Multi‐phase non‐steady state equilibrium model for evaluation of environmental fate of organic chemicals

A simple mathematical fate model, Multi‐Phase Non‐Steady State Equilibrium Model (MNSEM) is proposed to evaluate distribution, persistence, and concentrations of chemicals in a model environment consisting of air, water, soil and sediment phases. The model is applied to evaluation of environmental fate and concentration of trichloroethylene and 1,4‐dichlorobenzene under generic conditions representative of Japan.

Evaluated chemical concentrations in air are within a factor of 3 of average values in Japanese atmosphere, and evaluated concentrations in water, sediment, or fish are greater than an order of magnitude below detection limits in real environments, so that evaluated concentrations are in reasonable agreement with environmental measurement data in Japan.

Although MNSEM is not a model for site‐specific evaluation of environmental fate, results suggested that this model is an adequate method to aid in evaluation of fate of chemicals under generic environment conditions. Evaluated concentration‐profiles may be used to estimate average chemical exposure concentrations for humans and the environment.     

华北平原冬小麦季化肥氮去向及土壤氮库盈亏定量化探索

为提高华北平原冬小麦种植体系的氮肥利用率、减少氮肥对环境的污染,本研究对前人的试验数据进行整理核算,分析肥料氮、作物氮和土壤氮三者之间的关系,探索冬小麦季化肥氮的去向及土壤氮库的盈亏情况.结果表明:华北平原冬小麦当季化肥氮的吸收量随施氮量的增加而升高,对土壤氮素的吸收随施氮量的增加而降低;在秸秆50%还田和100%还田两种情况下,土壤氮库盈亏量与施氮量之间均呈线性极显著正相关,且土壤氮库达到平衡时的施氮量分别是 N 192和166 kg·hm-2;冬小麦对氮肥的吸收利用率推荐施氮远高于传统施氮,过量施氮不仅不会提高作物产量,还会降低氮肥利用率,增加土壤残留和损失;3种秸秆处理方式下的冬小麦氮肥各去向绝对量与施氮量(N 75~375 kg·hm-2)之间均呈显著线性相关关系,秸秆不还田条件下的地上部吸收率、秸秆吸收率和秸秆50%还田下的地上部吸收率及秸秆100%还田下的0~100 cm土壤残留率均与施氮量(N 75~375 kg·hm-2)之间呈显著相关关系.     

华北平原夏玉米季化肥氮去向及土壤氮库盈亏定量化探索

为提高华北平原夏玉米种植体系的氮肥利用率、减少氮肥对环境的污染,对前人的15N示踪试验数据进行整理核算,分析肥料氮、作物氮、土壤氮三者之间的关系,探明夏玉米季化肥氮的去向及土壤氮库的盈亏情况。结果表明：华北平原地区玉米产量最高时施氮量平均为190 kg·hm-2;秸杆吸氮量高于籽粒,且吸氮量随施氮量增加而升高,土壤残留量和损失量有随施氮量增加而增加的趋势;土壤氮库盈亏量与施氮量之间呈现线性极显著正相关,在秸秆50%和100%还田的两种条件下,施氮量为198 kg·hm-2和137 kg·hm-2时,土壤氮库达到平衡;推荐施氮条件下夏玉米对氮肥的吸收利用率远高于传统施氮,过量施氮会引起作物产量和氮肥利用率降低的负效应,增加土壤氮素残留和损失;施氮量在40~360 kg·hm-2范围内时,3种秸秆处理方式下,氮肥各去向绝对量与施氮量之间均呈显著线性相关关系;而氮肥各去向比率与施氮量之间只有地上部吸收率和籽粒吸收率与施氮量之间呈显著线性相关关系。由此,明确了华北平原夏玉米合理施氮量：秸秆50%还田时,为198 kg·hm-2;秸秆100%还田时,为137 kg·hm-2,揭示了华北平原夏玉米施氮量与土壤氮库盈亏量呈线性极显著正相关。这为确定华北平原夏玉米合理施氮量,提高氮肥利用率,避免肥料浪费及其对环境的危害提供了理论依据。     

