Survey of oestrogen in waste water 

For the first time, a national survey is being made to determine how oestrogen – both the natural sex hormone and the artificial hormones used in birth control pills etc. - affects Denmark’s aquatic environment.

"The aim of the project is to survey oestrogen activity so that we can establish a better basis for assessing its impact,” says COWI project manager Frank Stuer-Lauridsen. “Also, we hope to learn where oestrogen discharges originate."

Increasing awareness

The survey, which began in December, is the result of increasing awareness of hormone-disturbing substances in recent years. For instance, the discharge of oestrogen substances is considered to be the cause of sex changes observed in fish in several countries.

In certain streams in Århus county in Denmark, up to half the male trout have been observed to develop eggs in their testicles, with the result that they are unable to reproduce.

340 samples

COWI, with its solid experience in the area of hormone-disturbing substances and Danish waterways, is implementing the project on behalf of the Danish Environmental Protection Agency. COWI is part of a consortium that also includes the Danish University of Pharmaceutical Sciences, the University of Southern Denmark and the Eurofins laboratory, which specialises in chemical analyses.

The project involves taking 340 samples from up to 150 different localities, and includes examinations of different types of waste water treatment plants, as well as drains and waterways in open country, to determine if there are traces of substances in waste water and flow-off from fields. The project will be completed by December 2004.

Published: 16.01.2004