Recent advances in pharmaceuticals and personal care products in the surface water and sediments in China

Pharmaceuticals and personal care products (PPCPs) have been regarded as an emerging problem in the surface water environment in the past few decades. In China, although related studies were initiated several years ago, an increasing number of studies on this topic have been conducted in recent years. These studies have expanded knowledge of their occurrence, behavior and associated risk in the surface water environment in China. This review compiles the most recent literature related to the studies of PPCPs in the surface water environment in China. It includes PPCP occurrence in surface water and sediments, their geographical distribution, and outcomes of the associated risk assessment. It shows that antibiotics have received much more attention in both surface water and sediments than other PPCPs. Compared to other countries; most antibiotics in the collected sediments in China showed higher contamination levels. Many more study areas have been covered in recent years; however, attention has been given to only specific areas. Environmental risk assessment based on risk quotients indicated that sulfamethoxazole presents the most significant environmental risk to relevant aquatic organisms; followed by ofloxacin, ciprofloxacin, enrofloxacin, 17α-ethynylestradiol, ibuprofen and diclofenac. Despite limited research on the environmental risk assessment of PPCPs in sediments, higher risks posed by PPCPs in the sediments rather than surface water were identified highlighting the need for further risk assessment of PPCPs in sediment samples.

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Red soil for sediment capping to control the internal nutrient release under flow conditions

Nitrogen (N) and phosphorus (P) released from the sediment to the surface water is a major source of water quality impairment. Therefore, inhibiting sediment nutrient release seems necessary. In this study, red soil (RS) was employed to control the nutrients released from a black-odorous river sediment under flow conditions. The N and P that were released were effectively controlled by RS capping. Continuous-flow incubations showed that the reduction efficiencies of total N (TN), ammonium (NH ₄ ⁺ -N), total P (TP) and soluble reactive P (SRP) of the overlying water by RS capping were 77%, 63%, 77% and 92%, respectively, and nitrification and denitrification occurred concurrently in the RS system. An increase in the water velocity coincided with a decrease in the nutrient release rate as a result of intensive water aeration.

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Levels and bioaccumulation of organochlorine pesticides (OCPs) and polybrominated diphenyl ethers (PBDEs) in fishes from the Pearl River estuary and Daya Bay, South China

Fifty fish samples were collected from the Pearl River estuary (PRE) and Daya Bay, South China and were analyzed for DDTs, HCHs, chlordanes and polybrominated biphenyl ethers (PBDEs). Except the high concentrations of DDT observed in fishes, the concentrations of HCHs, chlordanes and PBDEs were low when compared to other regions. BDE-47 was the predominant PBDE congener and the BDE-209 concentrations were relatively low, despite its high concentration in surface sediments. The absence of significant increase of DDT, HCH, chlordane and PBDE concentrations towards higher delta15N values, as well as the lack of a significant correlation (p<0.1) between log concentrations (lipid normalized) and delta15N, may indicate a weak biomagnification of these chemicals in the food webs. Good agreement was observed between their concentrations and lipid contents of the organisms. Bioconcentration was suggested to be responsible for the accumulation of OCPs and PBDEs in the lower trophic organisms in the studied subtropical waters.     

灭菌预处理污泥及其滤液产氢发酵的比较研究

剩余污泥中的固态物质包含大量的蛋白质和多聚糖等有机质,一直被认为是一种具有潜力的生物制氢原料。灭菌预处理的剩余污泥会释放出大量的有机质,真空抽滤后去除掉污泥中固态物质得到滤液。将预处理污泥与滤液分别作为底物,接种产氢菌Pseudomonas sp. GZ1后产氢发酵。测定2种不同底物发酵反应过程中氢气的产量,以及底物的变化（SCOD、可溶性蛋白质、总糖、pH值）。实验结果表明,利用预处理后的污泥滤液作为底物能够有效提高氢气产量。滤液发酵的产氢量达到了4.44 mg H₂/g COD,比预处理污泥直接发酵提高了近3.3倍。本实验证明污泥中的固态物质在发酵过程中能释放出更多的营养物质,但实际上并不能被产氢菌有效地利用产生更多的氢气,并对其原因进行了探讨。     

Bioaccumulation and physiological effects of tetrabromobisphenol A in coontail Ceratophyllum demersum L

