Pilot study on the influence of stress caused by the need to combine work and family on occupational accidents in working women

The influx of a large number of women into the workforce involves the need for these women to combine family and work responsibilities. Multiple roles lead to work–family conflict. This study analyzes the influence of work–family conflict on the causes of minor occupational accidents suffered by working women. A survey was done on working women in the Madrid region, who had suffered a minor occupational accident in 2004. The main finding was that nearly half of the women with children considered that the stress and fatigue caused by trying to combine work and family played a part in the accident; 21% of the respondents whose accidents took place while traveling to or from work and 11% the respondents who suffered the accident in the workplace said that family reasons played a part. Additionally, 50% of the women suffered after-effects as a result of the accident; children had to change their routine in almost 1 in 4 cases; nearly a quarter of the respondents said their work situation had been temporarily modified. This point to a need for polices that encourage men and employers to contribute more to solve work–family conflicts.     

Comparative study of the urban quality of life in Cuban first-level cities from an objective dimension

The urban quality of life (UQoL) from objective dimension was analyzed in the main Cuban cities. An Urban Quality of Life Index (UQoLI) was developed in collaboration with 60 experts (five in each city). These experts belong to one of two categories: in charge of the planning of the city and members of the Municipal Council of Administration. One hundred and forty-two directors of the Local District Administration also participated in the analysis. The UQoLI includes three dimensions: social services, economic performance, and urban services, the importance of which is weighed according to expert criteria. A Ranking of the studied cities, sorted by the UQoLI, shows a tendency of increase it UQoL in the west even and central regions. This tendency contradicts one of the foundations of the Cuban sustainable development framework, i.e., equity.     

Agro-industrial wastes as effective amendments for ecotoxicity reduction and soil health improvement in aided phytostabilization

Aided phytostabilization is a technology that uses metal tolerant plants and organic and/or inorganic amendments to reduce soil metal bioavailability, while improving soil health. Our objective was to determine the effects of the application of amendments [sheep manure (SHEEP), poultry litter (POULTRY), cow slurry (COW), and paper mill sludge mixed with poultry litter (PAPER)], together with the growth of a metallicolous Festuca rubra L. population, on (i) chemical and microbial indicators of soil health and (ii) soil ecotoxicity, during the aided phytostabilization of a Zn/Pb contaminated mine soil. Amendment application led to an increase in soil pH, organic matter content, and inorganic salts, resulting in a decrease in Pb and Zn CaCl₂-extractable concentrations in soil, which, in turn, contributed to lower ecotoxicity and a stimulation of plant growth and soil microbial communities. The factor most affecting the metal extractability was probably soil pH. POULTRY was the best amendment in terms of increasing plant growth, chlorophylls content, and soil microbial biomass and activity, but resulted in higher levels of phytoavailable Pb and Zn. SHEEP and PAPER were more effective at reducing metal CaCl₂-extractability and, consequently, led to lower values of metal accumulation in plant tissues, thereby reducing the risk of metals entering into the food chain. When combined with the application of organic amendments, the metallicolous F. rubra population studied here appears an excellent candidate for aided phytostabilization. Our results indicate that the application of organic amendments is essential for the short-term recovery of highly contaminated metalliferous soils during aided phytostabilization.     

Sewage pollution effects on mesozooplankton structure in a shallow temperate estuary

The effects of a sewage effluent with no treatment on the mesozooplankton structure and the environmental quality were evaluated in the Bahía Blanca Estuary, during June to November 1995. The highest values of particulate organic matter, nutrients and specially phosphate, were observed in the effluent discharge zone. In addition, taxa richness, mesozooplankton abundance and Shannon diversity values were lower in the sewage discharge area compared with the less polluted area. Eurytemora americana and Acartia tonsa as well as larvae of Balanus glandula, Neohelice granulata and Spionidae were found in the discharge area with lower densities. These results highlight the importance of sewage effluent effects on mesozooplankton community providing background data to use in other monitoring programmes.     

Ionic species associated with PM2.5 in the City of Guadalajara, México during 2007

Atmospheric aerosol particles were collected from January to December 2007 at two sites in the City of Guadalajara. The first site (Centro) is located in the downtown, which is characterized by high vehicular traffic, and the second site (Miravalle) is in the southern part of the city, characterized by emissions from high industrial and vehicular activity. Sulfates, nitrates, and ammonium were the most abundant ions at both sites. Similar concentrations of sulfates, nitrates, and ammonium were observed throughout the year at Centro while only sulfates and nitrates were similar at Miravalle. From the balance of anions and cations at the two sites, Centro was determined to have acidic particles, while at Miravalle, the particles were alkaline. Based on the analysis of the ammonium/sulfate molar ratios, it was determined that in Centro, there was not enough ammonium to neutralize the sulfate, while at Miravalle, ammonium practically neutralized all sulfate.     

