PER- AND POLYFLUOROALKYL SUBSTANCES (PFASs) IN THE ENVIRONMENT

• PFASs in surface, groundwater, drinking water, marine environment

• Precursor compounds and their transformation to PFASs

• PFASs interactions with soils and sediments

• Retention, release and transport in soils/ groundwater

• Treatment, Removal, Remediation and Management of PFASs

• Impact on environment and human health

Mining Explorations and hydraulic Fracking

• Underground coal gasification (in-situ gasification) contaminants
• Hydraulic fracturing chemicals (biocides and other contaminants)
• Geogenic contaminants (organic compounds, metals, radionuclides)
• Contaminants in flow-back and produced water
• Treatment options for removal of contaminants from produced water
• Safe disposal or reuse of produced water
• Fate and toxicity of oil dispersants in marine environments

ENDOCRINE DISRUPTION and Emerging Contaminants

• Detection and measurement of endocrine disruption

• Nature of EDCs and the disruption mechanisms

• Interactions of EDC compounds (e.g. antiestrogenic, antiandrogenic, etc)

• Dealing with complexity

• Managing myriad of EDCs in the environment

WASTEWATER RECLAMATION AND REUSE AND ALTERNATIVE WATER SOURCES

• Direct and indirect potable reuse
• Water security and wastewater reuse (e.g. irrigation, drinking, etc.)
• Land application of biosolids and other wastes
• Managed aquifer recharge of stormwater and wastewater
• Urban wetlands for stormwater management and ecosystem services

NANOMATERIALS, PHARMACEUTICALS AND PERSONAL CARE PRODUCTS as Emerging Contaminants

• Pharmaceuticals and personal care products in the environment.
• Metals, metals oxides and carbon based nanoparticles (carbon nanotubes, fullerenes)
• Characterisation of nanoparticles and/or nanovectors
• Detection and environmental exposure assessment
• Colloidal interactions of nanoparticles with water, sediment, soils
• Transformations and speciation during wastewater treatment
• Environmental fate and transport of nanoparticles
• Uptake and effects on biota

Microplastics as Emerging Contaminants

• Methods of detection / characterisation
• Microplastics as carrier of emerging contaminants
• Fate and effects in marine and freshwater systems
• Biota interactions 

Emerging Contaminants and Tropical Ecosystems 

• Emerging contaminants in coral reefs (e.g. Great Barrier Reef)
• Contaminant dynamics in tropical/subtropical regions
• Fate and effects of emerging contaminants in tropical environment
• Extrapolation of data and information from temperate regions

Other Emerging or Re-emerging Contaminants on the Horizon

• Illicit drugs, natural toxins, disinfection byproducts, etc.
• Methods of detection / characterisation
• Fate and transport
• Uptake and effects on biota

ANTIMICROBIAL RESISTANCE (AMR) DEVELOPMENT

• Environmental dimension of AMR

• Antibiotics, Biocides and AMR development

• Antibiotics as growth promotors and AMR

• Role of metals (e.g. Cu/Zn) in AMR development

• Antimicrobial resistant genes (ARG)

• Evolution of antibiotic resistance after treatment/reuse

Sources and Exposure Pathways 

• Urban wastewater and septic system discharges 
• Sewer overflows and raw sewage incursion
• Aquaculture and animal feeding operations 
• Energy production (e.g., gas exploration , hydraulic fracturing fluids,  rare earth elements,)
• Pharmaceutical manufacturing, hospitals, long-term care facilities
• Landfills

Treatment Processes and Technologies

• Wastewater treatment plants (e.g. efficiency in removal of EDCs, PPCPs, etc.) 
• Advanced treatment processes and technologies
• Surrogate and indicator chemicals to assess potential removal of ECs during treatment
• Constructed wetlands and cost-effective treatment processes
• Cost/benefit analysis of advanced treatment processes
• Low cost options for wastewater treatment in developing economies
• Treatment goals and community expectations (‘fit for purpose’)

Sampling, Analytical and Characterisation Methods

• Sampling strategies for biota, air, water, sediments and soils 
• Analysis approaches – versus complexity of EC exposure in aquatic systems
• HRMS methods – recent advances, forensics, non-target & high throughput analysis
• Problem matrices – elucidation of factors affecting & compensating for matrix effects  
• Passive samplers and real-time sensors – EC measurement and characterization
• Application of OMICs and biomarkers and bioassays for effects testing of ECs 
• Integrative analytical approaches (chemical analyses, in vitro bioassays, and in vivo screening) 
• Holistic approaches for understanding of environmental contaminants

Fate and Transport in Aquatic and Terrestrial Ecosystems

• Hetero & homo-aggregation and suspension stability of nano-particles – role of DOCs
• Release of nano-particles from solid waste; colloids as nano-vectors (synthetic & natural) 
• Sorption – desorption, equilibrium and kinetic processes 
• Biotic and abiotic attenuation (e.g. photolysis) and distribution
• Natural attenuation in rivers, wetlands  and receiving environments (aquatic and terrestrial); 
• Surface, subsurface and atmospheric transport of ECs; 
• Biogeochemistry in the hyporheic zone, redox processes and fate of ECs
• Pharmacology versus environmental fate assessment
• Transformation products 

Aquatic and Terrestrial Effects

• Cocktails and mixture exposure and effects:  new advancements 
• Endocrine disruption (e.g. androgens, anti-estrogens) thyroid disruption etc. 
• Cytotoxic and biologically active drugs in the environment
• Antibiotic resistance – gene transfer, extent and significance
• Epigenetics and transgenerational transmission
• Uptake into biota (bioavailability, bioconcentration, bioaccumulation)
• Modeling and prioritisation approaches for predicting & monitoring effects (in-silico vs in-vivo)

Risk Assessment, Risk Management, Regulations and Policy Frameworks

• Regulations shifting the problem – e.g. pharmaceutical manufacturing, e-waste
• Evaluation of the environmental impacts of energy production
• Community perceptions versus actual risk as policy drivers
• Current guidelines - their development and adequacy for ECs
• Environmental tradeoffs, cost: benefit consideration
• Pharmaceutical take-back programs
• Global collaboration and harmonisation of regulations