Tetrabromobisphenol A (TBBPA) is one of the most widely used brominated flame retardants. In the present study, the accumulation of TBBPA and its consequent biological responses were examined in coontail (Ceratophyllum demersum L.) over 14 days' exposure. Most of the TBBPA was accumulated after 4d exposure and TBBPA concentration in plant increased with increasing TBBPA concentration in growth solution (R(2)=0.99). By using electron paramagnetic resonance (EPR), we found that the TBBPA exposure significantly increased total free radicals generation in the plants. A good positive relationship (R(2)=0.99) was found between the free radicals formation and accumulation level of TBBPA in plant. Lipid peroxidation was enhanced and chlorophyll content showed declined after TBBPA exposure. The activities of superoxide dismutase (SOD), peroxidase (POD), and the contents of glutathione were also detected. The results suggest that TBBPA accumulation in C. demersum induces oxidative stress and the level of tolerance depends on the antioxidative capacity of the plants.     

The impact of eutrophication on the biogeochemical cycling of mercury species in a reservoir: a case study from Hongfeng Reservoir, Guizhou, China

The mercury distribution and speciation in the water column were investigated from November 2003 to September 2004. The distribution and concentrations of total mercury (THg) and particulate mercury (PHg) showed that algae had a large capacity to bind mercury in late spring (e.g. in May). It is shown that dissolved gaseous mercury (DGM) concentrations may also be affected by algae activities. The MeHg profile in the water column at a highly eutrophied site in Hongfeng Reservoir demonstrated that most of the MeHg was produced in the hypolimnion, whereas the MeHg profile pattern at another site with less eutrophication indicated that MeHg in water was largely ascribed to release from sediment. In September, the outflow of the reservoir was enriched with MeHg, which was 5.5 times higher than that in the inflows. The discharge of MeHg-concentrated water from the anoxic hypolimnion in the reservoir may pose a risk to downstream fauna.     

Relationship between atmospheric pollution processes and synoptic pressure patterns in northern China

The air pollution index (API) sequences in 10 cities in northern China and the synoptic pressure patterns during autumn and winter from 2002 to 2006 were analyzed with diagnostic and statistical methods. The results showed that the air qualities in northern China had a prominent correlation with the pressure systems. It revealed that (a) the increasing phase of API was associated with high pressure and the successive low pressure, (b) the preceding part of front (i.e. the retral part of low pressure) was associated with the maximum of API values during a cycle of air pollution process, (c) the pressure systems with high gradient led to the decrease of API, and (d) the synoptic pressure patterns and their evolvements were the main causes of regional air pollution processes. These relations can be used to analyze the variation characteristics and mechanism of regional atmosphere pollution process, and provide important basis for the qualitative prediction, control, and management of regional air pollution problems.     

Tracking historical lead pollution in the coastal area adjacent to the Yangtze River Estuary using lead isotopic compositions

The rapid economic development in the Yangtze River Delta (YRD), China in the last three decades has had a significant impact on the environment of the East China Sea (ECS). Lead isotopic compositions of a ²¹⁰Pb dated sediment core collected from the coastal ECS adjacent to the Yangtze River Estuary were analyzed to track the Pb pollution in the region. The baseline Pb concentration in the coastal ECS sediments before the industrialization in China was 32 μg g⁻¹, and the corresponding ²⁰⁶Pb/²⁰⁷Pb ratio was 1.195. The high-resolution profiles of Pb flux and ²⁰⁶Pb/²⁰⁷Pb ratios had close relationships with the economic development and the history of the use of leaded gasoline in China, and they were clearly different from those of most European countries and United States.     

污泥细菌偶氮呼吸机制与偶氮染料降解矿化机理

利用污泥细菌生物降解矿化偶氮染料,已成功用于偶氮染料废水处理,并将成为该领域研究开发的热点和发展趋势。综述了好氧、厌氧细菌的两种偶氮呼吸机制,并总结了偶氮呼吸直接产物芳香胺类在好氧、厌氧条件下进一步降解与矿化机理的异同,同时提出在偶氮染料废水处理中厌氧-好氧串联式生物反应器能有效用于偶氮化合物的降解矿化。     

关于建立我国光污染防治体系的思考与建议

本文对建立符合国情的光污染防治体系提出相关建议。首先阐述了光污染的概况;然后对国内外光污染防治的立法现状进行研究和探讨;最后提出具体的立法构想。与欧美和日本等发达国家相比,我国的光污染防治工作才刚起步,关于光污染防治的环境立法还是空白,对光污染防治的系统性研究处于初始阶段。以经济、生态的可持续发展为指导思想,采用符合国情的立法模式,修订《中华人民共和国环境保护法》,制定光污染防治单行法《光污染防治法》,制定光环境质量标准和排放标准,建立光污染防治体系,全面防治光污染。