Methodology for Identifying Optimal Locations of Water Quality Sensors in River Systems

A method to optimally site river water quality sensors is expanded and applied to a case study river to explore the application of mathematical siting methods to the design of river sampling networks. Fecal coliform contamination due to flooded swine waste lagoons was modeled as it moves downstream, and optimal sensor locations are located by minimizing the objective function of the optimization problem. The results of the simulations are analyzed by varying the number of allowed sampling locations and the simulated contamination event. For the case study application, the model suggests three sampling locations along the modeled river section. These three suggested sensing points did not greatly vary in location for different river flows and contamination events, indicating the robustness of the model results for this specific case study. Generally, the application of mathematical contaminant modeling is a useful and systematic approach to aid the design of river water quality monitoring networks.     

Blood lead levels, δ-ALAD inhibition, and hemoglobin content in blood of giant toad (Rhinella marina) to asses lead exposure in three areas surrounding an industrial complex in Coatzacoalcos, Veracruz, Mexico

The Coatzacoalcos Region in Veracruz, Mexico houses one of the most important industrial complexes in Mexico and Latin America. Lead is an ubiquitous environmental pollutant which represents a great risk to human health and ecosystems. Amphibian populations have been recognized as biomonitors of changes in environmental conditions. The purpose of this research is to measure exposure to lead and evaluate hematological and biochemical effects in specimens of giant toads (Rhinella marina) taken from three areas surrounding an industrial complex in the Coatzacoalcos River downstream. Lead levels in toads' blood are between 10.8 and 70.6 μg/dL and are significantly higher in industrial sites. We have found a significant decrease in the delta-aminolevulinic acid dehydratase (δ-ALAD) activity in blood from 35.3 to 78 % for the urban–industrial and industrial sites, respectively. In addition, we have identified a strong inverse relationship between the δ-ALAD activity and the blood lead levels (r?=??0.84, p?<?0.001). Hemoglobin and mean corpuscular hemoglobin levels, as well as the condition factor, are found to be lower at industrial sites compared with the reference sites. Our results suggest that the R. marina can be considered a good biomonitor of the δ-ALAD activity inhibition and hematological alterations at low lead concentrations.     

Heavy metal enrichment in surface sediments from the SW Gulf of Mexico

The south west coastal zone in the Gulf of Mexico is an area with great industrial and agricultural development, which experiences intensive prospecting and extraction of hydrocarbons. After running through industrial, agricultural, and urban areas, waters from both the Jamapa River and La Antigua River arrive here. The rivers’ discharge areas of influence were estimated considering the textural and chemical composition of the supplied sediments. The main factors that determine sediment distribution were mineralogy, heavy minerals, carbonates, and anthropic contributions. The presence of metals in excess was evaluated using various pollution indicators, such as the enrichment factor, contamination factor, modified contamination factor, and geo-accumulation indexes. Data from different used contamination indexes show metal enrichments in As, Cu, Zn, Co, Cr, and V in La Antigua; As, Cu, and Cr in Jamapa; and As, Zn, and Pb in the Continental slope area. The adverse effects of metals on aquatic organisms were assessed using sediment quality guidelines that show Ni, As, Cu, and Cr may produce adverse effects on coastal areas. There was no evidence of contamination associated to the oil industry.     

High heterogeneity in soil composition and quality in different mangrove forests of Venezuela

Mangrove forests play an important role in biogeochemical cycles of metals, nutrients, and C in coastal ecosystems. However, these functions could be strongly affected by the mangrove soil degradation. In this study, we performed an intensive sampling characterizing mangrove soils under different types of environment (lagoon/gulf) and vegetation (Rhizophora/Avicennia/dead mangrove) in the Venezuelan coast. To better understand the spatial heterogeneity of the composition and characteristics of the soils, a wide range of the soil attributes were analyzed. In general, the soils were anoxic (Eh < 200 mV), with a neutral pH and low concentration in toxic metals; nevertheless, they varied widely in the soil and its quality-defining parameters (e.g., clay contents, total organic carbon, Fe, Al, toxic trace metals). It is noteworthy that the mangroves presented a low Fe_Pyrite content due to a limitation in the Fe oxyhydroxide contents, especially in soils with higher organic C content (TOC > 15%). Finally, the dead mangrove showed significantly lower amounts of TOC and fibers (in comparison to the well-preserved mangrove forest), which indicates that the C pools in mangrove soils are highly sensitive also to natural impact, such as ENSO.     

Adsorption of pharmaceutical compounds and an endocrine disruptor from aqueous solutions by carbon materials

Adsorption has been used to study the removal of atenolol, caffeine, diclofenac and isoproturon, pharmaceutical compounds as emerging contaminants and an endocrine disruptor from ultrapure water and a municipal wastewater treatment plant effluent with three carbonaceous materials: activated carbon, multiwalled carbon nanotubes and carbon nanofibers. The adsorption capacities were studied in the temperature range of 25-65°C and pH range from 3 to 9. Several model isotherms were used to model the adsorption equilibrium data. Also, the competitive adsorption was evaluated.