Heavy metal and trace elements in riparian vegetation and macrophytes associated with lacustrine systems in Northern Patagonia Andean Range

Vegetation associated with lacustrine systems in Northern Patagonia was studied for heavy metal and trace element contents, regarding their elemental contribution to these aquatic ecosystems. The research focused on native species and exotic vascular plant Salix spp. potential for absorbing heavy metals and trace elements. The native species studied were riparian Amomyrtus luma, Austrocedrus chilensis, Chusquea culeou, Desfontainia fulgens, Escallonia rubra, Gaultheria mucronata, Lomatia hirsuta, Luma apiculata, Maytenus boaria, Myrceugenia exsucca, Nothofagus antarctica, Nothofagus dombeyi, Schinus patagonicus, and Weinmannia trichosperma, and macrophytes Hydrocotyle chamaemorus, Isöetes chubutiana, Galium sp., Myriophyllum quitense, Nitella sp. (algae), Potamogeton linguatus, Ranunculus sp., and Schoenoplectus californicus. Fresh leaves were analyzed as well as leaves decomposing within the aquatic bodies, collected from lakes Futalaufquen and Rivadavia (Los Alerces National Park), and lakes Moreno and Nahuel Huapi (Nahuel Huapi National Park). The elements studied were heavy metals Ag, As, Cd, Hg, and U, major elements Ca, K, and Fe, and trace elements Ba, Br, Co, Cr, Cs, Hf, Na, Rb, Se, Sr, and Zn. Geochemical tracers La and Sm were also determined to evaluate contamination of the biological tissues by geological particulate (sediment, soil, dust) and to implement concentration corrections.     

Acute exposition to Roundup Transorb® induces systemic oxidative stress and alterations in the expression of newly sequenced genes in silverside fish (Odontesthes humensis)

Environmental Science and Pollution Research - Roundup Transorb® (RDT) is a glyphosate-based herbicide commonly used in agricultural practices worldwide. This herbicide exerts negative effects...     

Understanding the global economic crisis: A biophysical perspective

The recent economic meltdown worldwide has reinforced our understanding of the effects of decoupling economic growth, monetary policy, and resources. Concern for peak oil and suggestions that it may have contributed to the global economic woes as well as over concern for the banking fraud may be adding confusion over the underlying causes and sending a misleading message to the public and ultimately to policy makers. Viewing the economy as simply a circulation of money that can be manipulated to increase spending and therefore consume our way out of the current economic situation, is courting disaster by deluding the public that the solution lies in simple adjustments to the current monetary system. Similarly, emphasizing that energy is the problem and that the solution can be found with another energy source is probably counterproductive in the short run and may be disastrous in the long run. The recent nuclear accident in Japan seriously calls into question increased dependence on nuclear energy and renewable energy sources, in the majority, have low net yields and are unevenly distributed worldwide.In this paper we frame the economic system as a subsystem of the larger more encompassing geobiosphere and suggest that within this context, neoclassical economics is unlikely to provide sufficient explanation of the recent economic melt-down. From a biophysical perspective, increasing the amount or speed of money circulation as well as extracting more energy from whatever source is available will only compound the problems and relying on growth as the solution to what ails the global economy is not a desirable nor a tenable solution.     

The international register of potentially toxic chemicals

The benefits and drawbacks consequent to the widespread use of chemicals are inextricably interwoven. According to recent estimates, more than 8 million substances are presently known, 70,000 of which are in common use as industrial compounds, pesticides, Pharmaceuticals, food additives, cosmetics and the like. It is estimated that substances used as such will increase annually by 1000 in number. The deleterious consequences deriving from their exploitation pose tremendous challenges to the scientific community for the protection of human health and the environment. Therefore it is of utmost priority to appropriately select valid information generated in this investigation area and to convey it correctly to users. Here, the adoption of the principles of good laboratory practice in experimental activities is essential, as well as the creation of global networks for data exchange on the safe use of chemicals. The structure and goals of the International Register of Potentially Toxic Chemicals (IRPTC, the database of the United Nations Environment Programme) are detailed to give an example of such an undertaking. Seventeen fields are covered,i.e. identifiers, properties and classification, production/trade, production processes, use, pathways into the environment, concentrations, environmental fate tests, environmental fate, chemobiokinetics, mammalian toxicity, special toxicity studies, effects on organisms in the environment, sampling/preparation/analysis, spills, treatment of poisoning, waste management and recommendations/legal mechanisms.     

