It was shown that residues of various pharmaceutical residues including AMDOPH, clofibric acid, diclofenac, propyphenazone, carbamazepine, primidone, sulfamethoxazole are leaching from the surface water into groundwater also occurring at trace levels in the receiving water-supply wells. Other compounds such as indometacin, bezafibrate, some antibiotics, and estrogenic steroids were also detected in the surface water but efficiently removed by bank filtration and not detected downstream from the first two monitoring wells.

The capacity for the removal of the individual residues could be linked to the hydro-geochemical conditions prevailing in the respective groundwater infiltration zones or aquifers. It was not possible to assign removal capacities to specific structural properties of common compound classes. However, for some compounds redox conditions and residence times for a preferential and often complete removal of the individual compound were identified and will be reported. In conclusion, bank filtration was found to decrease the concentrations of some drug residues or even to remove selected compounds. However, a complete removal of all potential drug residues by bank filtration may not be guaranteed.