Monitoring the effectiveness of the European tributyltin regulation on the Basque coast (northern Spain) by assessing imposex in two gastropod species (Nassarius reticulatus and Nassarius nitidus)

Imposex and butyltin body burden were assessed in 2011 along the Basque coast (northern Spain) in two gastropod species (Nassarius reticulatus and Nassarius nitidus) four years after an initial survey in 2007. The aim of this re-survey was to monitor the effectiveness of the European ban on the use of tributyltin (TBT) based antifouling paints on ships’ hulls (EC 782/2003). Imposex levels in 2011 were lower than those determined in 2007 at most of the sampling sites. Accordingly, TBT concentrations in the female body burden of Nassarius reticulatus varied from 43 to 250 ng Sn/g in dry weight in 2011, which was a lower maximum than in 2007. Nevertheless, the results for the butyltin degradation index suggest that there have been recent inputs of TBT within the two main Basque harbours. Overall, the legislative measure is contributing to the reduction of TBT effects on the Basque coast although its presence is still evident.     

Atmospheric polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons in remote European and Atlantic sites located above the boundary mixing layer

Background, aim and scope  

Ambient air concentrations of polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAH) were determined at five elevated mountain sites on the European continent and the Atlantic Ocean. All sites can be considered remote background areas since they are situated above the timberline and they lack local emission sources of these compounds.     

An assessment of stream water quality of the Rio San Juan,Nuevo Leon,Mexico, 1995-1996

Good water quality of the Rio San Juan is critical for economic development of northeastern Mexico. However, water quality of the river has rapidly degraded during the last few decades. Societal concerns include indications of contamination problems and increased water diversions for agriculture, residential, and industrial water supplies. Eight sampling sites were selected along the river where water samples were collected monthly for 10 mo (October 1995-July 1996). The concentration of heavy metals and chemical constituents and measurements of bacteriological and physical parameters were determined on water samples. In addition, river discharge was recorded. Constituent concentrations in 18.7% of all samples exceeded at least one water quality standard. In particular, concentrations of fecal and total coliform bacteria, sulfate, detergent, dissolved solids, Al, Ba, Cr, Fe, and Cd, exceeded several water quality standards. Pollution showed spatial and temporal variations and trends. These variations were statistically explained by spatial and temporal changes of constituent inputs and discharge. Samples collected from the site upstream of El Cuchillo reservoir had large constituent concentrations when discharge was small; this reservoir supplies domestic and industrial water to the city of Monterrey.     

Environmental management in Brazil: is it a completely competitive priority?

Current studies indicate a need to integrate environmental management with manufacturing strategy, including topics like cross-functional integration, environmental impact, and waste reduction. Nevertheless, such studies are relatively rare, existing still a need for research in specific regional contexts. At the same time, the results found are not unanimous. Due to these gaps, the objective of this article is to analyze if environmental management can be considered a new competitive priority for manufacturing enterprises located in Brazil. A cross-sectional survey was conducted with Brazilian companies certified by ISO 14001. Sixty-five valid questionnaires were analyzed through Structural Equation Modelling (SEM). The first conclusion is that environmental management presents a preventive approach in the sample analyzed, focused on eco-efficiency, what potentially do not to create a competitive advantage. This preventive approach inhibits environmental management from being regarded as a new competitive manufacturing priority, in the full sense as defined by the literature. Another important result is that environmental management, although following a preventive focus, may influence positively the four manufacturing priorities: cost, quality, flexibility and delivery.     

Monitoring SARS-CoV-2 in the Wastewater and Rivers of Tapachula,a Migratory Hub in Southern Mexico

Food and Environmental Virology - The COVID-19 pandemic has been monitored by applying different strategies, including SARS-CoV-2 detection with clinical testing or through wastewater-based...     

