Immediate and long-term assistance following the bombing of the US Embassies in Kenya and Tanzania

On 7 August 1998 truck bombs destroyed the US Embassies in Kenya and Tanzania.(1) The response in both countries was characterised by an absence of incident command, limited pre-hospital care, a disorganised hospital response and a lack of transportation for those injured. In the next five years USD 50 million was provided by the United States Agency for International Development (USAID) to alleviate the resulting suffering, support reconstruction and strengthen disaster preparedness capacity in the two countries. These two programmes have enhanced awareness of disaster management issues, improved training capacity, built response structures and provided material resources. Their design and implementation provide lessons for future disasters in developing countries. The assistance programmes evolved very differently. In Kenya the programme largely excluded the public sector and the potential for government coordination, while the Tanzanian programme concentrated heavily on central government and regional hospital structures-largely omitting the non-governmental or civil society sector. Excluding key stakeholders raises concerns about programme sustainability and the ability to respond effectively to future emergencies.     

Concentrations of brominated flame retardants in dust from United Kingdom cars, homes, and offices: causes of variability and implications for human exposure

Average concentrations of polybrominated diphenyl ethers (PBDEs) in dust in 30 homes, 18 offices, and 20 cars were 260,000, 31,000, and 340,000 ng SigmaPBDEs g(-1) respectively. Concentrations of BDEs 47, 99, 100, and 154 in cars exceeded significantly (p<0.05) those in homes and offices. Average concentrations of 1,2-bis(2,4,6-tribromophenoxy)ethane (TBE) and decabromodiphenyl ethane (DBDPE) in homes, offices, and cars respectively were lower at 120, 7.2, and 7.7 ng g(-1) (TBE) and 270, 170, and 400 ng g(-1) (DBDPE). BDE-209 concentrations in three samples are the highest to date at 2,600,000 (car), 2,200,000 (home), and 1,400,000 ng g(-1) (home). UK toddlers daily consuming 200 mg dust contaminated at the 95th percentile concentration, ingest 180 ng (Sigma)tri-hexa-BDEs and 310 microg BDE-209 day(-1). For TBE, exposure was lower than for PBDEs and hexabromocyclododecanes (HBCDs), while that for DBDPE was similar in magnitude to (Sigma)tri-hexa-BDEs, but less than for BDE-209 and HBCDs. BDE-209 concentrations recorded in ten samples taken at monthly intervals in one room varied 400-fold, implying caution when using single measurements of dust contamination for exposure assessment. Significant negative correlation was observed in one room between concentrations of BDE-47, 99, and 153 and dust loading (g dust m(-2) floor), suggesting "dilution" occurs at higher dust loadings.     

A phospho-compost biological-based approach increases phosphate rock agronomic efficiency in faba bean as compared to chemical and physical treatments

Under arid and semi-arid conditions, direct application of phosphate rock (PR) as a source of phosphorus (P) for crop production is likely influenced by agricultural practices and soil properties. Different approaches could be used to improve the agronomic efficiency of low-grade PR over a wider range of soils and crops. In this study, biological, physical, and chemical treatments of low-grade Moroccan PR were investigated and compared through agronomic trials on faba bean grown under alkaline soil conditions. The physical treatment was based on blending PR with triple superphosphate (TSP) at 75:25 and 50:50 ratios, the biological treatments involved co-application of PR with compost at 50:50 ratio and phospho-compost elaborated from PR (20%), sewage sludge (46%), and wheat residues (34%), while the chemical treatment was obtained by a 30% acidulation of PR by phosphoric acid. Control treatments consisting of zero P application (control), PR alone, and TSP alone were considered to assess the effectiveness of the abovementioned techniques to improve PR agronomic efficiency. A pot experiment was conducted in sandy soil (Jorf Lasfar, central Morocco) for 60 days in a completely randomized design considering eight treatments. All treatments, except the control, were amended with 52 mg kg^?1 of P from different PR-based fertilizers before sowing. At the flowering stage (60-day-old plants), results indicated that all PR treatments significantly improved plant growth, root nodulation, and nutrient uptake compared to the control. The relative agronomic efficiency of pretreated PR was significantly higher with phospho-compost treatment (86%) than the partially acidulated PR (78%) or the PR/TSP blend 50:50 (64%). Likewise, P uptake, P use efficiency, number of root nodules, and N uptake all were improved under PR treatments. Our finding revealed that the biological technique based on phospho-compost yielded better compared to chemical and physical treatments.

     

Polyaniline films for efficient removal of aromatic acids from water

Adsorbents in the form of powders are commonly used to filtrate organic compounds in waters. However, this technique requires the separation of the solid phase from the solution after adsorption experiments. Here we propose the use of films as adsorbents. We synthesized polyaniline films by chemical oxidative polymerization of aniline on red ceramic brick. This film was tested to remove trimellitic, hemimellitic and pyromellitic acids as model molecules of the biodegradation of aquatic humic substances. We evaluated the effect of pH, contact time and initial concentration. Our results show that optimal adsorption conditions required 45 min of solid/liquid contact at pH 7 and an initial concentration of 20 mg/l. The maximum adsorption capacities for hemimellitic, trimellitic and pyromellitic acids are 154.83 for hemimellitic acid, 161.88 for trimellitic acid and 175.26 mg/g for pyromellitic acid. The adsorption efficiency of the polyaniline film decreased only by 13 % after four cycles. Overall, we conclude that polyaniline films are promising separable adsorbents compared to conventional adsorbents for removal of aromatic polycarboxylic acids from water.     

