Evaluation Of Ambient Air Pollution Impact On Carrot Plants At A Sub Urban Site Using Open Top Chambers

The present experiment was done to evaluate the impact of ambient air pollution on carrot (Dacus carotavar. Pusa Kesar) plants using open top chambers (OTCs) ventilated with ambient (NFCs) or charcoal filtered air (FCs) at a suburban site of Varanasi, India. Various morphological, physiological and biochemical characteristics of the plants were studied at different growth stages. Air monitoring data clearly showed high concentrations of SO₂, NO₂and O₃in the ambient air of study site. SO₂and NO₂concentrations were higher during early growth stages of carrot, whereas O₃concentration was highest during later growth stages. Filtration of air has caused significant reductions in all the three pollutant concentrations in FCs as compared to NFCs.Plants growing in FCs showed significantly higher photosynthetic rate, stomatal conductance, water use efficiency and variable fluorescence as compared to plants growing in NFCs. Protein content also showed a similar pattern, however, lipid peroxidation, ascorbic acid content and peroxidase activity were higher in plants growing in NFCs as compared to FCs. Shoot length, number of leaves per plant, leaf area and root and shoot weight increased significantly upon filtration of ambient air. Total nitrogen decreased significantly in root, but increased significantly in shoot of plants grown in NFCs. Total P, Mg, Ca and K contents decreased significantly in plants grown in NFCs as compared to FCs. The individual pollutant concentrations were below threshold for plant injury, but the combined effect of all the three seems to act synergistically in causing greater adverse impact on dry weight and physiology of carrot plants. The study clearly indicates that air pollutants are high enough in the ambient air to cause significant unfavorable impact on carrot plants. The work further supports the usefulness of OTCs for assessing air pollution damage under field conditions in developing countries.     

STREAM DEPLETION BY WELLS IN THE SOUTH PLATTE BASIN-COLORADO1

The agricultural production from the Lower South Platte Basin in Colorado represents a significant portion of the state economy. Until the early 1950's the production had developed almost exclusively by use of river water. Drought conditions combined with improved well technology resulted in an inordinate amount of well development in the valley during the period 1952-56. These wells were used for supplemental supply in many cases, but the application of sprinkler irrigation brought many acres of here-to-fore dry land into irrigated production. As a result of the vast amounts of groundwater withdrawal by the newly developed wells, senior surface appropriators found a decreasing amount of water available for use in the streams. The legislature, observing the doctrine of prior appropriation, ruled that all surface and ground water in a tributary would be treated and administered as one resource. This, of course, spelled doom for the well-oriented segment of the economy. Analysis of a segment of the river on an inflow-outflow basis was made with careful determination of all inflow-outflow in the study reach to include correlations required to determine ungaged side-channel in-flow and unmetered irrigation wells. Results indicate that wells have intercepted normal return flows to the river resulting in a decreased amount of surface water during the irrigation season. Stream depletion appears to equal the expected consumptive use of well water which ranged between 40% to 50% of the groundwater extraction.     

A stochastic-advective transport model for NAPL dissolution and degradation in non-uniform flows in porous media

Remediation schemes for contaminated sites are often evaluated to assess their potential for source zone reduction of mass, or treatment of the contaminant between the source and a control plane (CP) to achieve regulatory limits. In this study, we utilize a stochastic stream tube model to explain the behavior of breakthrough curves (BTCs) across a CP. At the local scale, mass dissolution at the source is combined with an advection model with first-order decay for the dissolved plume. Field-scale averaging is then employed to account for spatial variation in mass within the source zone, and variation in the velocity field. Under the assumption of instantaneous mass transfer from the source to the moving liquid, semi-analytical expressions for the BTC and temporal moments are developed, followed by derivation of expressions for effective velocity, dispersion, and degradation coefficients using the method of moments. It is found that degradation strongly influences the behavior of moments and the effective parameters. While increased heterogeneity in the velocity field results in increased dispersion, degradation causes the center of mass of the plume to shift to earlier times, and reduces the dispersion of the BTC by lowering the concentrations in the tail. Modified definitions of effective parameters are presented for degrading solutes to account for the normalization constant (zeroth moment) that keeps changing with time or distance to the CP. It is shown that anomalous dispersion can result for high degradation rates combined with wide variation in velocity fluctuations. Implications of model results on estimating cleanup times and fulfillment of regulatory limits are discussed. Relating mass removal at the source to flux reductions past a control plane is confounded by many factors. Increased heterogeneity in velocity fields causes mass fluxes past a control plane to persist, however, aggressive remediation between the source and CP can reduce these fluxes.     