Extractable soil heavy metals following the cessation of biosolids application to agricultural soil

Changes in soil heavy metal extractability following the cessation of biosolids applications were studied in a long-term field experiment. Two anaerobically digested biosolids from wastewater treatment plants in Madrid (Sur and Viveros) were applied to cropland from 1983 to 1990. Soil samples were collected in the 1st, 5th and 9th year after the last biosolids application. Soil pH did not vary significantly after biosolids applications. Organic matter and total heavy metals (Zn, Pb, Cd, Ni, Cr and Cu) concentrations initially increased but then declined over time, mostly after the first 5 years following biosolids application. Metal extracted with DPTA increased in Sur treatments during the 1st year and diminished thereafter. However, in Viveros treatments, heavy metals extracted increased during the 1st year, declined in 1995, and showed a slight increase in 1999. These changes in heavy metal extractability were widely observed in the percentage of extractable metal recovery (EMR). The differences observed in the pattern of the two sources of biosolids applied could be due to the different rates of decomposition of their organic matter.     

Age-related foetal sex ratio bias in Iberian red deer (<Emphasis Type="Italic">Cervus elaphus hispanicus</Emphasis>): are male calves too expensive for growing mothers?

Several theories predict offspring biases towards males or females with increasing reproductive resources of the mother to maximize reproductive returns by offspring, or as a result of prohibitive cost of the most expensive sex for young mothers or those in poor condition. This study examines foetus sex of 221 harvested hinds in a food-supplemented game estate for 10 years, according to hind age class (yearlings, subadults or adults), precise age, body mass and condition, and jaw length. A logistic model showed that hinds had a greater probability of bearing a male foetus with increasing age class, but not with any other variable. The greatest bias was found in yearling hinds. After controlling for age class and mass, jaw length was smaller in pregnant compared to non-pregnant yearlings and subadults, which suggests a trade-off between reproduction and growth. The bias towards females in yearlings increased as gestation proceeded, which suggests that the bias might be a result of selective abortion of male foetuses. Although results do not exclude an investment in males to increase number of grand-offspring, they suggest that young hinds may produce daughters as a trade-off between low energetic-cost offspring and their need to grow.Communicated by S. Krackow     

A Methodology for Environmental Planning in Protected Natural Areas

The primary objective of planning in protected natural areas should be the conservation of their inherent natural values. With this idea in mind, a proposal of an objective method for the environmental planning of a protected natural area is presented. The method used was principal components analysis, a multivariate analysis technique that integrates the natural value and the state of conservation (the degree of alteration due to human activity) of the main characteristics of the environment. The method is applied to the specific case of a protected natural area in the Comunidad de Madrid (Madrid Autonomous Region), Spain.     

Pollution profiles and physicochemical parameters in old uncontrolled landfills

The long-term effectiveness of the geological barrier beneath municipal-waste landfills is a critical issue for soil and groundwater protection. This study examines natural clayey soils directly in contact with the waste deposited in three landfills over 12 years old in Spain. Several physicochemical and geological parameters were measured as a function of depth. Electrical conductivity (EC), water-soluble organic carbon (WSOC), Cl⁻, NH₄⁺, Na⁺ and exchangeable NH₄⁺ and Na⁺ were used as parameters to measure the penetration of landfill leachate pollution. Mineralogy, specific surface area and cationic-exchange capacities were analyzed to characterize the materials under the landfills. A principal component analysis, combined with a Varimax rotation, was applied to the data to determine patterns of association between samples and variables not evident upon initial inspection. The main factors explaining the variation in the data are related to waste composition and local geology. Although leachates have been in contact with clays for long time periods (13-24 years), WSOC and EC fronts are attenuated at depths of 0.2-1.5 m within the clay layer. Taking into account this depth of the clayey materials, these natural substrata (>45% illite-smectite-type sheet silicates) are suitable for confining leachate pollution and for complying with European legislation. This paper outlines the relevant differences in the clayey materials of the three landfills in which a diffusive flux attenuation capacity (A_c) is defined as a function (1) of the rate of decrease of the parameters per meter of material, (2) of the age and area of the landfill and (3) of the quantity and quality of the wastes.     

Life cycle inventory for an organic swine waste treatment system

Journal of Material Cycles and Waste Management - The aim of this study was to analyze the efficiency of a system of treatment of organic swine waste as a management tool in the transformation of...