Water quality trends in New Zealand rivers: 1989–2009

Recent assessments of water quality in New Zealand have indicated declining trends, particularly in the 40 % of the country’s area under pasture. The most comprehensive long-term and consistent water quality dataset is the National Rivers Water Quality Network (NRWQN). Since 1989, monthly samples have been collected at 77 NRWQN sites on 35 major river systems that, together, drain about 50 % of New Zealand’s land area. Trend analysis of the NRWQN data shows increasing nutrient concentrations, particularly nitrogen (total nitrogen and nitrate), over 21 years (1989–2009). Total nitrogen and nitrate concentrations were increasing significantly over the first 11 years (1989–2000), but for the more recent 10-year period, only nitrate concentrations continued to increase sharply. Also, the increasing phosphorus trends over the first 11 years (1989–2000) levelled off over the later 10-year period (2000–2009). Conductivity has also increased over the 21 years (1989–2009). Visual clarity has increased over the full time period which may be the positive result of soil conservation measures and riparian fencing. NRWQN data shows that concentrations of nutrients increase, and visual clarity decreases (i.e. water quality declines), with increasing proportions of pastoral land in catchments. As such, the increasing nutrient trends may reflect increasing intensification of pastoral agriculture.     

Urban sustainable energy development: A case study of the city of Philadelphia

Cities throughout the world are key sites for energy sustainability activities. However, analysis of such efforts to date has focused on a sub-set of atypical cities: early adopters and/or world cities. This article undertakes a case-study analysis for an ordinary city, Philadelphia, PA in order to assess the extent to which prior research provides adequate policy explanation for ordinary cities and to gain empirical insight on two under-researched aspects: policy actors, and the policy-making and implementation sites (action sites) for urban energy sustainability. Overall, the types of policy drivers, modes of governance, and enabling factors and barriers in the Philadelphia case fit with prior studies. Focusing on actors and action sites, however, offers insight on the city’s relative policy-making approach based on “non-controversy”, the key role of third-sector actors in both policy-making and implementation, and the diversification of action sites through external-level policy-making operationalised locally nevertheless at the expense of reduced control by urban actors. These findings lead to recommendations for urban energy sustainability research and practice.     

Climate Change and Population Growth in Timor Leste: Implications for Food Security

The climate in Timor Leste (East Timor) is predicted to become about 1.5 °C warmer and about 10 % wetter on average by 2050. By the same year, the population is expected to triple from 1 to 2.5–3 million. This article maps the predicted changes in temperature and rainfall and reviews the implications of climate change and population growth on agricultural systems. Improved cultivars of maize, rice, cassava, sweet potato and peanuts with high yield performance have been introduced, but these will need to be augmented in the future with better adapted cultivars and new crops, such as food and fodder legumes and new management practices. The requirements for fertilizers to boost yields and terracing and/or contour hedgerows to prevent soil erosion of steeply sloping terrain are discussed. Contour hedges can also be used for fodder for improved animal production to provide protein to reduce malnutrition.     

Biological Removal of Gaseous Ammonia in Biofilters: Space Travel and Earth-Based Applications

ABSTRACT

Gaseous NH₃ removal was studied in laboratory-scale biofilters (14-L reactor volume) containing perlite inoculated with a nitrifying enrichment culture. These biofilters received 6 L/min of airflow with inlet NH₃ concentrations of 20 or 50 ppm, and removed more than 99.99% of the NH₃ for the period of operation (101, 102 days). Comparison between an active reactor and an autoclaved control indicated that NH₃ removal resulted from nitrification directly, as well as from enhanced absorption resulting from acidity produced by nitrification. Spatial distribution studies (20 ppm only) after 8 days of operation showed that nearly 95% of the NH₃ could be accounted for in the lower 25% of the biofilter matrix, proximate to the port of entry. Periodic analysis of the biofilter material (20 and 50 ppm) showed accumulation of the nitrification product NO₃ ^- early in the operation, but later both NO₂ ^- and NO₃ ^- accumulated. Additionally, the N-mass balance accountability dropped from near 100% early in the experiments to ~95 and 75% for the 20- and 50-ppm biofilters, respectively. A partial contributing factor to this drop in mass balance accountability was the production of NO and N₂O, which were detected in the biofilter exhaust.     

