in general, all measured antibiotics’ concentrations were also in general higher in Korea when compared to those in other countries. The long-term monitoring of antibiotics’ residues in aquatic and terrestrial environments is necessary.