Developing new approaches and strategies to promote sustainability and environmental integration in the Mediterranean region

Environmental Science and Pollution Research -     

A geomorphic framework for developing a sustainable greenery programme in arid environments

Summary This paper attempts to demonstrate that the study of geomorphology can provide a useful framework for understanding the natural processes and factors that are critical for the development of ecologically sustainable and economically viable greenery projects in the desert and arid environments.The surface of Kuwait was subdivided into 15 geomorphic zones and each zone was assessed in terms of its potentiality for establishing greenery activities. The assessment considered the implications of relief, soil type and fertility, aeolian processes, sand encroachment and presence or absence of indurated bedrocks and pavements for the greenery plan of Kuwait. Accordingly, areas with the most favourable conditions for revegetation were identified and strategies for enhancing the conservation value and sustainability of the greenery programme were outlined.The study pointed out that while the adopted approach provided useful environmental guidelines at the planning level, further investigations would be required, at the project level, if the principles of ecologically sustainable development were to be fully incorporated within such a large scale greenery undertaking.Dr Dhia Al Bakri is a Lecturer in Environmental Management at the Orange Agricultural College, University of Sydney, Australia. He worked as a Research Scientist for the Kuwait Institute for Scientific Research from 1980 to 1990. During that time Dr Al Bakri undertook a wide range of studies and research projects within the context of Environmental and Earth Sciences.     

Leachate generation and biogas energy recovery in the Jebel Chakir municipal solid waste landfill,Tunisia

A survey was conducted between 2006 and 2008 in order to identify municipal solid waste (MSW) composition and its influence on leachate generation and to assess the amount of biogas yield from the Jebel Chakir landfill in Tunis City. The organic fraction was the predominant compound in the MSW, followed by paper, fine, plastic, leather, rubber, metal, textile, glass and ceramic. The average MSW moisture content varies from 60 % in the wet season to 80 % in the dry one. The recognised MSW composition is well representative if compared to that of cities in developing countries. A large leachate quantity is produced in the landfill of Jebel Chakir, despite the negative water balance of the site. Based on the annual MSW landfilled quantities and using the LandGEM model, the expected peak landfill gas (LFG) production is estimated to occur 1 year after the landfill closure with a rate of 3.53 × 10⁷ m³/year. The analysis of the potential conversion of LFG to electric energy shows it at a total LFG-to-electricity energy of around 257 GWh with a heating value of 4,475 kcal/m³ based on an LFG collection efficiency of 33 % and energy efficiency of 33 % giving an economic feasibility for a 10 MW power plant.     

Biofilm comprising phototrophic, diazotrophic, and hydrocarbon-utilizing bacteria: a promising consortium in the bioremediation of aquatic hydrocarbon pollutants

Biofilms harboring simultaneously anoxygenic and oxygenic phototrophic bacteria, diazotrophic bacteria, and hydrocarbon-utilizing bacteria were established on glass slides suspended in pristine and oily seawater. Via denaturing gradient gel electrophoresis analysis on PCR-amplified rRNA gene sequence fragments from the extracted DNA from biofilms, followed by band amplification, biofilm composition was determined. The biofilms contained anoxygenic phototrophs belonging to alphaproteobacteria; pico- and filamentous cyanobacteria (oxygenic phototrophs); two species of the diazotroph Azospirillum; and two hydrocarbon-utilizing gammaproteobacterial genera, Cycloclasticus and Oleibacter. The coexistence of all these microbial taxa with different physiologies in the biofilm makes the whole community nutritionally self-sufficient and adequately aerated, a condition quite suitable for the microbial biodegradation of aquatic pollutant hydrocarbons.     

Air–dust-borne associations of phototrophic and hydrocarbon-utilizing microorganisms: promising consortia in volatile hydrocarbon bioremediation

Aquatic and terrestrial associations of phototrophic and heterotrophic microorganisms active in hydrocarbon bioremediation have been described earlier. The question arises: do similar consortia also occur in the atmosphere? Dust samples at the height of 15?m were collected from Kuwait City air, and analyzed microbiologically for phototrophic and heterotrophic hydrocarbon-utilizing microorganisms, which were subsequently characterized according to their 16S rRNA gene sequences. The hydrocarbon utilization potential of the heterotrophs alone, and in association with the phototrophic partners, was measured quantitatively. The chlorophyte Gloeotila sp. and the two cyanobacteria Nostoc commune and Leptolyngbya thermalis were found associated with dust, and (for comparison) the cynobacteria Leptolyngbya sp. and Acaryochloris sp. were isolated from coastal water. All phototrophic cultures harbored oil vapor-utilizing bacteria in the magnitude of 10⁵?g^?1. Each phototrophic culture had its unique oil-utilizing bacteria; however, the bacterial composition in Leptolyngbya cultures from air and water was similar. The hydrocarbon-utilizing bacteria were affiliated with Acinetobacter sp., Aeromonas caviae, Alcanivorax jadensis, Bacillus asahii, Bacillus pumilus, Marinobacter aquaeolei, Paenibacillus sp., and Stenotrophomonas maltophilia. The nonaxenic cultures, when used as inocula in batch cultures, attenuated crude oil in light and dark, and in the presence of antibiotics and absence of nitrogenous compounds. Aqueous and diethyl ether extracts from the phototrophic cultures enhanced the growth of the pertinent oil-utilizing bacteria in batch cultures, with oil vapor as a sole carbon source. It was concluded that the airborne microbial associations may be effective in bioremediating atmospheric hydrocarbon pollutants in situ. Like the aquatic and terrestrial habitats, the atmosphere contains dust-borne associations of phototrophic and heterotrophic hydrocarbon-utilizing bacteria that are active in hydrocarbon attenuation.     

Physicochemical Characteristics and Pollution Indicators in the Intertidal Zone of Kuwait: Implications for Benthic Ecology

/ The coastal environment of Kuwait has been under considerable stress since the onset of the oil era in the late 1950s and early 1960s. Oil, sewage, and industrial pollution were believed to be the main environmental problems in the coastal zone. The huge oil spill and destruction caused by the Gulf War further complicated those problems. In this article, the temperature, pH, salinity, and total dissolved sulfide (TDS) of the interstitial water in the intertidal zone and the water content and total organic carbon (TOC) of the intertidal sediment were investigated. The purpose of the study was to understand the effect of the physicochemical characteristics on the intertidal benthic ecology and to identify the level and sources of organic pollution in the intertidal zone. The study results indicated that the prevailing harsh environmental conditions, especially high temperature and salinity, restricted benthic fauna diversity and led to the development of a fragile intertidal ecosystem. The fauna inhabiting the intertidal zone was dominated by a few species probably living at their limit of tolerance. Organic pollution was evident mainly in Sulaibikhat Bay and to a lesser extent in Kuwait City waterfront and Shuaiba coast in the south. The pollution was attributed mainly to land-based sources such as the occasional discharge of raw sewage through stormwater outlets, the direct oil spillage, and industrial effluents from refineries, oil terminals, and petrochemical plants. Quantitative analysis was inconclusive in establishing a significant correlation between the chemistry and composition of the benthic fauna. However, close examination of sites with high TOC and TDS concentrations indicated that the benthic fauna in those sites was showing evidence of degradation. A number of strategies were recommended to ensure protection and sustainable management of the coastal environment.KEY WORDS: Intertidal environment; Pollution; Total organic carbon; Dissolved sulfide; Interstitial water; Benthic fauna