Occurrence and ecological risk of parabens in water environment in Xiong'an New Area

Surface water (SW) and groundwater (GW) samples were taken from Xiong'an New Area and the vicinity of Baoding in June 2019. Concentrations of seven parabens were determined for these samples and the associated ecological risk was assessed. The detection rates of MeP and PrP were 100%. MeP was found to be the predominant compound in SW samples, with a mass contribution of 93.4%, and MeP, EtP and PrP were the predominant compounds in GW samples, with a total mass contribution of 98.0%. The GW samples overall had a higher content of parabens than the SW samples. In space, the SW samples downstream Baiyang Lake showed higher concentrations of parabens than those upstream of Baiyang Lake, while GW samples taken from Anxin County had relatively high concentrations of parabens (10.1ng/L on average). Overall, the water pollution level of parabens, as well as the associated ecological risk, was relatively low in the study area. This study offered reference values for water quality management in the future development of Xiong'an New Area, and sheds light on studies of other PPCPs in the same area.