Considerable hazards produced by heavy fuel oil in operating thermal power plant in Assiut, Egypt

Heavy fuel oil and ash samples were collected from the Assiut thermal power plant in Egypt and subjected to gamma spectrometry analysis for natural radioactivity contents. Considerable results were observed where the ash contains nearly 1,000 times natural radionuclides more than raw oil. The results were confirmed by measuring the samples via using different devices in different institutions. All ash samples had radium equivalent activities and external hazard index values more than 370 Bq/kg and unity respectively. The mean absorbed dose rate was10,650 nGy/h which is nearly 190 times higher than the global average value of 55 nGy/h. The corresponding annual external effective dose is estimated to be 13 mSv/year, which is nearly 30 times higher than that in areas of natural background radiation (0.46 mSv/year).     

High-Resolution Vegetation Data for Mangrove Research as Obtained From Aerial Photography

In this methodological study, the applicability of aerial photographs for monitoring mangrove vegetation dynamics at high resolution was investigated. Vegetation maps of three mangrove forests in Sri Lanka (Galle, Rekawa and Pambala) were produced based on visual analysis of aerial photographs. The visual analysis was aided by applying an interpretation key constructed during a first fieldwork mission. Image attributes used for the identification of individual trees included: gray values, texture, form and size of the crowns and the presence or absence of a shaded side. For the identification of species assemblages, the vegetation structure (i.e. the distribution of individual trees) appeared to be an important attribute. The accuracy and reliability of the vegetation maps were investigated during a second fieldwork mission. The aerial photographs proved to be very useful for the production of genus-based vegetation maps. The error analysis showed that density estimations (quantitative identification) based on aerial photography was not sufficiently accurate for the objectives of the study, but that the overall identification of vegetation assemblages (qualitative identification) coincided most satisfactory with the ground-truth data. In addition to the applicability of aerial photography in monitoring mangroves, the importance of aerial photography in the management of the mangrove ecosystem is clearly highlighted.     

Quality of drinking water and high incidence rate of esophageal cancer in Golestan province of Iran: a probable link

Golestan province in north Iran is known to be a high-risk area for esophageal cancer (EC). Of a long list of multiple risk factors, this study focuses on a possible link between the epidemiologic patterns of EC and the anomalous concentration of some ions and elements in the drinking water sources. A total of 183 samples from 45 villages covering a wide range of EC mortality rates are collected and analyzed. The results demonstrate that NO₃ ⁻, SO₄ ²⁻, Sb, and Sr exceed the recommended maximum concentration level (MCL) in drinking water. This is more prominent in the villages with high esophageal cancer mortality rate, suggesting a possible link between EC incidence and water quality. Se concentration in drinking water increases from low to the high EC areas, a finding contrary to the expected trend. It is concluded that Se deficiency does not play a major role in the etiology of EC in the Golestan province. The statistical results obtained from Mann–Whitney and Kruskal–Wallis tests along with cluster analysis are consistent with the observed trend of EC mortality rate in Golestan province.     

Oxidative potential (OP) and mineralogy of iron ore particulate matter at the Gol-E-Gohar Mining and Industrial Facility (Iran)

Concentrations of total suspended particulate matter, particulate matter with aerodynamic diameter <2.5 μm (PM_2.5), particulate matter <10 μm (PM₁₀), and fallout dust were measured at the Iranian Gol-E-Gohar Mining and Industrial Facility. Samples were characterized in terms of mineralogy, morphology, and oxidative potential. Results show that indoor samples exceeded the 24-h PM_2.5 and PM₁₀ mass concentration limits (35 and 150 µg m^?3, respectively) set by the US National Ambient Air Quality Standards. Calcite, magnetite, tremolite, pyrite, talc, and clay minerals such as kaolinite, vermiculite, and illite are the major phases of the iron ore PM. Accessory minerals are quartz, dolomite, hematite, actinolite, biotite, albite, nimite, laumontite, diopside, and muscovite. The scanning electron microscope structure of fibrous-elongated minerals revealed individual fibers in the range of 1.5 nm to 71.65 µm in length and 0.2 nm to 3.7 µm in diameter. The presence of minerals related to respiratory diseases, such as talc, crystalline silica, and needle-shaped minerals like amphibole asbestos (tremolite and actinolite), strongly suggests the need for detailed health-based studies in the region. The particulate samples show low to medium oxidative potential per unit of mass, in relation to an urban road side control, being more reactive with ascorbate than with glutathione or urate. However, the PM oxidative potential per volume of air is exceptionally high, confirming that the workers are exposed to a considerable oxidative environment. PM released by iron ore mining and processing activities should be considered a potential health risk to the mine workers and nearby employees, and strategies to combat the issue are suggested.     

