First evaluation of wastewater discharge influence on marine water contamination in the vicinity of Arctowski Station (Maritime Antarctica)

Highlights: • Arctowski Station wastewater management met the Madrid Protocol requirements. • Anionic surfactants and Zn were noted in marine water 96 h after wastewater discharge. • The sum of surfactants may be used as markers of human activity in Antarctica. • No observed effect concentrations on bioindicators may be used for risk assessment. • Suitable wastewater treatment systems in Antarctica is needed. In Antarctica, waste is generated mainly during scientific research programmes and related logistics. In this study, the impact of wastewater on the western shore of Admiralty Bay was investigated during austral summer in 2017 and 2019. A range of physicochemical parameters and the presence of selected trace metals, formaldehyde and different groups of surfactants were determined in wastewater coming from Arctowski Station and in nearby coastal waters. The presence of selected trace metals (e.g., Cr: 2.7–4.4 μg/L; Zn: 15.2–37.3 μg/L; and Ni: 0.9–23.3 μg/L) and the sums of cationic (0.3–1.5 mg/L), anionic (3.1–1.7 mg/L), and non-ionic (0.6–2.4 mg/L) surfactants in wastewater indicated the potential influence of anthropogenic factors on sea water. The determined surfactants are found in many hygiene products that end up in the waste water tank after human use and, if untreated, can be released into surface waters with discharge. In addition, the levels of some trace metals indicate that they cannot come only from natural sources, but are the result of human activity. The reported data show disturbances in the marine environment caused by non-treated wastewater discharge, e.g. by comparing the obtained results from the values of the no observed effect concentrations (NOECs) on selected Antarctic bioindicators, and provide information for the implementation of proper wastewater treatment at any Antarctic station in the future.