Channel width,bedform length and turbulence: numerical investigation of flow dynamics over laboratory-scale pool–riffle sequences

Environmental Fluid Mechanics - Spatial dimensions of bedforms relative to the flow depth are of great interest for both engineers and geoscientists, and continue to be an active area of research....     

Delineation of potential ground water-bearing zones in the Barind tract of West Bengal,India

The Barind tract of West Bengal is an area of tropical sub-humid region composed of old alluvial soil. The area has high water demand due to growing population pressure and intensification in agricultural activity. These create huge stress on surface and ground water availability. Continuous withdrawal of ground water has become an alternative source of irrigation water which has also again made the condition critical. Ground water level has been lowered down drastically in many parts in this region. Under this circumstance, it is necessary to delineate potential ground water-bearing layers. Therefore, the present study attempts to identify potential ground water-bearing zones to manage ground water effectively. Instead of usually used parameters for ground water potentiality delineation here only some particular litholog parameters like breadth of water-bearing layer, depth of water-bearing layer, presence of clay layer above or below major water-bearing layer have been considered for delimiting the same. The result shows that out of total area, 60% area (405,382.2 ha) falls under very low to low potential ground water-bearing zone and only 8.19% area (55,634.97 ha) is potential. Considering this spatial pattern of ground water availability, harvesting structure and magnitude of water withdrawing should be designed.     

The effects of tourism and globalization over environmental degradation in developed countries

Environmental Science and Pollution Research - This paper focuses on long-term evidence on economic growth, international tourism, globalization, energy consumption and carbon dioxide (CO2)...     

Effect of chromium on accumulation and antioxidants in Cucumis utillissimus L.: Response under enhanced bioavailability condition

This study compares the accumulation of Cr(VI) and biochemical changes (total chlorophyll, carotenoid, protein, malondialdehyde (MDA) and cysteine contents) and roles of antioxidant enzymes (superoxide dismutase (SOD), guaiacol peroxidase (GPX), ascorbate peroxidase (APX)) in tolerance to metal induced stress in Cucumis utillissimus L. grown in Cr contaminated soil (CS) with garden soil (GS). Furthermore, Cr bioavailability was enhanced by ethylene diamine tetra-acetic acid (EDTA) addition to the soil to forecast the plant’s accumulation pattern at elevated Cr environment. Accumulation of Cr in the leaves of the plant increased with increase in substrate metals concentration. It further increased with the addition of EDTA by 1437% and 487% in GS and CS, respectively at the highest treatment level. The lipid peroxidation increased proportionately with increase in Cr accumulation in the leaves. All the activity of antioxidant enzymes (SOD, GPX and APX) and the level of cysteine increased with dose dependant manner. SOD and cysteine were observed to be higher in the GS than in CS, but APX and GPX were found to be higher in CS than in GS. The increase in GPX and APX activities with the increase in Cr concentration could be assumed that these two enzymes have a major role in the defense mechanism towards stress induced by Cr in C. utillissimus.     

Detention Outlet Retrofit Improves the Functionality of Existing Detention Basins by Reducing Erosive Flows in Receiving Channels

By discharging excess stormwater at rates that more frequently exceed the critical flow for stream erosion, conventional detention basins often contribute to increased channel instability in urban and suburban systems that can be detrimental to aquatic habitat and water quality, as well as adjacent property and infrastructure. However, these ubiquitous assets, valued at approximately $600,000 per km² in a representative suburban watershed, are ideal candidates to aid in reversing such cycles of channel degradation because improving their functionality would not necessarily require property acquisition or heavy construction. The objective of this research was to develop a simple, cost‐effective device that could be installed in detention basin outlets to reduce the erosive power of the relatively frequent storm events (~ < two‐year recurrence) and provide a passive bypass to maintain flood control performance during infrequent storms (such as the 100‐year recurrence). Results from a pilot installation show that the Detain H₂O device reduced the cumulative sediment transport capacity of the preretrofit condition by greater than 40%, and contributed to reduced flashiness and prolonged baseflows in receiving streams. When scaling the strategy across a watershed, these results suggest that potential gains in water quality and stream channel stability could be achieved at costs that are orders of magnitude less than comparable benefits from newly constructed stormwater control measures.     