东江流域敌敌畏的排放量估算及归趋模拟

农药的持续使用,使流域环境污染十分普遍,对其污染水平进行评估很有必要.相比传统的监测手段,与GIS结合的模型作为评估手段具有显著的优势,但是由于农药应用情景及相关排放量的数据不易获得,对流域农药的模拟评估造成了阻碍.本研究建立了一种农药排放量估算的方法,基于流域内作物种植情况及农药施用标准,通过使用情境分析和数学推演,可获得不同子流域单元的输入量;并以此为源输入数据,使用半分布式流域水文模型——SWAT（soil and water assessment tool）模型,以敌敌畏在东江流域为例进行模拟.模型的验证结果显示,模拟浓度与监测结果的差异值绝大多数在一个数量级以内,表明基于源输入估算的SWAT模型可有效评估流域农药的环境归趋.模拟结果表明,流域敌敌畏每年的排放量占到使用量的3.72%,河道内的降解等反应损失达2.35%.东江流域多数河段敌敌畏的质量浓度超过0.1 μg·L^-1,其污染需引起关注.     

全氟辛烷磺酸在大连区域环境多介质中的归趋模拟

阐明污染物的环境归趋对于其污染控制和生态风险评价具有重要意义。本文构建了三级环境多介质逸度模型,研究全氟辛烷磺酸(PFOS)在大连区域环境多介质中的分布及其迁移规律。结果表明,PFOS在大气、水、土壤和沉积物相的模拟浓度分别为5.10 pg·m-3、22.60 ng·L-1、2.25μg·kg-1和0.34μg·kg-1,与实测值较为一致。环境相间的迁移主要是大气向土壤中迁移和土壤向水中的迁移,水和土壤是大连区域PFOS的主要的汇。PFOS在大气和水相的平流输入为主要的污染来源,而大气的平流输出是其主要的输出途径。灵敏度分析表明,有机碳分配系数、溶解度、水和气相平流输入、土壤中水的径流速率以及温度是影响模型结果的主要参数。不确定分析则表明,整体参数的变化对水体输出结果影响最大,对沉积物影响最小。本研究较好地模拟了PFOS在大连区域环境多介质中的迁移和归趋,可为其污染控制和生态风险评价提供科学依据。     

Anaerobic biodegradation of trimethoprim with sulfate as an electron acceptor

Anaerobic biodegradation of trimethoprim (TMP) coupled with sulfate reduction. Demethylation of TMP is the first step in the acclimated microbial consortia. The potential degraders and fermenters were enriched in the acclimated consortia. Activated sludge and river sediment had similar core microbiomes. Trimethoprim (TMP) is an antibiotic frequently detected in various environments. Microorganisms are the main drivers of emerging antibiotic contaminant degradation in the environment. However, the feasibility and stability of the anaerobic biodegradation of TMP with sulfate as an electron acceptor remain poorly understood. Here, TMP-degrading microbial consortia were successfully enriched from municipal activated sludge (AS) and river sediment (RS) as the initial inoculums. The acclimated consortia were capable of transforming TMP through demethylation, and the hydroxyl-substituted demethylated product (4-desmethyl-TMP) was further degraded. The biodegradation of TMP followed a 3-parameter sigmoid kinetic model. The potential degraders (Acetobacterium, Desulfovibrio, Desulfobulbus, and unidentified Peptococcaceae) and fermenters (Lentimicrobium and Petrimonas) were significantly enriched in the acclimated consortia. The AS- and RS-acclimated TMP-degrading consortia had similar core microbiomes. The anaerobic biodegradation of TMP could be coupled with sulfate respiration, which gives new insights into the antibiotic fate in real environments and provides a new route for the bioremediation of antibiotic-contaminated environments.     

HERBICIDES AND DEGRADATES IN SHALLOW AQUIFERS OF ILLINOIS: SPATIAL AND TEMPORAL TRENDS1

ABSTRACT: During the fall of 2000, the occurrence was examined of 16 herbicides and 13 herbicide degradates in samples from 55 wells in shallow aquifers underlying grain producing regions of Illinois. Herbicide compounds with concentrations above 0.05 μg/L were detected in 56 percent of the samples. No concentrations exceeded regulatory drinking water standards. The six most frequently detected compounds were degradates. Water age was an important factor in determining vulnerability of ground water to transport of herbicide compounds. Unconsolidated aquifers, which were indicated to generally contain younger ground water than bedrock aquifers, had a higher occurrence of herbicides (73 percent of samples) than bedrock aquifers (22 percent). Temporal analysis to determine if changes in concentrations of selected herbicides and degradates could be observed over a near decadal period indicated a decrease in detection frequency (25 to 18 percent) between samplings in 1991 and 2000. Over this period, significant differences in concentrations were observed for atrazine (decrease) and total acetochlor (increase). The increase in acetochlor compound concentrations corresponds to an increase in acetochlor use during the study period, while the decrease in atrazine concentrations corresponds to relatively consistent use of atrazine. Changes in frequency of herbicide detection and concentration do not appear related to changes in land use near sampled wells.     

