Attenuation of total organic carbon and unregulated trace organic chemicals in U.S. riverbank filtration systems

There is increasing concern regarding the presence of unregulated trace organic chemicals in drinking water supplies that receive discharge from municipal wastewater treatment plants. In comparison to conventional and advanced drinking water treatment, riverbank filtration represents a low-cost and low-energy alternative that can attenuate total organic carbon (TOC) as well as trace organic chemicals (TOrC). This study examined the role of predominant redox conditions, retention time, biodegradable organic carbon, and temperature to achieve attenuation of TOC and TOrC through monitoring efforts at three full-scale RBF facilities in different geographic areas of the United States. The RBF systems investigated in this study were able to act as a reliable barrier for TOC, nitrogen, and certain TOrC. Temperature (seasonal) variation played an important role for the make-up of the river water quality and performance of the RBF systems. Temperatures of less than 10 °C did not affect TOC removal but resulted in diminished attenuation of nitrate and select TOrC.