Occurrence and Treatment of Hormones in Drinking Water Sources and Plants

RESUME Depuis les dernieres decennies, de nombreuses preoccupations scientifiques et publiques ont emerge concernant les effets potentiels des hormones qui sont liberees dans l'environnement, causant des troubles sexuels, nuisant a la reproduction et au developpement des organismes aquatiques. Les stations de recuperation des ressources de l’eau (StaRRE) sont connues pour etre une source majeure d'hormones dans l'environnement aquatique. Plusieurs etudes ont ete publiees a l'echelle internationale au cours des dernieres decennies, afin de documenter la presence d'hormones naturelles et synthetiques dans les eaux usees brutes, les effluents StaRRE et a des concentrations plus faibles dans les eaux de surface/ souterraines.----------ABSTRACT During the last few decades, there has been considerable scientific and public concern about potential impacts of hormones that are released to the environment where they cause sexual disorders, impair reproduction and development of aquatic organisms. Wastewater treatment plants have been known to be a major source of hormone release into the aquatic environment. Several studies have been published internationally during the recent decades, to document the presence of natural and synthetic hormones in raw wastewater, WRRFs effluents, and at lower concentrations in surface/ground waters. Most of these studies have focused on hormone quantifications in river water (dissolved only) and in biosolids (total hormones) of wastewater or in sediments.