A dry deposition scheme for particulate matter coupled with a well-known Lagrangian Stochastic model for pollutant dispersion

Environmental Fluid Mechanics - A 3D dry deposition scheme for particulate matter (PM) is presented as a Free-Libre and Open-Source Software (FOSS) library, DePaSITIA (RSE SpA). This combines some...     

Kitchen waste valorization through a mild-temperature pretreatment to enhance biogas production and fermentability: Kinetics study in mesophilic and thermophilic regimen

Biowaste valorization through anaerobic digestion is an attractive option to achieve both climate protection goals and renewable energy production. In this paper, a complete set of batch trials was carried out on kitchen waste to investigate the effects of mild thermal pretreatment, temperature regimen and substrate/inoculum ratio. Thermal pretreatment was effective in the solubilisation of macromolecular fractions, particularly carbohydrates. The ability of the theoretical methodologies in estimating hydrogen and methane yields of complex substrates was evaluated by comparing the experimental results with the theoretical values. Despite the single batch configuration, a significant initial hydrogen production was observed, prior to methane yield. Main pretreatment effect was the gain in hydrogen production; the extent was highly variable according to the other parameters values. High hydrogen yields, up to 113 mL H2/g VSfed, were related to the prompt transformation of soluble sugars. Thermophilic regimen resulted, as expected, in faster digestions (up to 78 mL CH₄/gVS/day) and sorted out pH inhibition. The relatively low methane yields (342–398 mL CH₄/g VS_fed) were the result of the consistent lignocellulosic content and low lipid content. Thermal pretreatment proved to be a promising option for the enhancement of hydrogen production in food waste dark fermentation.     

Cumulative impact assessment in environmental planning: A coastal wetland watershed example

Several theoretical, analytical, and institutional difficulties have impeded the development and application of the assessment of cumulative environmental impacts. Watershed development on coastal wetlands offers an ideal context for evaluating the land disturbance target approach to cumulative impact assessment. A model land use planning system involving a time series approach was developed for Elkhorn Slough in California. The approach included four major components: evaluation of erosion susceptibility, measurement of land disturbance, establishment of a land disturbance target, and a comparison of existing and target land disturbance values. Further research is needed to test the transferability of the approach in a wide range of coastal watersheds and to verify the applicability of the methods to other cumulative impact problems.     

Interpretation of roadside PM10 monitoring data from Sunderland,United Kingdom

Roadside PM₁₀ has been monitored by Partisol® at three sitesin Sunderland between August 1997 and February 1998. The sites chosen were an inner city kerbside site; a roadside site adjacentto a dual carriageway on the outskirts of Sunderland with an openaspect; and a rural site.The results indicate that there is a seasonal variation in the relationship between the sites in terms of monitored PM₁₀.In the winter there is a poor correlation between the sites whereas in the summer significant correlations are obtained. Of the sites monitored PM₁₀ is consistently highest at the inner city roadside site. During the summer, exceedances of theU.K. 50 g m^-3 standard (DETR, 2000) are associated with conditions suitable for the build-up of photochemical pollutionhowever during the winter period exceedances are recorded duringa variety of weather conditions.At the dual carriageway site PM_2.5 has also been recorded and contributions to measured PM₁₀ are 77% in summer and68% in winter. The results illustrate a number of inconsistencies between this study utilising the Partisol® andothers reporting results where PM₁₀ has been monitored by TEOM®.     

Incremental cost-effectiveness of incorporating oestriol evaluation in down syndrome screening programmes

As screening for Down syndrome becomes increasingly sophisticated, it is important to evaluate the newer technologies in terms of their cost-effectiveness. One recent addition to Down syndrome screening programmes is maternal serum unconjugated oestriol (uE₃), especially when used in conjunction with maternal serum α-fetoprotein and human chorionic gonadotropin. Using assumptions used in a California proposal to justify an expanded screening programme for Down syndrome, we calculated both the average and the incremental cost-effectiveness of adding uE₃. Using the base case assumptions, including an $8 fee for the uE₃, the incremental cost-effectiveness of adding uE₃ to the proposed California programme is $119 100 per case detected, a value that compares favourably with other Down syndrome screening programmes. The sensitivity analysis supports this conclusion over a wide range of assumptions. However, because of the uncertainty with some key data, it is still too early to fully support the inclusion of uE₃ in Down syndrome screening programmes.     

Prenatal confirmation of trisomy 12 mosaicism by fetal skin biopsy

Trisomy 12 mosaicism diagnosed at 16 weeks' amniocentesis in a 42-year-old woman was not confirmed at 18 weeks' gestational age in amniotic fluid or fetal blood. Fetal skin biopsy performed at the same time did, however, allow the detection of trisomy 12 in 1 of 14 fibroblasts analysed. Fetal skin biopsy can be included within the diagnostic procedures to be performed when a level III mosaicism is found in the amniotic fluid.     

Appreciating the biodiversity of remnant bushland: an ‘architectural’ approach

Tutor in the Department of Geography at the University of Western Australia. In response to the fragmentation and loss of indigenous vegetation caused by the expansion of metropolitan Perth, all levels of government in Western Australia have made some commitment to the preservation of biodiversity. A case for seeing and using vegetation structure as a possible surrogate for biodiversity is presented. The concept and a simple methodology which may be applied without any specialist ecological knowledge or expertise is outlined for the urban developer, engineer, planner, decision maker and educator. The notion that the degree of diversity of the vegetation structure of a banksia woodland remnant may indicate and give a substitute or preliminary measure of biodiversity assists the popular understanding of biodiversity. Such a non-technical yet objective appreciation and measure may prove satisfactory for some conservation purposes, until a detailed professional assessment is made of the plant and animal species in a remnant of native vegetation. It is currently being used by state planning staff in Western Australia for the preliminary assessment of native woodland in areas zoned for urban growth at the metropolitan fringe.     

Development of Layered Sediment Structure and its Effects on Pore Water Transport and Hyporheic Exchange

Hyporheic exchange is known to provide an important control on nutrient and contaminant fluxes across the stream-subsurface interface. Similar processes also mediate interfacial transport in other permeable sediments. Recent research has focused on understanding the mechanics of these exchange processes and improving estimation of exchange rates in natural systems. While the structure of sediment beds obviously influences pore water flow rates and patterns, little is known about the interplay of typical sedimentary structures, hyporheic exchange, and other transport processes in fluvial/alluvial sediments. Here we discuss several processes that contribute to local-scale sediment heterogeneity and present results that illustrate the interaction of overlying flow conditions, the development of sediment structure, pore water transport, and stream-subsurface exchange. Layered structures are shown to develop at several scales within sediment beds. Surface sampling is used to analyze the development of an armor layer in a sand-and-gravel bed, while innovative synchrotron-based X-ray microtomography is used to observe patterns of grain sorting within sand bedforms. We show that layered bed structures involving coarsening of the bed surface increase interfacial solute flux but produce an effective anisotropy that favors horizontal pore water transport while limiting vertical penetration.