Aminopropanone as a marker for raw sewage in natural waters

Aminopropanone has been identified in raw sewage. Its presence at high concentrations (up to 60 μmol l−1) in several samples from the Mersey Estuary (UK) and Port Erin Bay (Isle of Man) is consistent with the contamination at those sites. The lifetime of the ketone is sufficiently long (t1/2 ca 8–10 days in raw sewage) for it to be useful as a tracer for untreated sewage.