Land use/land cover change and statistical modelling of cultivated land change drivers in Nigeria

Regional Environmental Change - In recent decades, human activities have significantly influenced land use/land cover. Identifying pattern changes in regional land use/land cover and their drivers...     

Heavy metals and soil microbes

Heavy metal pollution is a global issue due to health risks associated with metal contamination. Although many metals are essential for life, they can be harmful to man, animal, plant and microorganisms at toxic levels. Occurrence of heavy metals in soil is mainly attributed to natural weathering of metal-rich parent material and anthropogenic activities such as industrial, mining, agricultural activities. Here we review the effect of soil microbes on the biosorption and bioavailability of heavy metals; the mechanisms of heavy metals sequestration by plant and microbes; and the effects of pollution on soil microbial diversity and activities. The major points are: anthropogenic activities constitute the major source of heavy metals in the environment. Soil chemistry is the major determinant of metal solubility, movement and availability in the soil. High levels of heavy metals in living tissues cause severe organ impairment, neurological disorders and eventual death. Elevated levels of heavy metals in soils decrease microbial population, diversity and activities. Nonetheless, certain soil microbes tolerate and use heavy metals in their systems; as such they are used for bioremediation of polluted soils. Soil microbes can be used for remediation of contaminated soils either directly or by making heavy metals bioavailable in the rhizosphere of plants. Such plants can accumulate 100 mg g^?1 Cd and As; 1000 mg g^?1 Co, Cu, Cr, Ni and 10,000 mg g^?1 Pb, Mn and Ni; and translocate metals to harvestable parts. Microbial activity changes soil physical properties such as soil structure and biochemical properties such as pH, soil redox state, soil enzymes that influence the solubility and bioavailability of heavy metals. The concept of ecological dose (ED₅₀) and lethal concentration (LC₅₀) was developed in response to the need to easily quantify the influence of pollutants on microbial-mediated ecological processes in various ecosystems.     

Phyto-management of Cr-contaminated soils by sunflower hybrids: physiological and biochemical response and metal extractability under Cr stress

Environmental Science and Pollution Research - Chromium (Cr) is a biologically non-essential, carcinogenic and toxic heavy metal. The cultivation of Cr-tolerant genotypes seems the most favorable...     

Modeling of Cr contamination in the agricultural lands of three villages near the leather industry in Kasur,Pakistan, using statistical and GIS techniques

Kasur is one of the hubs of leather industry in the Punjab, Pakistan, where chrome tanning method of leather processing is extensively being used. Chromium (Cr) accumulation levels in the irrigation water, soil, and seasonal vegetables were studied in three villages located in the vicinity of wastewater treatment plant and solid waste dumping site operated by the Kasur Tanneries Waste Management Agency (KTWMA). The data was interpreted using analysis of variance (ANOVA), clustering analysis (CA), and principal component analysis (PCA). Interpolated surface maps for Cr were generated using the actual data obtained for the 30 sampling sites in each of the three villages for irrigation water, soil, and seasonal vegetables. The level of contamination in the three villages was directly proportional to their distance from KTWMA wastewater treatment plant and the direction of water runoff. The highest level of Cr contamination in soil (mg kg^?1) was observed at Faqeeria Wala (37.67), intermediate at Dollay Wala (30.33), and the least in Maan (25.16). A gradational variation in Cr accumulation was observed in the three villages from contaminated wastewater having the least contamination level (2.02–4.40 mg L^?1), to soil (25.16–37.67 mg kg^?1), and ultimately in the seasonal vegetable crops (156.67–248.33 mg kg^?1) cultivated in the region, having the highest level of Cr contamination above the permissible limit. The model used not only predicted the current situation of Cr contamination in the three villages but also indicated the trend of magnification of Cr contamination from irrigation water to soil and to the base of the food chain. Among the multiple causes of Cr contamination of vegetables, soil irrigation with contaminated groundwater was observed to be the dominant one.     

Ag@MnxOy: an effective catalyst for photo-degradation of rhodamine B dye

Environmental Chemistry Letters - Water pollution by the textile industry is a major issue. Therefore, there is a need for methods to remove organic dyes from industrial effluents. Various...     

Metal decontamination of tannery solid waste using <Emphasis Type="Italic">Tagetes patula</Emphasis> in association with saprobic and mycorrhizal fungi

A greenhouse trial was conducted to investigate the role of mycorrhizal and resistant fungi on heavy metal phytoextraction from different concentrations of tannery solid waste amended soil (10, 20, 50, and 100%) by Tagetes patula. The four treatments included were, the control (C) without any inoculum, mycorrhizal (M) inoculated with strongly mycorrhizal roots of Cynodon dactylon, fungal (F) inoculated with Trichoderma pseudokoningii and the combined inoculation with both mycorrhizal and fungal inocula (M + F). The dual inoculation increased plant biomass and phytoextraction ability of plant for metals like Cd, Cr, Cu, and Na. Plants given only fungus (F) and only mycorrhizal (M) treatment also showed significant growth rate as compared with control treatment. The statistical analysis of data indicated synergistic interaction between mycorrhizal and fungal inoculum promoting high biomass and enhanced metal phytoextraction. Thus using more than one group of rhizosphere fungi in association with a high biomass producing plant may be employed for rendering tannery solid waste free of metals.     

Taurine mitigates nitrite-induced methemoglobin formation and oxidative damage in human erythrocytes

Environmental Science and Pollution Research - Nitrite is present as a noxious contaminant in drinking water and causes oxidative damage in various tissues of humans and animals. It is a well-known...     

Approaches for prevention and environmental management of novel COVID-19

Environmental Science and Pollution Research - The World Health Organization (WHO) recognized a novel coronavirus as the causative agent of a new form of pneumonia. It was subsequently named...     

The nitrogen and phosphorus footprints of food products in Yemen over the last 57 years

Food nitrogen (N) and phosphorus (P) footprints are indicators for determining the losses of N and P over food production (FP) and food consumption (FC) chain. Yemen is an interesting case because, given the country’s heavy dependence on food imports, food insecurity, and poverty, the N footprint (NF) and P footprint (PF) could affect its future development. However, NF and PF over time have not yet been studied in Yemen. Therefore, this is the first paper to compute the NF and PF in Arabian Peninsula (a case study from Yemen) by an adjusted model of N-Calculator, by computing virtual N (VNFs) and virtual P (VPFs) factors for main foodstuffs. The NF (kg N cap^?1 year^?1) and PF (kg P cap^?1 year^?1) elevated from 5.56 and 1.20 in the 1960s to 15.2 and 4.79 during 2011–2017, respectively, while the national NF (Gg [10⁹ g] N year^?1) and national PF (Gg P year^?1) increased from 27.7 and 6.77 in the 1960s to 358 and 122 during 2011–2017, respectively. Cereal was the largest contributor to the NF and PF in Yemen over the past 57 years. FP contributes approximately 80% and 86% of the total NF and PF during 2011–2017. Therefore, if possible, the best way for consumers and farmers in Yemen to decrease NF and PF is to focus efforts on increasing FP and FC of foodstuffs with less VNFs and VPFs. The consumption of vegetable-fruit, legumes, starchy, eggs, poultry, and fish should be increased as their NF and PF are low. However, people in Yemen suffer from shortage of resources and lack of awareness, and thus they do not have the opportunity to choose foodstuffs that are low in NF and PF. Accordingly, policymakers should encourage integrated approaches that introduce powerful tools for controlling crop and livestock production in conjunction with enhancements in nutrient use efficiency.