Dry FGD at United Power Association’s Stanton Station

The United Power Association’s dry FGD system at Stanton, North Dakota was the first utility-operated lime spray dryer to be put into service in the United States. At 60 MW in size, it utilizes a single spray dryer vessel with three rotary atomizers and a ten-compartment fabric filter. It is currently operating at better than expected efficiency and Is meeting state and federal air quality requirements. Start-up and operation have shown that certain areas of design and operating conditions are critical to reliable operation. Flue gas, slurry, and water distribution and mixing must be carefully controlled if reliable, long term operation is to be achieved. Likewise, water chemistry Is Important in the reagent preparation equipment. Start-up of the system was accomplished In a step-wise fashion to bring the baghouse on line first, followed by the spray dryer. The spray dryer was operated at gradually lower outlet temperatures until design conditions were met. Measures taken since start-up to ensure reliable operation, and operation over an eighteen month period are discussed. Both particulate and SO₂ emission performance are evaluated.     

Engineering,Operation and Maintenance of Electrostatic Precipitators on Open Hearth Furnaces

The photochemical reaction of various olefins and nitrogen dioxide was studied under conditions of controlled temperature, pressure, and humidity in a 200 liter stirred glass reactor. The hydrocarbon concentration in the reactor during four and five hour irradiation periods was monitored with a flame ionization chromatograph. Reaction rate constants, based on three consecutive first order reactions, were calculated for reactor temperatures of 20, 25, 30, and 35 degrees centigrade. Activation energies for the three consecutive reactions were calculated from the Arrhenius equation. Branched and straight chain olefins were studied at initial concentrations of 5.0 to 10.0 parts per million.s     

Collective risk management: insights and opportunities for DoD decision-makers

Individuals make decisions every day in group contexts which vary in size, structure, and purpose. The US Department of Defense (DoD) is a large organization composed of many groups, and like many organizations, it has a vested interest in improving the performance of its affiliated groups, especially as it concerns risk-informed decision-making. This article discusses current foibles and considerations for decision-making in DoD groups as identified through a workshop with experts in risk-informed decision-making, cognitive science, and military operations. Experts noted that terms associated with risk-informed decision-making were often misconstrued, that formal decision-making frameworks are underutilized, and that many considerations should be taken into account when attempting to improve decision-making performance.     

Investigation on gene transfer from genetically modified corn (Zea mays L.) plants to soil bacteria

Knowledge about the prevalence and diversity of antibiotic resistance genes in soil bacteria communities is required to evaluate the possibility and ecological consequences of the transfer of these genes carried by genetically modified (GM) plants to soil bacteria. The neomycin phosphotransferase gene (nptII) conferring resistance to kanamycin and neomycin is one of the antibiotic resistance genes commonly present in GM plants. In this study, we investigated kanamycin-resistant (Km(R)) and neomycin-resistant (Nm(R)) soil bacterial populations in a 3-year field trial using a commercial GM corn (Zea mays L.) carrying the nptII gene and its near isogenic line. The results showed that a portion (2.3 - 15.6 %) of cultivable soil bacteria was naturally resistant to kanamycin or neomycin. However, no significant difference in the population level of Km(R) or Nm(R) soil bacteria was observed between the GM and non-GM corn fields. The nptII gene was not detected in any of the total 3000 Km(R) or Nm(R) isolates screened by PCR. Further, total soil bacterial cells were collected through Nycodenz gradient centrifugation and bacterial community DNA was subjected to PCR. Detection limit was about 500 cells per gram of fresh soil. Our study suggests that the nptII gene was relatively rare in the soil bacterial populations and there was no evidence of gene transfer from a GM corn plant to soil bacteria based on the data from total soil bacterial communities.