Silver nanoparticles toxicity effect on photosystem II photochemistry of the green alga Chlamydomonas reinhardtii treated in light and dark conditions

The inhibitory effect of silver nanoparticles (AgNPs) on photochemical reactions of photosynthesis was investigated using the green alga model Chlamydomonas reinhardtii. Algal cells were exposed to 1, 5, and 10?µmol?L^?1 of AgNPs under both light and dark conditions during 6?h. The rapid rise of chlorophyll a fluorescence and the fluorescence imaging system were employed to investigate the alteration of photosystem II (PSII) photochemical reactions and the associated electron transport activity. When algal cells were exposed to 5 and 10?µmol?L^?1 of AgNPs, our results showed the evidence of a structural deterioration of PSII reaction center, the alteration of the oxygen evolving complex and the inhibition of electron transport activity, which was stronger for AgNPs treatment under light exposure. Under these conditions, there was no activation of regulated photoprotective mechanisms against excess absorbed light-energy by the antenna system of the PSII complex. The highest deteriorating effect on the structural and functional integrity of PSII was observed for algal cells exposed 6?h in light condition to 10?µmol?L^?1 of AgNPs. Therefore, we provide valuable data in this study permitting to use photosynthetic-based fluorescence parameters for aquatic toxicological risk investigation of polluted water that may contain AgNP suspension.     

Accumulation of lead and cadmium in the marine prosobranch Nerita saxtilis, chemical analysis, light and electron microscopy.

The potential value of the marine prosobranch Nerita saxtilis as an efficient biological monitor to heavy metal pollution in the Red Sea was investigated. Storage ability of lead and cadmium was compared in shell, headfoot and digestive gland of the marine snail N. saxtilis collected from Al-Hamrauin area at El-kuseir (lead, 300.35 +/- 28.53 microg/l, 1,716 +/- 16.14. cadmium 20.01 +/- 1.8 microg/l, 161.72 +/- 21.4 mean +/- S.D. for water and sediment, respectively) relative to that of inhabiting marine water and sediment employing atomic absorption spectrometry to determine the organ with highest capability of heavy metal accumulation. The influence of metal storage on light microscopic structure of that organ was investigated. Also, the ultrastructure localization of storage sites in the same organ was determined employing transmission electron microscopy. The digestive gland was shown to accumulate both metals at conccntrations that are several orders of magnitude higher than those in the surrounding marine water. The bioaccumulation capability of lead and cadmium was ranked in the following order; digestive gland > headfoot > shell for lead and digestive gland > shell > headfoot for cadmium. In spite of its evident highest metal storage capability, no histopathological changes were observed in the digestive gland of that marine prosobranch. Enlarged electron dense vesicles and many granules were observed in ultrathin sections in digestive cells of these snails and are suggested to be the sites of storage of detoxified metals. The results of that finding indicate the possibility of using the marine prosobranch N. saxtilis as biomonitor for heavy metal contaminants in the Red Sea.     

Continuous adsorptive removal of glimepiride using multi-walled carbon nanotubes in fixed-bed column

Environmental Science and Pollution Research - Water pollution by emerging pollutants such as pharmaceutical and personal care products is one of today’s biggest challenges. The presence of...     

Organochlorines and PCBs in Tilapia zillii from Lake El-Manzala, Egypt

A freshwater fish species, Tilapia zillii, from Lake El-Manzala was analysed for concentrations of several organochlorine pesticides (OCs) and polychlorinated biphenyl (PCBs) in liver, gonads, mesenteric fat, flesh, and digestive tract in mature fish during the breeding season. PCBs and OCs were calculated in ng g^-1 dry weight (dw) in homogenized samples. The obtained results revealed differences in lipid content between these different organs. The females showed a higher lipid content than did males. There was a significant positive correlation between the lipid content and the concentrations of detected organochlorines and PCBs. The results are concomitant with the lipophilicity of studied compounds. However, the recorded concentrations of these studied pollutants still do not exceed the international hazardous levels.     

Optimum Methods of Inactivation of Strongyloides stercoralis Larvae from Reclaimed Wastewater

Strongyloidiasis presents a major health hazard when reusing wastewater. Albendazol with a concentration of 4 mg/l, a contact time of 45 min, pH 1.2 and pH 10.2, killed the larva. The larva was also killed with a 0.03% concentration of iodine and a detention time of 30 min or a 0.04% concentration of iodine and a contact time of 10 min. The required detention time to inactivate larva in water was found to be 17 days. The minimum revealed residual chlorine to kill the larvae was 4 mg/l with 120 min of detention time, and a minimum contact time was found to be 80 min with a residual of 23 mg/l. Many methods are available to inactivate the Strongyloides stercoralis, which could be acids, alkaline chemicals, larvicidal chemicals, super chlorination, or just detention time. The best method must be determined according to the prevailing specific environmental site and the feasibility of the selected method(s).