Mikrobielle Sanierung von 2,4,6-Trinitrotoluol (TNT) kontaminierten Böden

Within the limits of a feasability study abouton-site bioremediation methods for TNT-contaminated soils, composting was chosen as a very promising and cheap method. This method was critically compared with those described in the literature and was primarily rated under ecotoxicological aspects. The investigated location is the former munition plant «Tanne» in the aerea of Clausthal-Zellerfeld in Lower Saxony, Germany. To estimate the autochtonic microflora, we assessed the number of aerobic heterotrophic bacteria and determined their respiration activity in soils. In addition, we isolated bacteria and examined their capacity to metabolize TNTin vitro. Both the amount of autochtonic microrganisms (4.7×10⁸ to 1.2×10¹⁰ colony forming units (cfu)/kg dryweight) as well as their respiration activity did not correlate with the concentrations of nitrotoluenes in the soils. With high contaminated soil (20 g TNT/kg dry weight) we carried out a small compost in the range of 10 liters. During 28 days of composting TNT-concentration decrease over 90% and only minor amounts of monoaminodinitrotoluenes were generated. However, an acidic pretreatment of the compost material at the end of the reaction showed that TNT could be partially resolved under these extreme conditions and that an ecotoxicological risk may still exist. Possible changes in the realization of the composting process in order to make sure that the contaminants are savely bound to the humin matrix are discussed.     

Seasonal and Inter-Annual Variations in Methyl Mercury Concentrations in Zooplankton from Boreal Lakes Impacted by Deforestation or Natural Forest Fires

We compared the effects of natural and anthropogenic watershed disturbances on methyl mercury (MeHg) concentration in bulk zooplankton from boreal Shield lakes. MeHg in zooplankton was monitored for three years in nine lakes impacted by deforestation, in nine lakes impacted by wildfire, and in twenty lakes with undisturbed catchments. Lakes were sampled during spring, mid- and late summer. MeHg in zooplankton showed a seasonal trend: concentrations were the lowest in spring, then peaked in mid-summer and decreased in late summer. Over the three study years, MeHg concentrations observed in mid-summer in zooplankton from forest harvested lakes were significantly higher than in reference and fire-impacted lakes, whereas differences between these two groups of lakes were not significant. The pattern of distribution of MeHg in zooplankton during the different seasons paralleled that of dissolved organic carbon (DOC), which is known as a vector of Hg from watershed soils to lake water. Besides DOC, MeHg in zooplankton also showed a positive significant correlation with epilimnetic temperature and sulfate concentrations. An inter-annual decreasing trend in MeHg was observed in zooplankton from reference and fire-impacted lakes. In forest harvested lakes, however, MeHg concentrations remained higher and nearly constant over three years following the impact. Overall these results indicate that the MeHg pulse observed in zooplankton following deforestation by harvesting is relatively long-lived, and may have repercussions to the accumulation of MeHg along the food chain. Therefore, potential effects of deforestation on the Hg contamination of fish should be taken into account in forest management practices.     

Epidemiologic Analysis of Factors Associated with Local Disappearances of Native Ranid Frogs in Arizona

Abstract:  We examined factors that may independently or synergistically contribute to amphibian population declines. We used epidemiologic case–control methodology to sample and analyze a large database developed and maintained by the Arizona Game and Fish Department that describes historical and currently known ranid frog localities in Arizona, U.S.A. Sites with historical documentation of target ranid species ( n = 324) were evaluated to identify locations where frogs had disappeared during the study period (case sites) and locations where frog populations persisted (control sites). Between 1986 and 2003, 117 (36%) of the 324 sites became case sites, of which 105 were used in the analyses. An equal number of control sites were sampled to control for the effects of time. Risk factors, or predictor variables, were defined from environmental data summarized during site surveys and geographic information system data layers. We evaluated risk factors with univariate and multifactorial logistic-regression analyses to derive odds ratios (OR). Odds for local population disappearance were significantly related to 4 factors in the multifactorial model. Disappearance of frog populations increased with increasing elevation (OR = 2.7 for every 500 m, p < 0.01). Sites where disappearances occurred were 4.3 times more likely to have other nearby sites that also experienced disappearances (OR = 4.3, p < 0.01), whereas the odds of disappearance were 6.7 times less (OR = 0.15, p < 0.01) when there was a source population nearby. Sites with disappearances were 2.6 times more likely to have introduced crayfish than were control sites (OR = 2.6, p = 0.04). The identification of factors associated with frog disappearances increases understanding of declines occurring in natural populations and aids in conservation efforts to reestablish and protect native ranids by identifying and prioritizing implicated threats.     