Chemical speciation and bioavailability of rare earth elements (REEs) in the ecosystem: a review

Rare earths (RE), chemically uniform group of elements due to similar physicochemical behavior, are termed as lanthanides. Natural occurrence depends on the geological circumstances and has been of long interest for geologist as tools for further scientific research into the region of ores, rocks, and oceanic water. The review paper mainly focuses to provide scientific literature about rare earth elements (REEs) with potential environmental and health effects in understanding the research. This is the initial review of RE speciation and bioavailability with current initiative toward development needs and research perceptive. In this paper, we have also discussed mineralogy, extraction, geochemistry, analytical methods of rare earth elements. In this study, REEs with their transformation and vertical distribution in different environments such as fresh and seawater, sediments, soil, weathering, transport, and solubility have been reported with most recent literature along key methods of findings. Speciation and bioavailability have been discussed in detail with special emphasis on soil, plant, and aquatic ecosystems and their impacts on the environment. This review shows that REE gained more importance in last few years due to their detrimental effects on living organisms, so their speciation, bioavailability, and composition are much more important to evaluate their health risks and are discussed thoroughly as well.     

Removal of o-nitrophenol from water by electrochemical degradation using a lead oxide/titanium modified electrode

This study examined o-nitrophenol removal from aqueous solutions by electrochemical oxidation employing a modified electrode. The modified electrode was produced by electrodepositing lead oxide onto a titanium substrate. Following electrochemical oxidation of o-nitrophenol-containing solutions, the remaining o-nitrophenol concentration and chemical oxygen demand (COD) values were determined. The optimum parameters were current density of 40 mA cm(-2), pH of 2.47, 60 min of electrolysis time, 4 g L(-1) NaCl electrolyte solution and temperature of 30 degrees C. Under these optimum conditions of electrochemical degradation using a lead oxide/titanium modified electrode complete removal of o-nitrophenol and COD was achieved.     

Microplastic pollution in deposited urban dust,Tehran metropolis,Iran

Environmental pollutants such as microplastics have become a major concern over the last few decades. We investigated the presence, characteristics, and potential health risks of microplastic dust ingestion. The plastic load of 88 to 605 microplastics per 30 g dry dust with a dominance of black and yellow granule microplastics ranging in size from 250 to 500 μm was determined in 10 street dust samples using a binocular microscope. Fluorescence microscopy was found to be ineffective for detecting and counting plastic debris. Scanning electron microscopy, however, was useful for accurate detection of microplastic particles of different sizes, colors, and shapes (e.g., fiber, spherule, hexagonal, irregular polyhedron). Trace amounts of Al, Na, Ca, Mg, and Si, detected using energy dispersive X-ray spectroscopy, revealed additives of plastic polymers or adsorbed debris on microplastic surfaces. As a first step to estimate the adverse health effects of microplastics in street dust, the frequency of microplastic ingestion per day/year via ingestion of street dust was calculated. Considering exposure during outdoor activities and workspaces with high abundant microplastics as acute exposure, a mean of 3223 and 1063 microplastic particles per year is ingested by children and adults, respectively. Consequently, street dust is a potentially important source of microplastic contamination in the urban environment and control measures are required.     

Ethnosciences––A step towards the integration of scientific and indigenous forms of knowledge in the management of natural resources for the future

Integration of indigenous knowledge and ethnoscientific approaches into contemporary frameworks for conservation and sustainable management of natural resources will become increasingly important in policies on an international and national level, both in countries that are industrialised and those that have a developing status. We set the scene on how this can be done by exploring the key conditions and dimensions of a dialogue between ȁ8ontologiesȁ9 and the roles, which ethnosciences could play in this process. First, the roles of ethnosciences in the context of sustainable development were analysed, placing emphasis on the implications arising when western sciences aspire to relate to indigenous forms of␣knowledge. Secondly, the contributions of ethnosciences to such an ȁ8inter- ontological dialogueȁ9 were explored, based on an ethnoecological study of the encounter of sciences and indigenous knowledge in the Andes of Bolivia, and reviewed experiences from mangrove systems in Kenya, India and Sri Lanka, and from case-studies in other ecosystems world-wide, incl. Australia, Burkina Faso, Ecuador, Ethiopia, Guatemala, Indonesia, Nepal, Niger, Philippines, Senegal, South-Africa and Tanzania.