Revisiting the plant hyperaccumulation criteria to rare plants and earth abundant elements

The several established criteria to define a hyperaccumulator plant were applied to a rare and endangered species, Plantago almogravensis, and to the 3rd most abundant element in the earth crust, Al. Using the most common criteria, P. almogravensis undoubtedly is an Al hyperaccumulator plant. If the recent proposed requirements were considered, most of them matching those for a plant to be used in phytoextraction, it can only be considered an unusual accumulator of Al. A discussion is made concerning the several criteria of a hyperaccumulator plant in order to include rare and endemic ones and abundant elements. In ecological terms, the enrichment in Al and Fe observed may account for the differences in the vegetation pattern. Due to the rarity and endangered nature of this plant, the contribution of this work is also relevant for the ecological understanding and the development of conservation options of this endemic species.     

Suggested protocol for collecting, handling and preparing peat cores and peat samples for physical, chemical, mineralogical and isotopic analyses

For detailed reconstructions of atmospheric metal deposition using peat cores from bogs, a comprehensive protocol for working with peat cores is proposed. The first step is to locate and determine suitable sampling sites in accordance with the principal goal of the study, the period of time of interest and the precision required. Using the state of the art procedures and field equipment, peat cores are collected in such a way as to provide high quality records for paleoenvironmental study. Pertinent field observations gathered during the fieldwork are recorded in a field report. Cores are kept frozen at -18 degree C until they can be prepared in the laboratory. Frozen peat cores are precisely cut into 1 cm slices using a stainless steel band saw with stainless steel blades. The outside edges of each slice are removed using a titanium knife to avoid any possible contamination which might have occurred during the sampling and handling stage. Each slice is split, with one-half kept frozen for future studies (archived), and the other half further subdivided for physical, chemical, and mineralogical analyses. Physical parameters such as ash and water contents, the bulk density and the degree of decomposition of the peat are determined using established methods. A subsample is dried overnight at 105 degree C in a drying oven and milled in a centrifugal mill with titanium sieve. Prior to any expensive and time consuming chemical procedures and analyses, the resulting powdered samples, after manual homogenisation, are measured for more than twenty-two major and trace elements using non-destructive X-Ray fluorescence (XRF) methods. This approach provides lots of valuable geochemical data which documents the natural geochemical processes which occur in the peat profiles and their possible effect on the trace metal profiles. The development, evaluation and use of peat cores from bogs as archives of high-resolution records of atmospheric deposition of mineral dust and trace elements have led to the development of many analytical procedures which now permit the measurement of a wide range of elements in peat samples such as lead and lead isotope ratios, mercury, arsenic, antimony, silver, molybdenum, thorium, uranium, rare earth elements. Radiometric methods (the carbon bomb pulse of (14)C, (210)Pb and conventional (14)C dating) are combined to allow reliable age-depth models to be reconstructed for each peat profile.     

Trihalomethanes in Drinking Water of Greater Québec Region (Canada): Occurrence, Variations and Modelling

The levels of trihalomethanes (THMs) – the main species of by-product from water chlorination – were monitored in thedistribution systems of the five major drinking water utilitiesof the greater area of Québec City in order to investigate andmodel their occurrence on a spatial and seasonal basis. Data forTHMs and other water quality and operational parametersassociated with their formation were generated through a 16 monthsampling program involving several sites representing variablewater residence times, from the plant to the system extremity.The results demonstrate that the differences in measured THMlevels between the five utilities are mainly due to the variablequality of raw waters, the type of water treatment process beingused and the type and levels of applied disinfectant. Dependingon the utility, average THM levels were from 1.3 to 2.5 timeshigher in the system extremities than in the water leaving thetreatment plant. Also, average levels of THMs measured in summerat the distribution system extremities were, depending on theutility, from 2.5 to 5 times higher than the average levelsmeasured in winter. The seasonal differences were found to besignificantly greater than those observed by others in waterutilities in the United States and Europe and are explained inlarge part by the considerable changes, over the year, in thequality and temperature of surface waters in Southern Québec. Forthe five utilities under study, multivariate regression modelswere developed in order to predict spatial and seasonalvariations of THMs. Both residual chlorine demand and temperaturewere found to be better, statistically, as predictors for THMoccurrence. The usefulness of the developed models for routineand long term water quality management, as well as for assessmentof human exposure to THMs, are also discussed.     