Effects of bed materials on the performance of an anaerobic sequencing batch biofilm reactor treating domestic sewage

The objective of this study was to determine the best performance of an anaerobic sequencing batch biofilm reactor (AnSBBR) based on the use of four different bed materials as support for biomass immobilization. The bed materials utilized were polyurethane foam (PU), vegetal carbon (VC), synthetic pumice (SP), and recycled low-density polyethylene (PE). The AnSBBR, with a total volume of 7.2L, was operated in 8-h batch cycles over 10 months, and fed with domestic sewage with an average influent chemical oxygen demand (COD) of 358+/-110mg/L. The average effluent COD values were 121+/-31, 208+/-54, 233+/-52, and 227+/-51mg/L, for PU, VC, SP, and PE, respectively. A modified first-order kinetic model was adjusted to temporal profiles of COD during a batch cycle, and the apparent kinetic constants were 0.52+/-0.05, 0.37+/-0.05, 0.80+/-0.04, and 0.30+/-0.02h(-1) for PU, VC, SP, and PE, respectively. Specific substrate utilization rates of 1.08, 0.11, and 0.86mg COD/mgVS day were obtained for PU, VC, and PE, respectively. Although SP yielded the highest kinetic coefficient, PU was considered the best support, since SP presented loss of chemical constituents during the reactor's operational phase. In addition, findings on the microbial community were associated with the reactor's performance data. Although PE did not show a satisfactory performance, an interesting microbial diversity was found on its surface. Based on the morphology and denaturing gradient gel electrophoresis (DGGE) results, PE showed the best capacity for promoting the attachment of methanogenic organisms, and is therefore a material that merits further analysis. PU was considered the most suitable material showing the best performance in terms of efficiency of solids and COD removal.     

Prenatal diagnosis of a 45,X male with a SRY-bearing chromosome 21

Male phenotype associated with a 45,X karyotype is an infrequent finding. We present a case diagnosed prenatally on amniocentesis performed for maternal age. The male phenotype was associated with a translocation of a distal part of Yp including the pseudoautosomal SHOX gene and SRY gene on the short arm of a chromosome 21. By DNA analysis we could show that the X chromosome was of maternal origin and that the breakpoint was in interval 3 of the Y chromosome. Mechanisms and genetic counselling are discussed based on a review of published cases of 45,X and XX males. Copyright © 2002 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Prenatal diagnosis of Apert syndrome: report of two cases

Two de novo cases with Apert Syndrome detected prenatally are presented herein. In the first, fetal ultrasound findings of syndactyly of the hands, craniosynostosis and proptosis resulted in a prenatal diagnosis in the nineteenth week of gestation. This is the earliest prenatal diagnosis of this syndrome in a not-at-risk case. Following counseling, this pregnancy was terminated and subsequent pathological examination and DNA analysis confirmed the diagnosis of Apert Syndrome and coarctation of the aorta. In the second case, fetal ultrasound at 21 weeks' gestation revealed a hypoplastic left heart and clover-leaf skull. Following counseling, this pregnancy was also terminated. Further examination of the fetus and DNA analysis led to a diagnosis of Apert Syndrome. These cases emphasize the need to complete a thorough fetal ultrasound in cases with potentially lethal cardiac abnormality and the importance of incorporating a fetal pathologist, as well as a medical geneticist, in the investigations performed after delivery or pregnancy termination when a fetal abnormality is detected on ultrasound. Copyright © 2003 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Total quality practitioner. Improving environmental process

Quick fix. Putting out firs. Do it over. Fix it again. Bottlenecks. Come back to it later. Out of stock. Back order. Not what we ordered. Is that the best you can do? It's the contractor's fault. Not within specs. Defective. Nobody's perfect. Lost in the system. Over budget. Delayed. Late penalities. Fines.     

The Impact of Agriculture On Dissolved Nitrogen and Phosphorus Cycling in Temperate Ecosystems

Although most research has focussed on inorganic nutrient forms of nitrate (NO^-₃) and phosphorus (PO³₄) in runoff and receiving waters, nitrogen loss from agricultural land can also occur in organic and ammonium-nitrogen form; phosphorus losses, although often dominated by particulate transport, may occur in soluble organic and inorganic form. Furthermore, fluxes between different species may take place during transport from the land to the stream and as a result of in-stream, in-river or in-lake transformations. Knowledge of the spatial and temporal variation in all nitrogen species and phosphorus fractions in a drainage basin is therefore essential if the wider environmental significance of elevated nutrient concentrations in natural waters are to be assessed. This paper reviews recent work on N and P losses from agricultural land and presents some results from two intensive agricultural catchments: Slapton, Devon and the river Windrush catchment in the Cotswolds.     

Multicriteria Group Decision-making Model for Environmental Conflict Analysis in the Cape Region,Mexico

This paper is concerned with developing a model for group decision making under multiple criteria. The multiple criteria group decision making (MCGDM)problem involves a set of feasible land use patterns that are evaluated on the basis of multiple, conflicting and noncommensurate criteria by a group of individuals. The model integrates the Analytic Hierarchy Process (AHP) and an integer mathematical programming method. The former provides a tool for structuring the decision problem and determining land suitability for different socio-economicactivities (the uses of land), the latter is used to identify the land use pattern that maximizes consensus among interest groups. The model is used to analyze environmental conflict over land resource allocation in the Cape Region of Mexico.