Occurrence and distribution of glyphosate and aminomethylphosphonic acid in surface water, drinking water, wastewater and other water types from New York State, USA

Glyphosate-based herbicides have been extensively used worldwide over the past several decades, raising concerns over their occurrence in aquatic environments. In this study, we determined glyphosate and its degradation product, aminomethylphosphonic acid (AMPA), in 229 water samples of various types collected from New York State, USA, during 2023–2024. The geometric mean concentration of glyphosate varied among water types in the following decreasing order: stormwater runoff (112 ng/L) > wastewater effluent (42.5 ng/L) > wastewater influent (14.1 ng/L) > river water (10.3 ng/L) > rainwater (9.61 ng/L) > lake water (4.57 ng/L). Glyphosate was rarely found in drinking water and swimming pool water. The composition profiles of the analytes varied among different water types, indicating that multiple sources and processes contributed to their contamination. The concentrations of two analytes were significantly correlated in rainwater, river water, and stormwater runoff, indicating that AMPA originated primarily from glyphosate degradation. Glyphosate and AMPA showed negative removal efficiencies (≤ -186 %) in wastewater treatment, which implies formation and release of these chemicals during treatment. The calculated risk quotient of glyphosate was below 0.1 for > 97 % of surface water samples analyzed. This study provides baseline information for the assessment of sources and risks of glyphosate in the aquatic environment.