Occurrence and Distribution of Pharmaceutical Organic Compounds in the Groundwater Downgradient of a Landfill (Grindsted, Denmark)

Usually landfill leachates contain specific organic compounds as BTEXs (benzene, toluene, ethylbenzene, and xylenes), chlorinated aliphatic hydrocarbons and chlorobenzenes originating from household chemicals and waste from small businesses (I). However, where industrial waste has been landfilled, the leachate may contain many other organic compounds (2). Another paper of ours (3) described the distribution of commonly found organic compounds in the leachate plume downgradient of the Grindsted Landfill and discussed the fate of the organic compounds in view of the redox environments determined in the plume (4). In this paper, we describe the occurrence and distribution of organic compounds originating from waste from the pharmaceutical industry in the groundwater downgradient of the same landfill. According to our knowledge, this is the first report on pharmaceutical compounds in a leachate plume.