Emerging Contaminants in Water-Soil-Plant Systems Volume II

Emerging contaminants (ECs) are becoming an increasing concern due to their potential adverse impacts on environmental matrices, including water, soil, and plants. ECs are chemicals and other substances of natural or synthetic origin that are not traditionally regulated or commonly monitored but have recently been identified as potential environmental pollutants. These include pharmaceuticals and personal care products (PPCPs), hormones and other endocrine-disrupting chemicals (EDCs), pesticides, microplastics, per- and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS), flame retardants, plasticizers, engineered nanomaterials, and other chemicals of emerging environmental concern.Emerging contaminants (ECs) can enter agricultural environments through multiple pathways, including wastewater discharge and reuse, land application of sewage sludge and biosolids, agricultural inputs, and other anthropogenic activities. Once introduced into agroecosystems, these contaminants may undergo complex processes of sorption, degradation, transformation, and accumulation in soil. Depending on their properties and environmental conditions, ECs may also be taken up by plant roots and translocated to aboveground tissues, potentially reaching edible plant parts and entering the food chain. Understanding the fate and behavior of ECs within the water–soil–plant continuum remains a major challenge. Their persistence, mobility, bioavailability, and plant uptake are governed by complex interactions between the physicochemical properties of individual contaminants and the characteristics of water, soil, and plants. Moreover, transformation products may exhibit environmental behaviors and biological effects that differ substantially from those of their parent compounds, further complicating environmental risk assessment. A deeper understanding of these complex interactions is therefore essential for assessing the environmental and human health risks associated with ECs, developing effective mitigation and remediation strategies, and supporting the safe and sustainable use of water and soil resources in agriculture.In recent years, many researchers have highlighted alarming findings of widespread and emerging contamination of soil by ECs and uptake by plants. The presence of emerging contaminants in water-soil-plant systems represents a challenge for the entire scientific community. To ensure greater environmental and food safety, it is important to thoroughly investigate how ECs interact with soil and plants. However, further studies are still needed to fully understand the fate of these contaminants in terms of bioaccumulation in soil, uptake by plants, formation of transformation products, and reduction of possible risks to human health. By presenting innovative solutions and research results, this topic also aims to contribute to the development of alternate agronomic strategies to reduce EC pollution. This research topic aims to explore the different issues relating to the problem of ECs in the agricultural sector. The special issue is open to research articles, reviews, case studies, and perspectives addressing the following topics:- Sources of contamination and transport of polluting molecules in the environment;- ECs extraction and quantification techniques;- Dynamics of ECs in soil: interaction with organic and inorganic matter;- Degradation and transformation processes of ECs;- Effects of contaminants and respective metabolites on enzymatic and microbial activity;- Contaminants translocation into edible parts of plants;- Tools and methods to model the fate of emerging pollutants;- Environmental and human health risk assessment. Topic editors: Francesco De Mastro, Gennaro Brunetti, Karam Farrag, Alba N Mininni Source: https://www.frontiersin.org/research-topics/86960/emerging-contaminants-in-water-soil-plant-systems-volume-ii