Groundwater vulnerability assessment for the Banyas Catchment of the Syrian coastal area using GIS and the RISKE method

Vulnerability assessment to delineate areas that are more susceptible to contamination from anthropogenic sources has become an important element for sensible resource management and landuse planning. This contribution aims at estimating aquifer vulnerability by applying the RISKE model in Banyas Catchment Area (BCA), Tartous Prefecture, west Syria. An additional objective is to demonstrate the combined use of the RISKE model and a geographical information system (GIS) as an effective method for groundwater pollution risk assessment. The RISKE model uses five environmental parameters (Rock of aquifer media, Infiltration, Soil media, Karst, and Epikarst) to characterize the hydro-geological setting and evaluate aquifer vulnerability. The elevated eastern and low western part of the study area was dominated by high vulnerability classes, while the middle part was characterized by moderate vulnerability classes. Based on the vulnerability analysis, it was found that 2% and 39% of BCA is under low and high vulnerability to groundwater contamination, respectively, while more than 52% and 5% of the area of BCA can be designated as an area of moderate and very high vulnerability to groundwater contamination, respectively. The GIS technique has provided an efficient environment for analyses and high capabilities of handling a large amount of spatial data.     

A comprehensive review of hydrophobic silica and composite aerogels: synthesis,properties and recent progress towards environmental remediation and biomedical applications

Environmental Science and Pollution Research - The hydrophobicity of silica and composite aerogels has enabled them to acquire applications in a variety of fields. With remarkable structural,...     

Ag@MnxOy: an effective catalyst for photo-degradation of rhodamine B dye

Environmental Chemistry Letters - Water pollution by the textile industry is a major issue. Therefore, there is a need for methods to remove organic dyes from industrial effluents. Various...     

How do climatic change,cereal crops and livestock production interact with carbon emissions? Updated evidence from China

Environmental Science and Pollution Research - Carbon dioxide emission and climatic variation have a detrimental influence on the atmosphere as well as on agriculture production. The key aim of the...     

Characterization of dry fractions contained in municipal solid waste in developing countries: a case study of a region in Morocco

Journal of Material Cycles and Waste Management - Despite its impact on the environment, the most widely used method for waste management in African countries is landfilling. Energy recovery, in...     

Understanding consumer participation in managing ICT waste: Findings from two-staged Structural Equation Modeling–Artificial Neural Network approach

Environmental Science and Pollution Research - For environmental management, the role of consumers is extremely important in the settings of reverse logistics. Though it is a manufacturer’s...     

Evaluation of fresh and stored rainwater quality in fluoride and arsenic endemic area of Thar Desert,Pakistan

In the current study, the chemistry of fresh and stored rainwater of Thar Desert, Pakistan, was estimated during two consecutive monsoon periods. The present research deals with the variation in physicochemical parameters, total arsenic (As^t), inorganic arsenic species (Asⁱ, As^V, As^III), and fluoride (F^?) in stored rainwater (SRW) at different time intervals (1 week to 3 months). The pH of fresh rainwater (FRW) samples showed slightly acidic to neutral in nature (6.08–7.06) which were inconsistent with the reference pH value (5.6) of rainwater. The resulted data indicated that As^t and F^? levels in SRW were enhanced with time duration. The levels of As^t and F^? in SRW after different time intervals were found in the range of 194–683 μg/L and 10–35.4 mg/L, respectively. The values of As^t and F^? were 20–70 and 7–24 times higher than those of WHO permissible limits, 10 μg/L and 1.5 mg/L, respectively. The As^III was dominant species in SRW, which corresponds to >60 % of Asⁱ. The characteristics of the SRW revealed an unacceptable quality to consume for drinking and agricultural purposes in the studied area.     

Description and evaluation of imposex in Strombus canarium Linnaeus, 1758 (Gastropoda, Strombidae): a potential bio-indicator of tributyltin pollution

Strombus canarium Linnaeus, 1758 is an important gastropod species within the study area and was traditionally collected for food by the locals. The objective of the present study is to assess the incidence of imposex and its severity in this species. Adult conchs were sampled during their main reproductive period, from October 2005 to January 2006, at Sungai Pulai estuary, Johor Straits, Malaysia. A total of 32.81% of adult females showed imposex characteristics, with varying degrees of severity though. The relative penis size (RPS) index ranged from 1.74 to 33.29 (mean = 13.40 ± 2.27, n?=?21), while the relative penis length (RPL) index ranged from 6.28 to 55.19 (mean = 25.83 ± 3.33, n?=?21). The use of vas deferens sequence (VDS) index was however cannot be applied as the presence of egg groove obscured any vas deferens development in affected females. Sequence of imposex (male penis) development in female conch, from merely a small stump to an advance male penis homologous was therefore carefully analyzed and described, and an alternative imposex classification scheme was proposed. S. canarium can be a good indicator for monitoring of organotin pollution within the study area. However, more studies are needed in order to further develop and test its validity and application, such as its correlation with levels of pollutant within the tissues and the environment, as well as its application on other Strombus species.     

Cost efficiency analysis and emission reduction by implementation of energy efficiency standards for electric motors

The industrial sector is the biggest electricity consumer in Malaysia. Electric motors account for more than 45% of the electricity consumption in the industrial sector in the country. Therefore, it is very important to implement energy efficiency standards for electric motors to reduce energy consumption growth in this sector. This paper attempts to calculate the cost efficiency analysis and emission reduction by implementing energy efficiency standards for electric motor in Malaysia. The energy efficiency standards are proposed based on the efficiency of electric motors from survey data. The study examines the potential energy, economical and environmental impacts of the implementation of energy efficiency standards for electric motors in three scenarios i.e. 0.5%, 1.0% and 1.5% of standards efficiency improvement. Standards also enable consumers to reduce their electricity bill and contribute to a positive environmental impact.