Diverging response patterns of terrestrial and aquatic species to hydromorphological restoration

Although experiences with ecological restoration continue to accumulate, the effectiveness of restoration for biota remains debated. We complemented a traditional taxonomic analysis approach with information on 56 species traits to uncover the responses of 3 aquatic (fish, macroinvertebrates, macrophytes) and 2 terrestrial (carabid beetles, floodplain vegetation) biotic groups to 43 hydromorphological river restoration projects in Germany. All taxonomic groups responded positively to restoration, as shown by increased taxonomic richness (10–164%) and trait diversity (habitat, dispersal and mobility, size, form, life history, and feeding groups) (15–120%). Responses, however, were stronger for terrestrial than aquatic biota, and, contrary to our expectation, taxonomic responses were stronger than those of traits. Nevertheless, trait analysis provided mechanistic insights into the drivers of community change following restoration. Trait analysis for terrestrial biota indicated restoration success was likely enhanced by lateral connectivity and reestablishment of dynamic processes in the floodplain. The weaker response of aquatic biota suggests recovery was hindered by the persistence of stressors in the aquatic environment, such as degraded water quality, dispersal constraints, and insufficient hydromorphological change. Therefore, river restoration requires combined local- and regional-scale approaches to maximize the response of both aquatic and terrestrial organisms. Due to the contrasting responses of aquatic and terrestrial biota, the planning and assessment of river restoration outcomes should consider effects on both components of riverine landscapes.     

杭州市城市和郊区表土磷库及环境风险评价

杭州市城市和郊区土壤磷素具有明显的积累特征并有较高的潜在释放能力。可提取态P(包括H2O-P、NaHCO3-P.NaOH-P和HCl-P)平均在80％左右，其中以HCl—P的比例最高，平均约55％。32个研究土样中，26个土样的水可溶性(H20—P)在10mg／kg以上，15个土样的NaHCO3—P在100mg/kg以上。酸性条件下P的释放潜力明显增加。土壤水溶性P含量及在酸性条件下P的释放量与土壤总P呈正相关，与土壤pH负相关。     

Heavy Metals in the Bed and Suspended Sediments of Anyang River, Korea: Implications for Water Quality

The objective of this study is to compare Anyang River bed sediments with water chemical composition and to assess the anthropogenic chemical inputs into the river system. Eight sampling locations were chosen along the river channel. Bed and suspended river sediments and water samples were collected, and analyzed for their chemical and physical composition. Data revealed that trace element concentrations in the river water were generally below world average, except for As, Mn, Ni and Cr. Among the three phases: water, bed and suspended sediment, more than 99% of the trace elements was associated with the bed sediment. Concentrations of trace elements in the sediment were a function a particle size distribution and organic content. The calculated degrees of enrichment based on the least influenced sample (ASD 1) indicated the river sediments were enriched with respect to background. The enrichment factors for Pb, Zn and As were relatively lower than for Cr, Co, Ni and Zn. The difference in the enrichment seems to reflect the human activities influence in the basin, and specially for Cd. Speciation of the elements in the five different chemical forms in the sediment by sequential extraction indicated that the reducible fraction was predominant for Fe, Zinc and Cu showed an irregular variation among the different fractions; whereas, Cd and Pb were more regular. Zinc and Cu highly existed mostly in exchangeable forms. Acid soluble and reducible forms were also important for most metals. The speciation implies that the metals associated with the sediment are subject to release into water bodies as goechemical variables (pH and Eh) change. Currently, the introduced metals are deposited near the source area and are mostly associated with the sediment, implying that the river bed sediment acts mainly as a sink, rather than a pool. The accumulated and enriched toxic trace elements can pose a potential pollution of river water.     

ESTIMATING THE Q100 IN BRITISH COLUMBIA: A PRACTICAL PROBLEM IN FOREST HYDROLOGY1

ABSTRACT. Estimates of peak flows, with specified return periods, are needed in practice for the design of works that affect streams in forested areas. In the province of British Columbia (B.C.), Canada, the new Forest Practices Code specifies the 100-year instantaneous peak flow (Q100) for the design of bridges and culverts for stream crossings under forest roads; and many practitioners are engaged in making such estimates. The state of the art is still quite primitive, very similar to the state of urban hydrology 30 years ago, when popular estimating techniques were used with little consideration given to their applicability. Urban hydrology then evolved on a much more scientific basis, such that within about a 10-year period, standard approaches to design were developed. Forest hydrology should follow the same pattern, at least as far as estimating design flows is concerned. Popular present day design procedures include the rational method and other empirical approaches based on rainfall data, as use of the standard flood frequency approach is limited by the paucity of relevant flow data. Estimating procedures based on peak streamflow measurements and statistics are likely to evolve, and these will include distinctions for rain, snowmelt, and rain on snow floods. Guidelines will also be developed for selecting and applying appropriate procedures for particular areas.     

