The Impact of Future Land Use Scenarios on Runoff Volumes in the Muskegon River Watershed

In this article we compared the response of surface water runoff to a storm event for different rates of urbanization, reforestation and riparian buffer setbacks across forty subwatersheds of the Muskegon River Watershed located in Michigan, USA. We also made these comparisons for several forecasted and one historical land use scenarios (over 140 years). Future land use scenarios to 2040 for forest regrowth, urbanization rates and stream setbacks were developed using the Land Transformation Model (LTM). Historical land use information, from 1900 at 5-year time step intervals, was created using a Backcast land use change model configured using artificial neural network and driven by agriculture and housing census information. We show that (1) controlling the rate of development is the most effective policy option to reduce runoff; (2) establishing setbacks along the mainstem are not as effective as controlling urban growth; (3) reforestation can abate some of the runoff effects from urban growth but not all; (4) land use patterns of the 1970s produced the least amount of runoff in most cases in the Muskegon River Watershed when compared to land use maps from 1900 to 2040; and, (5) future land use patterns here not always lead to increased (worse) runoff than the past. We found that while ten of the subwatersheds contained futures that were worse than any past land use configuration, twenty-five (62.5%) of the subwatersheds produced the greatest amount of runoff in 1900, shortly after the entire watershed was clear-cut. One third (14/40) of the subwatersheds contained the minimum amount of runoff in the 1960s and 1970s, a period when forest amounts were greatest and urban amounts relatively small.     

Monitoring of Pathogenicity of Effluents from the UASB Based Sewage Treatment Plant

We researched the behavior of pathogenic microbes in a treated wastewater reuse system to acquire knowledge for establishing new standards for the reuse of treated wastewater. Based on the results that showed occasional growth of total coliforms but barely any growth of Escherichia coli in the supply tank, we found that the total coliform, which includes bacteria that also breed in the soil, etc., is not necessarily suitable as the index bacteria for indicating pollution by excrement. We also clarified that it is possible to decrease the heterotrophic plate count to a specified level in cases where combined residual chlorine is more than 0.3 mg/l, and that the standard value for residual chlorine should be set at 0.3 mg/l or more. At the same time, we found that applying sand filtration treatment to water used for toilet flushing, sprinkling and landscaping, and sand filtration treatment plus coagulation treatment to water for recreational use lowers the annual risk of infection by Cryptosporidium to less than 10⁻⁴. The standard for viruses must be examined in the future because Noroviruses were sometimes detected even in the reclaimed water, although we could not establish the standard at this time due to problems with the virus detection method.     

Identification of organic phosphorus compounds in the Bronx River bed sediments by phosphorus-31 nuclear magnetic resonance spectroscopy

The European Water Framework Directive 2000/60/EC aims to achieve a good ecological status of all surface water bodies in Europe. The definition of the ecological status is based on the hydromorphological, hydrochemical, and hydrobiological features of water bodies. Numerous methods are applied for the purpose of hydromorphological status assessment. This study attempts to compare four different methods (EcoRivHab, LAWA Field and Overview Survey, and Rapid Bioassessment Protocol) that were applied at two study areas in the Czech part of the Elbe River Basin. The selected catchments represent areas with different sizes and physical geographic as well as socioeconomic characteristics. All the methods applied showed the capacity to identify the natural and even the completely changed reaches and provided good information on the river physical habitat state. However, they are varied from the viewpoint of the number of parameters, number of monitored zones, time and knowledge demands of the performed assessment.     

Waste management in small hospitals: trouble for environment

Small hospitals are the grassroots for the big hospital structures, so proper waste management practices require to be initiated from there. Small hospitals contribute a lot in the health care facilities, but due to their poor waste management practices, they pose serious biomedical waste pollution. A survey was conducted with 13 focus questions collected from the 100 hospital present in Dehradun. Greater value of per day per bed waste was found among the small hospitals (178 g compared with 114 g in big hospitals), indicating unskilled waste management practices. Small hospitals do not follow the proper way for taking care of segregation of waste generated in the hospital, and most biomedical wastes were collected without segregation into infectious and noninfectious categories.     

Cheaper Fuel and Higher Health Costs Among the Poor in Rural Nepal

Biomass fuels are used by the majority of resource poor households in low-income countries. Though biomass fuels, such as dung-briquette and firewood are apparently cheaper than the modern fuels indoor pollution from burning biomass fuels incurs high health costs. But, the health costs of these conventional fuels, mostly being indirect, are poorly understood. To address this gap, this study develops probit regression models using survey data generated through interviews from households using either dung-briquette or biogas as the primary source of fuel for cooking. The study investigates factors affecting the use of dung-briquette, assesses its impact on human health, and estimates the associated household health costs. Analysis suggests significant effects of dung-briquette on asthma and eye diseases. Despite of the perception of it being a cheap fuel, the annual health cost per household due to burning dung-briquette (US16.94) is 61.3 (US 16.94) is 61.3% higher than the annual cost of biogas (US 10.38), an alternative cleaner fuel for rural households. For reducing the use of dung-briquette and its indirect health costs, the study recommends three interventions: (1) educate women and aboriginal people, in particular, and make them aware of the benefits of switching to biogas; (2) facilitate tree planting in communal as well as private lands; and (3) create rural employment and income generation opportunities.     

