Downscaling scenarios of future land use and land cover changes using a participatory approach: an application to mountain risk assessment in the Pyrenees (France)

Regional Environmental Change - Better understanding the pathways through which future socioeconomic changes might influence land use and land cover changes (LULCCs) is a crucial step in accurately...     

Development and implementation of eco-genomic tools for aquatic ecosystem biomonitoring: the SYNAQUA French-Swiss program

The effectiveness of environmental protection measures is based on the early identification and diagnosis of anthropogenic pressures. Similarly, restoration actions require precise monitoring of changes in the ecological quality of ecosystems, in order to highlight their effectiveness. Monitoring the ecological quality relies on bioindicators, which are organisms revealing the pressures exerted on the environment through the composition of their communities. Their implementation, based on the morphological identification of species, is expensive because it requires time and experts in taxonomy. Recent genomic tools should provide access to reliable and high-throughput environmental monitoring by directly inferring the composition of bioindicators’ communities from their DNA (metabarcoding). The French-Swiss program SYNAQUA (INTERREG France-Switzerland 2017–2019) proposes to use and validate the tools of environmental genomic for biomonitoring and aims ultimately at their implementation in the regulatory bio-surveillance. SYNAQUA will test the metabarcoding approach focusing on two bioindicators, diatoms, and aquatic oligochaetes, which are used in freshwater biomonitoring in France and Switzerland. To go towards the renewal of current biomonitoring practices, SYNAQUA will (1) bring together different actors: scientists, environmental managers, consulting firms, and biotechnological companies, (2) apply this approach on a large scale to demonstrate its relevance, (3) propose robust and reliable tools, and (4) raise public awareness and train the various actors likely to use these new tools. Biomonitoring approaches based on such environmental genomic tools should address the European need for reliable, higher-throughput monitoring to improve the protection of aquatic environments under multiple pressures, guide their restoration, and follow their evolution.     

Physicochemical characteristics,mutagenicity and genotoxicity of airborne particles under industrial and rural influences in Northern Lebanon

In this work, the main objectives were to assess the mutagenic and genotoxic effects of fine particulate matter collected in an industrial influenced site in comparison with a non-industrial influenced one (rural site) and to relate the particulate matter (PM) composition to the observed genotoxic effects. At the industrial influenced site, higher concentrations of phosphates, trace metals, and polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) in particles could be related to the contributions of quarries, fertilizer producer, cement plants, and tires burning. Gasoline and diesel combustion contributions were evidenced in particles collected at both sites. Particles collected under industrial influence showed a higher mutagenic potential on three tested strains of Salmonella typhimurium (TA98, YG1041, and TA102), and especially on the YG1041, compared to particles from the rural site. Furthermore, only particles collected in the vicinity of the industrial site showed a tendency to activate the SOS responses in Escherichia coli PQ37, which is indicative of DNA damage as a result of exposure of the bacteria cells to the action of mutagenic samples. The mutagenicity and genotoxicity of the industrial PM_2.5–0.3 particulates may be attributed to its composition especially in organic compounds. This study showed that proximity of industries can affect local PM composition as well as PM genotoxic and mutagenic potential.     

Hg concentrations and stable isotope variations in tropical fish species of a gold-mining-impacted watershed in French Guiana

Environmental Science and Pollution Research - The aim of the study was to determine if gold-mining activities could impact the mercury (Hg) concentrations and isotopic signatures in freshwater...     

Uranium transport around the reactor zone at Bangombé and Okélobondo (Oklo): examples of hydrogeological and geochemical model integration and data evaluation

The sites at Bangombé and Okélobondo (Oklo) in Gabon provide a unique opportunity to study the behaviour of products from natural nuclear reactions in the vicinity of reactor zones which were active around two billion years ago. The Commission of the European Communities initiated the Oklo Natural Analogue Programme. One of the principal aims was to study indications of present time migration of elements from the reactor zones under ambient conditions. The hydrogeological and hydrochemical data from the Oklo sites were modelled in order to better understand the geochemical behaviour of radionuclides in the natural system, by using independent models and by comparing the modelling outcome. Two modelling approaches were used: M3 code (hydrochemical mixing and mass balance model), developed by the Swedish Nuclear Fuel and Waste Management Company (SKB) and HYTEC (reactive transport model) developed by Ecole des Mines de Paris. Two different reactor zones were studied: Bangombé, a shallow site, the reactor being at 11 m depth, and OK84 at Okélobondo, situated at about 450 m depth, more comparable with a real repository location. This allowed the validation of modelling tools in two different sedimentary environments: one shallow, with a more homogeneous layering situated in an area of meteoric alteration, and the other offering the opportunity to study radionuclide migration from the reaction zone over a distance of 450 m through very heterogeneous sedimentary layers. The modeling results indicate that the chemical reactions retarding radionuclide transport are very different at the two sites. At Bangombé, the decomposition of organic material consumes oxygen and at Okélobondo the oxygen is consumed by inorganic reactions resulting, in both cases, in uranium retardation. Both modelling approaches (statistic with M3 code and deterministic with HYTEC code) could describe this situation. The goal of this exercise is to test codes which can help to describe and understand the processes taking place at the sites, validate the models with in situ data, and thus build confidence in the tools used for future site characterization. Ultimately, this allows identifying and selecting processes and parameters that can be used as input into repository performance assessment calculations and modelling exercises.     

