It will take millions of fleas. Scientists have found a new and effective way to filter wastewater

Unfortunately, treatment plants do not have the ability to purify industrial wastewater from all persistent chemical pollutants. As a result, our rivers, streams and irrigation systems often end up with a variety of pesticides, industrial chemicals and pharmaceuticals that significantly damage ecosystems and contaminate our water and food, writes The Guardian.

But most current water filtration options are too expensive, contain too much carbon, and can even pollute themselves. As a result, scientists from the University of Birmingham focused on finding a natural filter that was environmentally friendly, cheap and easily scalable.

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According to study co-author Carl Dearn, professor of mechanical engineering, he and his colleagues turned to water fleas, members of the Daphnia genus that are not actually fleas. This genus includes approximately 450 species of small crustaceans that filter their food by digesting small particles of detritus, algae, or bacteria. As a result, scientists discovered that sea fleas could become the bioequivalent of the vacuum cleaner used in sewage treatment.

Environmental science professor Luisa Orsini, another co-author of the study, said she and her colleagues were excited to realize that sea fleas can actually absorb chemicals. In the study, scientists selected four types of marine bodies that consume some of the pollutants considered most dangerous by public health experts:

• pharmaceutical compound diclofenac;
• pesticide atrazine;
• heavy metal arsenic;
• industrial chemical PFOS.

To understand which species of sea flea was most preferred, Orsini and his colleagues “resurrected” several dormant embryos trapped in sediments at the bottom of rivers. Note that these embryos are sealed in a vault at the bottom of the lakes, where they await optimal conditions; The “resurrection” of embryos can take centuries.

By selecting strains from 1900, 1960, 1980 and 2015, the team took embryo samples from times when these contaminants were most prevalent or absent. After that, scientists bred a population of fleas through cloning in the laboratory and then tested their genetic composition and survival abilities. The researchers then tested the sea fleas’ ability to purify water; first in an aquarium, then in 100 liters of water, and now in an actual purification plant with over 2,000 liters of water. The next step is to place the sea fleas in a tank containing 21 million liters of water.

The results of the study show that sea fleas were ingested in the laboratory:

• 90% diclofenac;
• 60% arsenic;
• 59% atrazine;
• 50% PFOS.

Meanwhile, outdoors, in conditions similar to treatment plants, sea fleas showed the same result. The study authors believe that fleas are a very promising solution for wastewater treatment, as they can independently maintain populations through cloning and self-regulation depending on available nutrients.

Previously Focus wrote about what scientists say about whether it is safe to drink rainwater.