Semen quality of environmentally exposed human population: the toxicological consequence

Human data on the relationship of semen quality with pesticide and metals are mostly inconsistent. The purpose of the study is to confirm the toxicity of organochlorine pesticide β- and γ-hexachlorocyclohexane (HCH), DDE and DDD, and metals lead or cadmium on sperm motility in epidemiological study among fertile and infertile men and to determine whether in vivo and in vitro results are in the same direction. Semen analysis and estimation of the toxicants were done in 60 fertile and 150 infertile men. In the in vitro studies, sperm were exposed to the highest levels of these toxicants found in vivo, as well as five and ten times higher, and to the mixture of all compounds. The study assesses sperm viability and motility for a period ranging between 30 min and 96 h. Epidemiological data showed an inverse correlation of toxicant with sperm motility. In vitro study showed that γ-HCH and lead after 12 h, cadmium after 8 h, and coexposure to toxicants after 6 h of exposure caused significant concentration- and duration-dependent decline in sperm motility. Data of in vitro study were concurrent with epidemiological finding that might be useful in establishing the possible association between exposure and effect of these selected pollutants on sperm motility.     

Removal of Cr(VI) onto Ficus carica biosorbent from water

The utilization of sustainable and biodegradable lignocellulosic fiber to detoxify the noxious Cr(VI) from wastewater is considered a versatile approach to clean up a contaminated aquatic environment. The aim of the present research is to assess the proficiency and mechanism of biosorption on Ficus carica bast fiber via isotherm models (Langmuir, Freundlich, Temkin, Harkin’s–Jura, and Dubinin–Radushkevich), kinetic models, and thermodynamic parameters. The biomass extracted from fig plant was characterized by scanning electron microscopy and Fourier-transform infrared spectroscopy. To optimize the maximum removal efficiency, different parameters like effect of initial concentration, effect of temperature, pH, and contact time were studied by batch method. The equilibrium data were best represented by the Langmuir isotherm model, and the maximum adsorption capacity of Cr(VI) onto biosorbent was found to be 19.68 mg/g. The pseudo-second-order kinetic model adequately described the kinetic data. The calculated values of thermodynamic parameters such as enthalpy change (?H ⁰), entropy change (?S ⁰), and free energy change (?G ⁰) were 21.55 kJ/mol, 76.24 J/mol?K, and ?1.55 kJ/mol, respectively, at 30 °C which accounted for spontaneous and endothermic processes. The study of adsorbent capacity for Cr(VI) removal in the presence of Na⁺, Mg²⁺, Ca²⁺, SO ₄ ^2? , HCO ₃ ^? and Cl^? illustrated that the removal of Cr(VI) increased in the presence of HCO^3? ions; the presence of Na⁺, SO ₄ ^2? or Cl^? showed no significant influence on Cr(VI) adsorption, while Ca²⁺ and Mg²⁺ ions led to an insignificant decrease in Cr(VI) adsorption. Further, the desorption studies illustrated that 31.10 % of metal ions can be removed from an aqueous system, out of which 26.63 % of metal ions can be recovered by desorption in first cycle and the adsorbent can be reused. The results of the scale-up study show that the ecofriendly detoxification of Cr(VI) from aqueous systems was technologically feasible.     

Exposure to air pollutants in Vietnam: Assessing potential risk for tourists

Tourism can form an important component of a nation's GDP,and Vietnam is among the most visited countries in Southeast Asia.Most studies on personal exposure focus on the general population,or occupational cohorts with exposure to specific pollutants.However,short-term exposure to air pollutants while visiting regions with high levels of air pollution can lead to acute health effects.A personal exposure study was conducted across three cities in Vietnam to estimate exposure to particulate matter(PM_(2.5)) and black carbon for tourists.Measurements were conducted during the wet season in 2014 in Ho Chi Minh City,Da Lat and Nha Trang using portable instrumentation.Average 24-hr PM_(2.5) and BC exposures were estimated as 18.9 ± 9.24 and 3.41 ± 1.33 μg/m~3 and among the three cities,Ho Chi Minh was found to have the highest PM_(2.5) concentrations.Environmental tobacco smoke,commuting and street food stands were found to contribute to highest levels of exposure to PM_(2.5) and BC across all cities.     

Study of Aging Characteristics of Ternary Blends of Polyethylenes—II

Six film samples of low-density polypropylene (LDPE)/linear LDPE (LLDPE)/high-density polypropylene (HDPE) with varying ratios of LDPE (20–45 ... wt%) and LLDPE (25–50 wt%) having a fixed amount of HDPE at 30 wt% were prepared by blown film extrusion technique. The samples were aged at four different temperatures, 55°, 70°, 85°, and 100°C, for four different time periods in the interval of between 150 hours and up to 600 hours. The change in the structure of various constituents and the formation of various oxygenated (peroxy and hydroperoxy) and unsaturated groups during thermo-oxidative degradation was discussed by infrared spectroscopy. The visiosity-average molecular weight was found to have decreased slowly in the initial aging hours and temperatures, whereas it decreased by 10% with its previous value tensile strength that is, 100°C when aged for 600 hours. The tensile strength of the sample first increased by 67% at 55°C and 89% at 70°C up to 450 hours, whereas the values increased by 52.5% at 85°C and 33.9% at 100°C when aged for 150 hours and then decreased. The percentage elongation at break increased by 2.7% at 55°C and 10.7% at 70°C for 150 and 300 hours of aging, respectively, whereas the percentage decreased when aged at 85°C and 100°C for up to 600 hours of aging. The values of gel content (percent) increased and initial degradation temperature decreased with aging time and temperature.