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ABSTRACT: An analytical procedure was developed that enables routine analysis of four estrogenic hormones in concentrations below 1 ng/l in surface water and waste water. The recovery was 88–98% with a limit of detection of 0.1–2.4 ng/l depending on the compound and the matrix measured. This method was used to determine the occurrence of 17β-estradiol, 17α-estradiol, estrone and 17α-ethinylestradiol in the aquatic environment in The Netherlands. The data show that estrogenic hormones can be detected at low concentrations (up to 6 ng/l) at some locations in surface water. In selected effluents of waste water treatment plants estrone and 17β-estradiol were detected in concentrations in the ng/l range. Concentrations of 17α-estradiol and the contraceptive 17α-ethinylestradiol were in most of these samples below the limit of detection. Hormone glucuronides were not detected in most surface water and effluents.
Science of The Total Environment.
