Glyphosate-based herbicide: Impacts, detection, and removal strategies in environmental samples

Glyphosate (GLY) also known as N-(phosphomethyl)-glycine and its commercially formulated contemporaries are the most widely used class of herbicides in the world. Due to the hydrophilic nature of this contaminant, it has been detected in surface water, effluents, groundwater, and agri-food items especially those that are in proximity to active agricultural zones. Although glyphosate was regarded to be less toxic to human and aquatic health, its metabolite such as aminomethylphosphonic acid (AMPA) is reported to be highly deleterious to the aquatic ecosystem and human health when exposed to it. Hence, this necessitates the development of sensitive and selective instrumental techniques to screen, detect and quantify this contaminant including their removal strategies from the environment. In view of this, the ecotoxicological impact of GLY and its metabolites (AMPA) on human and aquatic health and the various advanced instrumental techniques utilized for offsite e.g., chromatographic in tandem with mass spectrometry techniques (GC/MS,HPLC- MS,UPLC- MS/MS) and onsite (spectroscopic techniques, electrochemical techniques, and biosensors) analysis of this contaminant are comprehensively discussed. Furthermore, various treatment approaches such as adsorption, biological treatments and advanced oxidative processes utilized for the degradation and mineralization of GLY and its metabolites in environmental samples are well described. Finally, various challenges relating to glyphosate degradation were identified and suggestions were provided on possible ways of optimizing the recognized methods reported in published literature.