Theses and Dissertations Collection

Organic fertilizers, such as dairy manure and biosolids, are often applied to agricultural fields as nutrient amendments. In addition to essential nutrients, organic fertilizers regularly contain chemicals of emerging concern (CEC) including hormones, phytoestrogens, antibiotics, pharmaceuticals, and metals. In this thesis, I explore the prevalence of CECs in Idaho’s dairy manure and biosolids and their environmental fate from land-application of organic fertilizers. Two dairy manure samples and one biosolid sample were extracted for 27 CECS, and antibiotics and hormones were detected in all three samples. Undisturbed soil columns were used to determine the environmental mobility of CECs through an agricultural soil. Sulfonamides, flunixin, and ibuprofen eluted from the chemical-treated columns, but no flush of hormones was detected. The continued application of organic fertilizers may pose a threat to future public and environmental health due to the frequent presence of some CECs.