Steroid hormones released from manure agricultural application are a matter of global concern. The residual
levels of steroid hormones were studied in a typical intensive vegetable cultivation area in northeast China,
with a long history of heavy manure application. Seven steroids (estrone, 17α-estradiol, 17β-estradiol, estriol,
testosterone, androstendione and progesterone) were analyzed from soil sampled from vegetable greenhouses,
from sediments and water from the adjacent drainage ditch and from the groundwater. The results showed that
target steroids were detected in the soil samples, with detection frequencies varying from 3.13 to 100%. The steroid
concentrations varied substantially in soils, ranging from below the detection limit to 109.7 μg·kg−1
. Three
steroids—progesterone, androstendione and estrone—were found to have relatively high residue concentrations
in soil, with maximum concentrations of 109.7, 9.83 and 13.30 μg·kg−1
, respectively. In adjacent groundwater,
all the steroids, with the exception of estrone, were detected in one or more of the 13 groundwater samples.
The concentrations of steroids in groundwater ranged from below the method detection limit to 2.38 ng·L−1
.
Six of the seven (excluding androstendione) were detected in drainage ditch water samples, with concentrations
ranging from below the detection limit to 14 ng·L−1
. Progesterone, androstendione and estrone accumulated relatively
easily in soils; their concentrations in groundwater were lower than those of other steroids. The concentrations
of testosterone and estriol were relatively low in soil, while in groundwater were higher than those of
other steroids. The residual levels of steroids in soil and groundwater showed a clear spatial variation in th