Influence of pore structure on biologically activated carbon performance and biofilm microbial characteristics

• Pore structure affects biologically activated carbon performance. • Pore structure determines organic matter (OM) removal mechanism. • Microbial community structure is related to pore structure and OM removal. Optimizing the characteristics of granular activated carbon (GAC) can improve the performance of biologically activated carbon (BAC) filters, and iodine value has always been the principal index for GAC selection. However, in this study, among three types of GAC treating the same humic acid-contaminated water, one had an iodine value 35% lower than the other two, but the dissolved organic carbon removal efficiency of its BAC was less than 5% away from the others. Iodine value was found to influence the removal of different organic fractions instead of the total removal efficiency. Based on the removal and biological characteristics, two possible mechanisms of organic matter removal during steady-state were suggested. For GAC with poor micropore volume and iodine value, high molecular weight substances (3500–9000 Da) were removed mainly through degradation by microorganisms, and the biodegraded organics (soluble microbial by-products,<3500 Da) were released because of the low adsorption capacity of activated carbon. For GAC with higher micropore volume and iodine value, organics with low molecular weight (<3500 Da) were more easily removed, first being adsorbed by micropores and then biodegraded by the biofilm. The biomass was determined by the pore volume with pore diameters greater than 100 μm, but did not correspond to the removal efficiency. Nevertheless, the microbial community structure was coordinate with both the pore structure and the organic removal characteristics. The findings provide a theoretical basis for selecting GAC for the BAC process based on its pore structure.     

Identifying robust strategies for assisted migration in a competitive stochastic metacommunity

Assisted migration (AM) is the translocation of species beyond their historical range to locations that are expected to be more suitable under future climate change. However, a relocated population may fail to establish in its donor community if there is high uncertainty in decision-making, climate, and interactions with the recipient ecological community. To quantify the benefit to persistence and risk of establishment failure of AM under different management scenarios (e.g., choosing target species, proportion of population to relocate, and optimal location to relocate), we built a stochastic metacommunity model to simulate several species reproducing, dispersing, and competing on a temperature gradient as temperature increases over time. Without AM, the species were vulnerable to climate change when they had low population sizes, short dispersal, and strong poleward competition. When relocating species that exemplified these traits, AM increased the long-term persistence of the species most when relocating a fraction of the donor population, even if the remaining population was very small or rapidly declining. This suggests that leaving behind a fraction of the population could be a robust approach, allowing managers to repeat AM in case they move the species to the wrong place and at the wrong time, especially when it is difficult to identify a species’ optimal climate. We found that AM most benefitted species with low dispersal ability and least benefited species with narrow thermal tolerances, for which AM increased extinction risk on average. Although relocation did not affect the persistence of nontarget species in our simple competitive model, researchers will need to consider a more complete set of community interactions to comprehensively understand invasion potential.     

Effects of site-selection bias on estimates of biodiversity change

Estimates of biodiversity change are essential for the management and conservation of ecosystems. Accurate estimates rely on selecting representative sites, but monitoring often focuses on sites of special interest. How such site-selection biases influence estimates of biodiversity change is largely unknown. Site-selection bias potentially occurs across four major sources of biodiversity data, decreasing in likelihood from citizen science, museums, national park monitoring, and academic research. We defined site-selection bias as a preference for sites that are either densely populated (i.e., abundance bias) or species rich (i.e., richness bias). We simulated biodiversity change in a virtual landscape and tracked the observed biodiversity at a sampled site. The site was selected either randomly or with a site-selection bias. We used a simple spatially resolved, individual-based model to predict the movement or dispersal of individuals in and out of the chosen sampling site. Site-selection bias exaggerated estimates of biodiversity loss in sites selected with a bias by on average 300–400% compared with randomly selected sites. Based on our simulations, site-selection bias resulted in positive trends being estimated as negative trends: richness increase was estimated as 0.1 in randomly selected sites, whereas sites selected with a bias showed a richness change of −0.1 to −0.2 on average. Thus, site-selection bias may falsely indicate decreases in biodiversity. We varied sampling design and characteristics of the species and found that site-selection biases were strongest in short time series, for small grains, organisms with low dispersal ability, large regional species pools, and strong spatial aggregation. Based on these findings, to minimize site-selection bias, we recommend use of systematic site-selection schemes; maximizing sampling area; calculating biodiversity measures cumulatively across plots; and use of biodiversity measures that are less sensitive to rare species, such as the effective number of species. Awareness of the potential impact of site-selection bias is needed for biodiversity monitoring, the design of new studies on biodiversity change, and the interpretation of existing data.     