Toxicity Evaluation with the Microtox Test to Assess the Impact of In Situ Oiled Shoreline Treatment Options: Natural Attenuation and Sediment Relocation

Changes in the toxicity levels of beach sediment, nearshore water, and bottom sediment samples were monitored with the Microtox^® Test to evaluate the two in situ oil spill treatment options of natural attenuation (natural recovery--no treatment) and sediment relocation (surf washing). During a series of field trials, IF-30 fuel oil was intentionally sprayed onto the surface of three mixed sediment (pebble and sand) beaches on the island of Spitsbergen, Svalbard, Norway (78°56^′ N, 16°45^′ E). At a low wave-energy site (Site 1 with a 3-km wind fetch), where oil was stranded within the zone of normal wave action, residual oil concentrations and beach sediment toxicity levels were significantly reduced by both options in less than five days. At Site 3, a higher wave-energy site with a 40-km wind fetch, oil was intentionally stranded on the beach face in the upper intertidal/supratidal zones, above the level of normal wave activity. At this site under these experimental conditions, sediment relocation was effective in accelerating the removal of the oil from the sediments and reducing the Microtox^® Test toxicity response to background levels. In the untreated (natural attenuation) plot at this site, the fraction of residual oil remaining within the beach sediments after one year (70%) continued to generate a toxic response. Chemical and toxicological analyses of nearshore sediment and sediment-trap samples at both sites confirmed that oil and suspended mineral fines were effectively dispersed into the surrounding environment by the in situ treatments. In terms of secondary potential detrimental effects from the release of stranded oil from the beaches, the toxicity level (Microtox^® Test) of adjacent nearshore sediment samples did not exceed the Canadian regulatory limit for dredged spoils destined for ocean disposal.     

EFFECT OF SULFOMETURON METHYL ON GROUND WATER AND STREAM QUALITY IN COASTAL PLAIN FOREST WATERSHEDS1

ABSTRACT: Sulfometuron methyl [methyl 2-[[[[4,6-dimethly 2-(pyrimidinyl) a-mino] carbony l]amino] sulfonyl] benzoate] was applied by a ground sprayer at a maximum labeled rate of 0.42 kg ha^-1 a.i. to a 4 ha Coastal Plain flatwoods watershed as site preparation for tree planting. Herbicide residues were detected in Streamflow for only seven days after treatment and did not exceed 7 mg m^-3. Sulfometuron methyl was not detected in any stormflow and was not found in any sediment (both bedload and suspended). Sampling of a shallow ground water aquifer, > 1.5 m below ground surface, did not detect any sulfometuron methyl residues for 203 days after herbicide application. Lack of herbicide residue movement was attributed to low application rates, rapid hydrolysis in acidic soils and water and dilution in streamflow.     

Assessing BMP Effectiveness and Guiding BMP Planning Using Process‐Based Modeling

There is an increasing need for improved process‐based planning tools to assist watershed managers in the selection and placement of effective best management practices (BMPs). In this article, we present an approach, based on the Water Erosion Prediction Project model and a pesticide transport model, to identify dominant hydrologic flow paths and critical source areas for a variety of pollutant types. We use this approach to compare the relative impacts of BMPs on hydrology, erosion, sediment, and pollutant delivery within different landscapes. Specifically, we focus on using this approach to understand what factors promoted and/or hindered BMP effectiveness at three Conservation Effects Assessment Project watersheds: Paradise Creek Watershed in Idaho, Walnut Creek Watershed in Iowa, and Goodwater Creek Experimental Watershed in Missouri. These watersheds were first broken down into unique land types based on soil and topographic characteristics. We used the model to assess BMP effectiveness in each of these land types. This simple process‐based modeling approach provided valuable insights that are not generally available to planners when selecting and locating BMPs and helped explain fundamental reasons why long‐term improvement in water quality of these three watersheds has yet to be completely realized.