Aerosol formation yields from the reaction of catechol with ozone

The formation of secondary organic aerosol from the gas-phase reaction of catechol (1,2-dihydroxybenzene) with ozone has been studied in two smog chambers. Aerosol production was monitored using a scanning mobility particle sizer and loss of the precursor was determined by gas chromatography and infrared spectroscopy, whilst ozone concentrations were measured using a UV photometric analyzer. The overall organic aerosol yield (Y) was determined as the ratio of the suspended aerosol mass corrected for wall losses (M_o) to the total reacted catechol concentrations, assuming a particle density of 1.4 g cm^?3. Analysis of the data clearly shows that Y is a strong function of M_o and that secondary organic aerosol formation can be expressed by a one-product gas–particle partitioning absorption model. The aerosol formation is affected by the initial catechol concentration, which leads to aerosol yields ranging from 17% to 86%. The results of this work are compared to similar studies reported in the literature.     

Scenarios for integrated river catchment and coastal zone management

The European Water Framework Directive requires EU Member States to introduce water quality objectives for all water bodies, including coastal waters. Measures will have to be introduced if these objectives are not met, given predictions based on current trends. In this context, the estimation of future fluxes of nutrients and contaminants in the catchment, and the evaluation of policies to improve water quality in coastal zones are an essential part of river basin management plans. This paper investigates the use of scenarios for integrated catchment/coastal zone management in the Humber Estuary in the U.K. The context of this ongoing research is a European research project which aims to assist the implementation of integrated catchment and coastal zone management by analysing the response of the coastal sea to changes in fluxes of nutrients and contaminants from the catchments. The example of the Humber illustrates how scenarios focusing on water quality improvement can provide a useful tool to investigate future fluxes and evaluate policy options for a more integrated coastal/catchment management strategy.     

Comparison of different physiological parameter responses in Lemna minor and Scenedesmus obliquus exposed to herbicide flumioxazin

The sensitivity of different physiological parameters in Scenedesmus obliquus and Lemna minor exposed to herbicide (flumioxazin) was investigated to indicate the most convenient and sensitive parameter. To assess toxicity of flumioxazin, we used a panel of biomarkers: pigment contents, chlorophyll fluorescence parameters and antioxidative enzyme activities. Algae and duckweed were exposed to 48-h IC50 for growth rate. In L. minor, the sensitivity of the parameters was as follows: QN > Oxygen emmision > phiS(PSII) > QP > phi(PSII) > CAT, GR > Pigment> APO > Growth. For S. obliquus, this ranking was as follows: CAT > Oxygen emission > QP > APO > GR > Pigment > phiS(PSII) > Growth > phi(PSII) > QN (from the greatest to the least sensitive). The results demonstrated that the observed toxicity is related not only to interspecific variations but also to the selected parameter.     

Glyphosate adsorption in soils compared to herbicides replaced with the introduction of glyphosate resistant crops

Use of glyphosate resistant crops was helpful in addressing observed increases in environmental contamination by herbicides. Glyphosate is a broad-spectrum herbicide, and its behaviour-as well as that of other herbicides-in soils is an important consideration for the overall environmental evaluation of genetically resistant crop introduction. However, few data have been published comparing glyphosate behaviour in soil to that of the herbicides that would be replaced by introduction of glyphosate resistant crops. This work compares glyphosate adsorption in soil with that of other herbicides frequently used in rape (trifluralin and metazachlor), sugarbeet (metamitron) and corn (sulcotrione). Herbicide adsorption was characterised in surface soils and in the complete soils profiles through kinetics and isotherms using batch equilibration methods. Pedological and molecular structure factors controlling the adsorption of all five herbicides were investigated. Glyphosate was the most strongly adsorbed herbicide, thus having the weakest potential for mobility in soils. Glyphosate adsorption was dependent on its ionisable structure in relation to soil pH, and on soil copper, amorphous iron and phosphate content. Trifluralin adsorption was almost equivalent to glyphosate adsorption, whereas metazachlor, metamitron and sulcotrione adsorption were lower. Trifluralin, metazachlor and metamitron adsorption increased with soil organic carbon content. Sulcotrione was the least adsorbed herbicide in alkaline soils, but its adsorption increased when pH decreased. Ranking the adsorption properties among the five herbicides, glyphosate and trifluralin have the lowest availability and mobility in soils, but the former has the broadest spectrum for weed control.     

Toward the reduction of water consumption in the vegetable-processing industry through membrane technology: case study of a carrot-processing plant

Environmental Science and Pollution Research - The food industry consumes large amounts of clean, potable water and in turn generates a significant amount of wastewater. In order to minimize water...