砷尾矿污染土壤的细菌群落结构多样性及其相关环境影响因子分析

以湖南石门雄黄尾矿污染土壤为对象,研究纵向不同深度、横向不同距离土样中的重金属污染程度以及细菌群落结构变化规律,查明砷污染土壤的核心微生物组成并将其与土壤理化指标进行共存网络图分析。结果表明:该尾矿区的土壤各项重金属指标严重超标,尤以铅(626.54 mg·kg^?1,Ei=105.48)、砷(1804.75 mg·kg^?1,Ei=565.75)、镉(31.46 mg·kg^?1,Ei=7491.5)的生态危害性最强;土壤采样深度与重金属综合潜在生态风险指数(RI)呈显著正相关(r=0.79,P=0.000),而横向样品中RI与采样距离显著负相关(r=?0.85,P=0.000)。在污染土壤中,变形杆菌门(Proteobacteria,54.35%±17.16%)和放线杆菌门(Actinobacteria,22.39%±10.64%)占主导地位,属层级中假单孢杆菌属(Pseudomonas,16.47%±11.84%)、不动杆菌属(Acinetobacter,8.07%±7.11%)以及硫酸状杆菌属(Acidithiobacillus,7.53%±14.68%)相对丰度较高;而26个共享类群占据了该尾矿污染土壤中微生物群落总平均相对丰度90%以上,尽管不同属的具体相对丰度在不同样品间的分布趋势差异较大。纵剖采集的污染土样中,铁原体属(Ferroplasma)、硫酸状杆菌属(Acidithiobacillus)、硫化杆菌属(Sulfobacillus)、乳杆菌属(Lactobacillus)和硝化螺旋菌属(Nitrospira)占优势,与理化的共存网络图分析(相关系数|r|≥0.6,P<0.05)显示部分类群与亚铁、游离态砷和镉成显著正相关,而与pH成显著负相关;横向采集的土样中,以嗜酸菌属(Acidiphilium)、假单孢杆菌属(Pseudomonas)、棒状杆菌属(Corynebacterium)、硫杆菌属(Thiobacillus)等为主,部分类群与总砷、铅成显著正相关,而与结合态或包蔽型砷成显著负相关。综上,该研究不仅对目标区域尾矿不同重金属污染程度进行了分析,同时探讨了污染土壤中核心响应类群的组成多样性,为筛选潜在重金属抗性菌群或工程菌群提供理论基础。     

高含盐废水脱盐处理技术研究进展

综述了几种常见的高含盐废水脱盐处理技术的发展历程、工艺原理、优缺点及目前的研究进展，分析了热分离、膜分离、电渗析、离子交换、电吸附、微生物脱盐等方法的优缺点，展望了未来废水脱盐工艺的发展方向。指出：脱盐方法将根据各类水体的水质特点更加精细化；多种脱盐技术联合应用也是今后废水脱盐的发展方向。     

亚硝态氮胁迫下菲律宾蛤仔实时定量P CR内参基因的筛选

为了更好地从基因角度研究亚硝态氮对贝类的生态毒性,需要筛选一个合适的内参基因作为参考,对其毒性相关基因进行定量表达分析。本研究以菲律宾蛤仔(Ruditapes philippinarum)作为研究对象,以亚硝态氮胁迫的鳃组织cDNA作为模板,利用geNorm软件和NormFinder软件对6个候选内参基因进行表达稳定性分析,并对2个结果做了综合赋权分析。结果显示,geNorm分析的基因表达稳定性结果为ActinCyPAEF1αUbi18STubu,NormFinder软件分析的结果为ActinUbiCyPAEF1α18STubu,最后经加权赋值法综合分析获得6个候选基因的表达稳定性为ActinCyPAUbiEF1α18STubu,即Actin为表达最稳定的基因。因此,Actin可以作为衡量亚硝态氮胁迫后菲律宾蛤仔鳃组织中基因表达的内参基因。     

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.     

腈菌唑手性单体对雄性丽斑麻蜥肝脏代谢功能的影响

腈菌唑(MT)是一种应用广泛的手性杀菌剂,其手性对映体为(+)-腈菌唑(MT1)和(-)-腈菌唑(MT2)。为评估腈菌唑单体暴露对丽斑麻蜥(Eremias argus)肝脏代谢功能的毒性影响,研究了MT1(5 mg·kg~(-1))和MT2(5 mg·kg~(-1))暴露28 d下蜥蜴体重、肝组织病理学和代谢相关基因表达的变化。结果显示,MT1暴露组的蜥蜴体重在28 d时出现显著下降。在MT1和MT2暴露后,蜥蜴的肝组织均出现了不同程度的病理学变化。在MT1暴露下,基因CYP1A1、CYP2D6、CYP3A4、CYP3A7和CYP2D3的表达水平未发生显著变化,而基因CYP2C8A的表达显著上调。在MT2暴露下,基因CYP3A4、CYP3A7和CYP2D3的表达未发生明显变化;基因CYP1A1和CYP2C8的表达显著下调;基因CYP2D6的表达显著上调。不同腈菌唑单体对蜥蜴体重、肝组织病理学以及代谢相关基因的表达影响不同,具有一定的对映选择性。     

Non-timber forest products and village livelihoods in Rajasthan,India: adaptation in a changing environment

This paper presents the results of research conducted between 2009 and 2014 in the village of Khanda Sharol in the state of Rajasthan, India. Our research objective was to determine how the livelihoods of village residents have been affected by the intensification of forest use, and the resulting loss of domestic access to traditionally used forest resources. Results indicate that changes in forest cover have resulted in a loss of livelihood options for village residents. Yet rather than being victimized by environmental change processes, this paper shows how villagers have responded by partnering with public and private actors to develop a community protected forest area that is now helping villagers to meet their livelihood needs. These findings suggest that sustainable livelihoods in rural regions of India require committed and scaled approaches involving local, public, and private actors.     

Flooding and schools: experiences in Hull in 2007

Hull, a city in the East Riding of Yorkshire, United Kingdom, suffered severe flooding in June 2007, affecting some 8,600 households and most schools. Despite the potential for damage in such disasters, no studies of the effects of floods on teachers and schools in the UK appear to have been published previously. This study analysed the impacts of the floods on teachers in Hull in two stages: first through correspondence with Hull City Council and a mailed questionnaire to 91 head teachers of primary, secondary, and special schools; and second, through in‐depth interviews with head teachers from six flooded schools, representing different degrees of flood experience, and a questionnaire completed by eight teachers from the same schools. The findings reveal the importance and the complexity of the role of the school in the wider community in a time of crisis. The study highlights issues concerning preparedness for floods, support for schools, and flood protection for schools.