## 4 Conclusions  
This study examined the occurrence of 15 pharmaceutically active compounds (PhACs), 18 antibiotics, and one stimulant (caffeine) in influent and effluent from Assarma WWTP and in water samples from the Zarqa River and its tributaries. Based on the results obtained, the following conclusions were drawn:  
* Assarma WWTP is efficient in minimising the concentrations of PhACs and caffeine, with an overall efficiency of 81-87% and 99%, respectively. It is inefficient in removing bisoprolol and carbamazepine, for which effluent concentrations were 128% and 22% higher than influent. * Assarma WWTP is inefficient in removing antibiotics from wastewater, as concentrations of all antibiotics detected, except clarithromycin, increased by 2- to 5-fold in the effluent compared with the influent. * Zarqa river water is contaminated with antibiotics and PhACs. Sources of these contaminants are likely to be effluent from Assarma WWTP and side-inputs from the areas surrounding the river. * \(\sum\)Antibiotics and \(\sum\)PhACs in Zarqa river water are still lower than those in Assarma WWTP effluent. Dilution, degradation, evaporation, and adsorption are potential mechanisms contributing to lowering the concentration of PhACs along the river. * Since most Zarqa river is used for irrigation of vegetables and fodder crops, the PhACs and antibiotics in river water could enter the food chain and pose a risk of spreading antibiotic-resistant genes and mobile genetic elements (i.e., plasmids and integrin). Further research is required to study the fate of antibiotics and other PhACs in irrigated soils, WWTP sludge, and plants in the Zarqa river basin. * Future research should aim at conducting more sampling and at staging analysis at different seasons to understand the effects of weather conditions on the fate of PhACs in the study area. In addition, analyses of the PhACs in the solid phase (i.e., sludge) are necessary to understand the partitioning of the PhACs between the water and solid phases of the wastewater in the Assarma plant and to evaluate the total loads of PhACs in the wastewater influent and effluent. **Supplementary Materials:** The following are available online at [[https://www.mdpi.com/article/10](https://www.mdpi.com/article/10)]([https://www.mdpi.com/article/10](https://www.mdpi.com/article/10)) _3390/app11188638/s1, Table S1. Geographic positioning system (GPS) coordinates of the sampling sites for wastewater treatment plant (WWTP) influent and effluent and Zarqa River (ZR) water. Data from [35], Table S2. List of pharmaceutically active compounds (PhACs, including antibiotics) targeted in analysis of liquid samples and their chemical and physical properties (chemical formula, molecular weight (MW), logarithmic octanol-water distribution coefficient (log Kow), organic carbon-water partition coefficient (Koc), logarithmic dissociation constant (pKa), and water solubility at 25 \({}^{\circ}\)C (mg/L). Values without any reference superscript (+) were modeled and taken from ChemSpider (2020), Table S3. Concentrations of total suspended solids (TSS), total solids (TS) and chemical oxygen demand (COD) samples (n = 1 per site) in Assarma wastewater treatment plant (WWTP) influent and effluent and Zarqa River (ZR) water at Sukhna station, Twahin Eledwan station, Military station, and Jerash stream. Data from [35]. **Author Contributions:** The authors had contributed to the published work according to the following description: M.S. : conducted the laboratory analyses, the statistical analyses and revised the manuscript according to reviewers input; A.A.: participated in design and planning of the study; A.H.: participated in describing and visualizing the study area, S.S.D. : planned the study, collected the samples, participated in data analyses and wrote the manuscript. All authors have read and agreed to the published version of the manuscript.