长期侧流提取对EBPR系统除磷及其磷回收性能的影响

实验采用交替厌氧/好氧(An/O)运行模式的SBR反应器,考察310 d内分3个批次提取侧流比为0、1/4、1/3、1/2的厌氧放磷上清液后EBPR系统的脱氮除磷效果及相应的磷回收性能.结果表明,整个实验阶段系统对COD和氨氮的去除较为稳定,出水均能满足《城镇污水处理厂污染物综合排放标准》一级A标准,总氮去除因厌氧阶段反硝化不断增强有所提升,达标率由88.2%显著上升至98.6%.然而,随着厌氧上清液提取次数的增多,系统释磷能力整体下降,但前两个批次中系统除磷均稳定高效,去除率在90%以上,相应地出水磷达标率大于75%,仅第3批次实验中侧流比为1/2时系统除磷率出现大幅波动,最低降为54.2%,并贡献该批次出水磷不达标率的60%,说明长期提取1/2侧流比不利于主流工艺出水稳定维持.研究还发现,长期进行侧流磷回收实验有利于污泥减量,且对污泥沉降性能影响不大.因此,在EBPR系统内长期提取适当侧流比的厌氧上清液以进行磷回收与主流工艺同步高效脱氮除磷具有可行性.     

Habitat Improvements and Fish Community Response Associated with an Agricultural Two‐Stage Ditch in Mower County,Minnesota

Water quality and stream habitat in agricultural watersheds are under greater scrutiny as hydrologic pathways are altered to increase crop production. Ditches have been traditionally constructed to remove water from agricultural lands. Little attention has been placed on alternative ditch designs that are more stable and provide greater habitat diversity for wildlife and aquatic species. In 2009, 1.89 km of a conventional drainage ditch in Mower County, Minnesota, was converted to a two‐stage ditch (TSD) with small, adjacent floodplains to mimic a natural system. Cross section surveys, conducted pre‐ and post‐construction, generally indicate a stable channel with minor adjustments over time. Vegetation surveys showed differences in species composition and biomass between the slopes and the benches, with changes ongoing. Longitudinal surveys demonstrated a 12‐fold increase in depth variability. Fish habitat quality improved with well‐sorted gravel riffles and deeper pool habitat. The biological response to improved habitat quality was investigated using a Fish Index of Biological Integrity (FIBI). Our results show higher FIBI scores post‐construction with scores more similar to natural streams. In summary, the TSD demonstrated improvements in riparian and instream habitat quality and fish communities, which showed greater fish species richness, higher percentages of gravel spawning fish, and better FIBI scores. This type of management tool could benefit ditches in other regions where gradient and geology allow.     

Aquatic Plant and Dissolved Oxygen Changes in a Reference‐Condition Prairie Stream Subjected to Experimental Nutrient Enrichments

Effects of controlled nutrient additions on a prairie stream were studied using a before‐after‐control‐impact paired design. The site is in a reference condition with low soluble nitrate (NO₃) and phosphate (soluble reactive phosphorus [SRP]) in summer (3 μg NO₃‐N/L, 4 μg SRP/L). Nutrients were added to two reaches over the growing season at two levels (Low Dose — 39 μg NO₃‐N/L and 4.4 SRP/L; High Dose — 119 μg NO₃‐N/L and 15.6 μg SRP/L). Continuously measured dissolved oxygen (DO) and changes in aquatic flora were compared to an upstream Control. Enrichment led microalgae and filamentous algae to increase in density, areal coverage, and thickness, and the magnitude of the changes were largely concordant with dosing (more in the High Dose); algal growth also suppressed macrophytes in the High Dose. Enrichment caused significant increases in diel DO swings whose magnitudes were consistent with dosing level. In the High Dose, benthic algae flourished in the growing season and then senesced en masse in fall. The decomposing algae led DO to crash (ca. 0 mg/L on the bottom), but DO impacts were out‐of‐sync with peak algal growth and photosynthesis, which occurred weeks earlier. This finding provides a plausible explanation as to why high DO delta in streams impacts aquatic life even when concurrently measured DO is not low. When DO crashed, DO was longitudinally patchy, some areas having low DO near the bottom, others near saturation. Geomorphology and exposure to wind may have caused this pattern.