Causality relationship between CO2 emissions,GDP and energy intensity in Tunisia

This article analyzes the causality between the economic growth, the energy and the environment, measured by CO₂ emissions. Our empirical study is based on a series of annual data from 1980 to 2010 in Tunisia. Our study was conducted using the Granger causality test and variance decomposition. The empirical results confirm the presence of a positive effect between the energy consumption and the economic growth measured by gross domestic product (GDP). Thus, there is a unidirectional relationship between GDP and CO₂ emissions in the short term. This analysis shows, as is common to relatively fast-growing economies in Tunisia, that the biggest contributor to the rise is CO₂ emissions. Hence, in congruence with the result of variance decomposition, the GDP affects CO₂ emissions in the short and medium term at an almost constant level (10 %). The non-renewable energy intensity in Tunisian economy is responsible for a modest reduction in CO₂ emissions, which suggests the implementation of conservation policies aimed at energy efficiency and the orientation toward renewable energy.     

Live diatoms as indicators of urban stormwater runoff

Diatom bioassessment of streams/rivers does not distinguish between live (cells with intact chloroplasts) and dead (empty cells) individuals, even though most diatom samples collected from the field will be composed of a mixture of both. This study aimed to evaluate whether percentage of live diatoms (PLD), live diatom density and chlorophyll a, and diatom species compositions can be used as indicators of hydrologic disturbance in an urban stream. We deployed artificial substrates on a monthly basis and collected periphyton samples weekly over the course of one calendar year (n = 182) in three tributaries of urbanized Ruddiman Creek (Michigan, USA). We also collected samples before and after six major storm events (>0.5 cm rain). We found no temporal patterns in PLD (Mann-Kendall test p > 0.05) or species composition (non-metric multidimensional scaling (NMDS) ordination), which may be explained by a diatom composition already tolerant to frequent disturbance. There was no difference in PLD before and after storm events, which might partially be explained by their disturbance resistance due to different assemblage ages (1, 2, and 4 weeks old) before the storms. High flow had differential effects on diatom species; loosely attached Navicula and Nitzschia species were more easily removed compared to stalk-forming Gomphonema parvulum. The most important environmental variable that was found to affect live diatom density and chlorophyll was stream width, which has an indirect effect (as a measure of discharge) on periphyton assemblages. In conclusion, PLD was found to be unsuitable metric for assessing stormwater runoff in urban streams where periphyton may not have enough time to form mature communities.     

Environmental sustainability and the integration of different methods for its assessment

The aim of this paper is to propose a research framework, based on the joint use of three widely used methods: EMergy Evaluation (EME), Ecological Footprint Analysis (EFA) and Greenhouse Gas Inventory (GHGI), that are applied to assess the environmental sustainability of a region. The results of application of these methods to several Italian Provinces enabled us to compare their sustainability, and to test the methods with respect to sustainability requirements at local and global level. The outcomes suggest that the proposed framework provides an organic evaluation of regional systems based on key aspects, such as resources depletion, consumption patterns, waste production and absorption.     

Long-term interactions between migratory caribou, wildfires and Nunavik hunters inferred from tree rings

Barren-ground caribou (Rangifer tarandus) herds in North America may reach considerable size and undertake large-scale seasonal migrations from the Arctic tundra to the boreal forest. To test the caribou decline hypothesis associated with native harvesting and fire, we have documented the long-term trends of caribou activity based on a novel approach which uses tree-ring dated trampling scars produced by caribou hooves in the extensive trails distributed over the summer and winter ranges of the Rivièreaux-Feuilles herd (RAF herd, east of Hudson Bay in northern Quebec). The age structure data of trampling scars from lichen woodlands distributed over the entire RAF range confirmed the overall trends of caribou activity from the late 1700s to present time. Over the last 200 years, the RAF herd has undergone two highs in the late 1700s and 1900s separated by a moderate activity pattern in the late 1800s. Native harvesting was possibly involved in the early 1900s decline, although at a moderate level. The reduced magnitude of caribou activity during this period has not modified the natural cycle of highs and lows, which suggests that other demographic factors were controlling the changing caribou abundance. Our data also show that only exceptionally large fires may have a minor, short-lived impact on caribou migrations but not on caribou numbers.     

Can microbial mineralization be used to estimate microbial availability of organic contaminants in soil?

The aim of this study was to characterize the behaviour of a PAH-degrading bacterium to determine whether mineralization plateaus as a result of substrate removal, a decrease in microbial activity or nutrient availability in sterile soils over time. To investigate this, the mineralization of 14C-phenanthrene was measured until it plateaued; subsequently, additional 14C-phenanthrene, catabolic inocula or nutrients were introduced and mineralization was measured for a further 10 d. Cell numbers were also measured together with 14C-uptake into microbial biomass. Freshly added 14C-phenanthrene was rapidly metabolised by the microorganisms. Neither the addition of a catabolic inoculum nor nutrients affected the extent of 14C-phenanthrene mineralization. Cell numbers remained constant over time, with only a small amount of the 14C-activity incorporated into the microbial biomass. This study indicated that the termination of mineralization was due to the removal of available phenanthrene and not decreasing cellular activity or cell death. The mineralization values also correlated with 14C-phenanthrene extractability using beta-cyclodextrin.     

Deciphering epigenetic(s) role in modulating susceptibility to and severity of COVID-19 infection and/or outcome: a systematic rapid review

Environmental Science and Pollution Research - COVID-19 pandemic waves hitting worldwide result in drastic postinfection complications with interindividual variations, which raised the question for...     

Environmental impact and diversity of protease-producing bacteria in areas of leather tannery effluents of Sialkot,Pakistan

Environmental Science and Pollution Research - Massive discharge of wastes produced by the processing of leather so far confers the most important environmental challenge facing the tanneries...     

A market modeling review study on predicting Malaysian consumer behavior towards widespread adoption of PHEV/EV

With the rising concern about climate change, there has been an increased public awareness that has resulted in new government policies to support scientific research for mitigating these problems. Malaysia is among the major energy-intense countries and is under an excessive burden to advance its energy efficiency and to also work towards the reduction of its carbon emission. Plug-in hybrid electric vehicles (PHEVs) have the potential to lessen the carbon emission and gasoline consumption in order to alleviate environmental problems. Most of the energy problems linked to the increasing transportation pollution are now being reduced with the solution of the adoption of PHEVs. PHEVs are seen as a solution to cut carbon emission, which prevents environmental damages. Furthermore, PHEVs’ driving range and performance can be comparable to the other hybrid vehicles as well as the conventional IC engines that have gasoline and diesel tanks. Thus, many efforts are being initiated to promote the use of PHEVs as an innovative and affordable transportation system. In order to achieve making the consumers aware of the adoption of PHEVs, we used a model which is based on the extended theory of planned behavior (TPB). This review is based on the factors affecting the adoption of PHEVs among Malaysian consumers. The model takes into account the ten key features that influence the adoption of PHEVs, such as environmental concern, personal norm, attitude, vehicle ownership costs, driving range, charging time, intention, subjective norm, perceived behavioral control, and personal norm. All these constructs are drivers towards the adoption of PHEVs. These factors affect the relationship between the adoption of PHEVs and how consumers intend to protect the environment. This review is based on improving how the “attitude-action” gap is understood as it is an important element for further studies on PHEVs. The aim of the research is to come up with a framework that examines how to modify the consumer’s environmental concerns in acquiring PHEVs. This will pave the way for more academic research and future works that can emphasize how to obtain empirical results. The authors’ recommendation is that, before a consumer’s behavior is assessed and considered, an observation of the current technology is needed with methods and knowledge of the existing technology adoption aspect.