Catastrophic flood and forest cover change in the Huong river basin,central Viet Nam: A gap between common perceptions and facts

Recent catastrophic floods in Viet Nam have been increasingly linked to land use and forest cover change in the uplands. Despite the doubts that many scientists have expressed on such nexus, this common view prompted both positive forest protection/reforestation programs and often-unwarranted blame on upland communities for their forest management practices. This study discusses the disparity between public perceptions and scientific evidences relating the causes of catastrophic floods. The former was drawn on the results of a questionnaire and focus groups discussions with key informants of different mountainous communities, whereas the latter was based on GIS and remote sensing analysis of land cover change, including a statistical analysis of hydro-meteorological data of the Huong river basin in Viet Nam. Results indicate that there is a gap between the common beliefs and the actual relationship between the forest cover change and catastrophic floods. Undeniably, the studied areas showed significant changes in land cover over the period 1989–2008, yet, 71% of the variance of catastrophic flood level in the downstream areas appeared related to variance in rainfall. Evidences from this study showed that the overall increasing trends of catastrophic flooding in the Huong river basin was mainly due to climate variability and to the development of main roads and dyke infrastructures in the lowlands. Forest management policies and programs, shaped on the common assumption that forest degradation in the upland is the main cause of catastrophic flood in the downstream areas, should be reassessed to avoid unnecessary strain on upland people.     

Modeling and optimization of trihalomethanes formation potential of surface water (a drinking water source) using Box–Behnken design

Purpose  

The present research aims to investigate the individual and interactive effects of chlorine dose/dissolved organic carbon ratio, pH, temperature, bromide concentration, and reaction time on trihalomethanes (THMs) formation in surface water (a drinking water source) during disinfection by chlorination in a prototype laboratory-scale simulation and to develop a model for the prediction and optimization of THMs levels in chlorinated water for their effective control.     

Top-down and bottom-up inventory approach for above ground forest biomass and carbon monitoring in REDD framework using multi-resolution satellite data

This study deals with the future scope of REDD (Reduced Emissions from Deforestation and forest Degradation) and REDD+ regimes for measuring and monitoring the current state and dynamics of carbon stocks over time with integrated geospatial and field-based biomass inventory approach. Multi-temporal and multi-resolution geospatial synergic approach incorporating satellite sensors from moderate to high resolution with stratified random sampling design is used. The inventory process involves a continuous forest inventory to facilitate the quantification of possible CO₂ reductions over time using statistical up-scaling procedures on various levels. The combined approach was applied on a regional scale taking Himachal Pradesh (India), as a case study, with a hierarchy of forest strata representing the forest structure found in India. Biophysical modeling implemented revealed power regression model as the best fit (R ²?=?0.82) to model the relationship between Normalized Difference Vegetation Index and biomass which was further implemented to calculate multi-temporal above ground biomass and carbon sequestration. The calculated value of net carbon sequestered by the forests totaled to 11.52 million tons (Mt) over the period of 20 years at the rate of 0.58 Mt per year since 1990 while CO₂ equivalent reduced from the environment by the forests under study during 20 years comes to 42.26 Mt in the study area.     

Degradation of 1,4-dioxane using advanced oxidation processes

Introduction  

In the nuclear industry 1,4-dioxane is used as a solvent in liquid scintillation technique for measuring low-energy beta-emitters such as ³H or C¹⁴ in aqueous media. Improper disposal of 1,4-dioxane can contaminate the ground and surface waters. Conventional wastewater treatment processes like chemical treatment, air stripping, carbon adsorption, and biological treatment are ineffective for the degradation of 1,4-dioxane.