Global Warming, Uncertainty and Endogenous Technical Change

What impact does ecological uncertainty have on agents' decisions concerning domestic emissions abatement, physical investments, and R&;D expenditures? How sensitive are the answers to these questions when we move from exogenous to endogenous technical change? To investigate these issues we modify the ETC-RICE model described in Buonanno et al. (2001) by embedding in it a hazard rate function as in Bosello and Moretto (1999). With this model at hand we run numerical optimisations focusing our attention on the control variables of the representative agents, i.e., domestic abatement rate, investments in physical capital, and R&;D spending, as well as on the endogenous patterns of GDP level and CO₂ emissions. Our results show that uncertainty strongly influences agents behaviour; in particular, agents slow down their emissions in order to maintain a more sustainable growth path. In addition, R&;D expenditures trigger the “engine of growth” exclusively when environmental technical change is formalized in an endogenous fashion. However, even if environmental uncertainty may stimulate technical change, long-run growth it turns out to be negatively affected by the former, as also predicted by Clarke and Reed (1994) Tsur and Zemel (1996) and Bosello and Moretto (1999).     

Influence of Metals on Lindane Adsorption onto Pine Bark

Some persistent pesticides, as organochlorines, are not efficiently removed from usual wastewater treatment plants, unless a tertiary treatment, commonly activated carbon adsorption, is applied. The downside of this practice rests on its high regeneration costs. This fact motivated the research for alternative processes involving the use of natural materials. Pine bark was used in this work, to remove lindane from contaminated waters. The adsorptive capabilities of this material were studied (equilibrium time, adsorption model and saturation of the adsorbent) and the interference of some metals (iron, cadmium, copper, nickel and lead) was also investigated. Results showed an excellent efficiency of adsorption (average 80,65%) and that the presence of the studied metals did not affect both efficiency and the model of the adsorption, within the range of the concentration of the pesticide studied.     

Policy misfits,climate change and cross-scale vulnerability in coastal Africa: how development projects undermine resilience

Coastal social ecological systems in eastern Africa are subject to a range of environmental, social and economic changes. They are already vulnerable to these multiple stressors, and the impacts of climate change are likely to further exacerbate their vulnerabilities. Some of these impacts may be observed and experienced already. The analysis presented in this paper is based on mixed methods empirical research exploring local perceptions of recent changes at four sites in coastal Tanzania and Mozambique. People recognise and rank a number of climate and non-climate stressors which have contributed towards more risky and less diverse livelihoods. Importantly, regional and international policy initiatives – in the form of river basin management in Mozambique and South Africa, and development of a Marine Protected Area in Tanzania – are perceived to further erode resilience and exacerbate vulnerabilities. We suggest this is a form of policy misfit, where policies developed to address a specific issue do not take account of cross-scale dynamics of change, the interactions between multiple stressors, nor longer term climate change. This policy misfit may be remedied by a move towards adaptive forms of governance, and necessitates an explicit focus on building the adaptive capacity of the poor and most vulnerable in society.     

Arsenic concentration in topsoil of central Chile is associated with aberrant methylation of P53 gene in human blood cells: a cross-sectional study

Gene expression can be modified in people who are chronically exposed to high concentrations of heavy metals. The soil surrounding the Ventanas Industrial Complex, located on the coastal zone of Puchuncaví and Quintero townships (Chile), contain heavy metal concentrations (As, Cu, Pb, Zn, among others) that far exceed international standards. The aim of this study was to determine the potential association of the heavy metals in soils, especially arsenic, with the status of methylation of four tumor suppressor genes in permanent residents in those townships. To study the methylation status in genes p53, p16, APC, and RASSF1A, we took blood samples from adults living in areas near the industrial complex for at least 5 years and compared it to blood samples from adults living in areas with normal heavy metal concentrations of soils. Results indicated that inhabitants of an area with high levels of heavy metals in soil have a significantly higher proportion of methylation in the promoter region of the p53 tumor suppressor gene compared with control areas (p-value: 0.0035). This is the first study to consider associations between heavy metal exposure in humans and aberrant DNA methylation in Chile. Our results suggest more research to support consistent decision-making on processes of environmental remediation or prevention of exposure.

     

Pollution from polychlorodibenzo‐p‐dioxins and furans: The case of several foundry plants in the Lombardy region

In 1991 a co‐operation between Public Health Office (U.S.S.L.) n° 18 of Brescia and the Chemical Section Laboratories of U.S.S.L. n° 38 of Milan concerning the possible environmental impact of foundry industrial activities performing metallic scraps recovering, has been undertaken.

Soil and surfaces have been classified in conformity with the National Toxicological Consultative Commission (C.C.T.N.) recommendation dated 12/02/1988'; owing to the characteristics of the processed material, besides heavy metals, polychlorodibenzo‐p‐dioxins (PCDDs), polychlorodibenzofurans (PCDFs) and polychlorobiphenyls (PCBs) have been looked for.

The particulate matter collected from the filters positioned over the arc furnaces in 14 foundry plants has been characterized and classified, according both to C.C.T.N.¹ and to the Interministerial Board regulation dated 27/07/1985 for the first application of the Republic President Decree Law (D.P.R.) n° 915/1982, concerning wastes classification, based, in this case, on these toxic chlorinated compounds concentrations. From the very beginning, high levels of PCDDs and PCDFs have been detected, corroborating the very few literature data from foundry plants². The results obtained on 14 different foundries allow us to draw already some information, acceptable from the point of view of the statistical validity, about the pollution produced by this industry.