Kevin Tyre (Florida) coauthored the paper, “Widespread Human Waste Pollution in Surface Waters Observed Throughout the Urbanized, Coastal Communities of Lee County, Florida, USA,” that will be published in Science of the Total Environment Volume 879 on June 25, 2023. The paper is currently available online.

Kevin is a Scientist who focuses on water quality assessment for surface water and stormwater resources, as well as hydrologic, hydraulic, and water quality modeling of watersheds.

Kevin’s coauthors are Rachel A. Brewton and Brian E. Lapointe of the Harbor Branch Oceanographic Institute and Lisa B. Kreiger of the Lee County Department of Natural Resources.

Science of the Total Environment is an international multidisciplinary natural science journal that publishes novel, hypothesis-driven, high-impact research on the environment, including the atmosphere, lithosphere, hydrosphere, biosphere, and anthroposphere. The journal is published by Elsevier.

The coastal communities of Lee County, Florida, USA have grown rapidly since the 1970s. In this county, drainage ditches, canals, creeks, and the Caloosahatchee River Estuary often have high concentrations of nutrients and bacteria that limit their designated uses. Septic systems have been identified as a major pollution source in some areas of Lee County; this study sought to identify the extent of this issue throughout the county. To accomplish this, surface water samples were collected at 25 ditch, creek, or canal sites suspected of human waste contamination from septic systems in various drainage basins throughout Lee County from January 2020 through January 2021. Water samples were analyzed for nutrients, dual stable nitrate isotopes, fecal indicator bacteria, a molecular tracer of human waste, and chemical tracers of human waste (the artificial sweetener sucralose, pharmaceuticals). Particulate organic matter (POM) and macrophytes were also collected and analyzed for stable carbon and nitrogen isotopes, as well as elemental composition. To broaden the assessment of stable isotope values and C:N:P, archived macrophyte samples from 2019 were also included in analyses. Ammonium concentrations were high in 55 percent of samples. Fecal bacteria were high in 66 percent of samples. HF183 was detected in 50 percent of samples and positively correlated with enterococci. Sucralose concentrations were high in 54 percent of samples, while carbamazepine was detected in 40 percent of samples. Human waste N sources were calculated by a complex division of chemicals at sites where macrophyte samples were collected. This large-scale study provides evidence of widespread human waste pollution throughout Lee County and can help guide infrastructure improvements to promote sustainable development. These findings should be applicable to urbanized regions globally that are experiencing declines in water quality and harmful algal blooms due to development with inadequate infrastructure.

More Information

Learn more about the article: Widespread human waste pollution in surface waters observed throughout the urbanized, coastal communities of Lee County, Florida, USA – ScienceDirect
For consultation regarding wastewater contamination, contact Kevin at kevin.tyre@geosyntec.com
Learn more about Kevin at Kevin Tyre | LinkedIn