Removal of Cyanobacteria and Cyanotoxins in Waters

Abstract

Harmful cyanobacterial algal blooms and cyanotoxins currently pose a major threat to global society, one that exceeds local and national interests due to their extremely destructive effects on the environment and human health. In the near future, the formation of harmful cyanobacterial algal blooms and, in turn, cyanotoxins is expected to become widespread, driven by eutrophication and anthropogenic causes such as water pollution and promoted by escalating global temperatures. Such trends, studied since the late 1990s, have attracted increased interest due to (i) the high environmental impact of cyanobacterial blooms and cyanotoxins worldwide, (ii) the ineffective removal of those pollutants by conventional water treatment processes, (iii) the transformational capacity to completely destroy those organic toxins via alternative treatments such as advanced oxidation processes,and (iv) engineering challenges when transitioning toward the treatment of large volumes of water. The global context of this threat thus urges the innovation of simple, sustainable, low-cost strategies and technologies for water decontamination that can be readily implemented worldwide.