One-year monitoring survey of organic compounds (PAHs, PCBs, TBT), heavy metals and biomarkers in blue mussels from the Arcachon Bay, France

Marine mussels Mytilus sp. were transplanted on a monthly basis in cages over one year to oyster farms and harbours in the Arcachon Bay (France) in order to assess the water quality of the bay. Contaminant levels (organotin compounds, trace metals, PCBs and PAHs) were measured in tissues of transplanted mussels and mussels from a reference station, along with physiological parameters of the mussels (condition indexes, lipid content and dry weight). Four biomarkers (AChE: acetylcholinesterase activity, GST: gluthathione S-transferase activity, CAT: catalase activity and TBARS: thiobarbituric acid-reactive substance content) were also monitored. The remote stations monitored (oyster parks) exhibited no accumulation pattern of pollutants. Their respective concentrations therefore constitute a background level of the contamination in the bay ([TBT]= 30 ng Sn g(-1) dw, [SigmaHAPs]= 100 ng g(-1) dw, [SigmaPCBs]= 35 ng g(-1) dw). The elevated chemical contamination of the largest harbour of the bay, the Arcachon harbour, can be interpreted in terms of persistence of organotin compounds ([SigmaOTs]= 1500-2000 ng Sn g(-1) dw) and PAHs ([SigmaHAPs]= 4500-5000 ng g(-1) dw) in sediments and, to a lesser extent, of direct inputs of copper ([Cu]= 20 microg g(-1) dw in harbours versus 7 in oyster parks) and petrogenic PAHs ([methylphenanthrenes]= 1600 ng g(-1) dw in the dockyard versus 170 at the gas stations), related to the use of copper-based antifouling paints and to dockyard activity, respectively. However, the Arcachon Bay presents a low contamination level by PCBs and metals, including harbour stations. Furthermore, higher levels of other PAHs (particularly alkyl PAHs such as methylphenanthrenes/1600 ng g(-1) dw) not included in the 16 PAHs from the EPA priority list (usually studied in biomonitoring programmes/1500 ng g(-1) dw) in the Arcachon harbour underline the need to integrate these compounds in biomonitoring of highly PAH-polluted areas such as harbours in order to avoid misinterpretation of the biological responses observed. Biomarker responses were not able to discriminate the different chemical contamination levels recorded in the Arcachon Bay and rather reflected changes in environmental factors. Furthermore, the strong intraspecies variability of biological responses could be due to genetic differences of mussels from the Arcachon Bay. It is the first time that such an integrated monitoring is performed in the Arcachon Bay, also taking into account seasonal variations of chemical contents and biomarkers levels in mussel tissues.     

Degradability and Sediment Sorption of an Alcohol Polyglycol Ether Surfactant Putatively Useful for the Control of Red Swamp Crayfish in Rice Fields

This work reports studies of the degradation rates of a fattyalcohol polyglycol ether non-ionic surfactant, Genapol OXD-080, putatively useful for the control of red swamp crayfish (Procambarus clarkii Girard) in rice fields under laboratory and field conditions. The influence of temperature,sediment site specificity and sorption were taken into account.The degradation kinetics of the surfactant depends on the experimental conditions: type of inocula and temperature. Thedistribution of this chemical in aquatic systems was also examined. Genapol OXD-080 was removed into the sedimentsreadily after application, and sorption was considered the majorpath of removal from the water phase. Data suggest that furtherstudies are required regarding the effects of Genapol OXD-080 in aquatic organisms resident in rice fields, in parallelwith the development of technologies related with the use ofsurfactants to control P. clarkii populations.     

浅谈海水游泳馆的泳池水消毒

在游泳池循环水处理的消毒工艺中，一般采用传统的氯化消毒．但氯化消毒是否适合日益发展的海水游泳馆的池水消毒，笔者从几种泳池消毒工艺的特点，应用发展情况，设备的投资和运行费用等角度，阐明海水游泳馆宜采用臭氧消毒工艺．     

亚马孙地区开发利用型保护区的保护和发展:以Alto Juruá为例

开发利用型保护区是同时满足保护和发展目标的一项创举,在巴西,建立开发利用型保护区最初是作为森林居民进行土地斗争的一部分.虽然这个概念已普及,并且人们也在尝试把它推广到其他热带地区,但却很少有人对开发利用型保护区项目在保护和发展方面取得的成绩进行综合分析.我们对1990年在巴西建立的第一个开发利用型保护区的森林砍伐、人口和社会经济变化进行了详细分析.保护区内的森林覆盖度一直相当稳定.人口数量稍有下降,并且在保护区内发生了一些居住地迁移.现金经济收入的主要来源由原来的橡胶生产转变为多种农作物和家畜综合生产,非农业收入也大幅度增加.我们认为该开发利用型保护区代表了一种不断变化的环境,在其建立之初的10年中,开发利用型保护区对保护和发展起了积极促进作用.