A comparison of the efficiency of different surfactants for removal of crude oil from contaminated soils

This paper presents the results from study investigating the efficiency with which different surfactants remove crude oil from contaminated soil using a soil washing process. The surfactants studied were aqueous solutions of rhamnolipid, saponin and sodium dodecyl sulfate (SDS). The efficiency of surfactants' removal was quantified and then GC/MS analysis conducted to investigate the distribution of hydrocarbons remaining on the washed soil samples compared to those on a control. The results showed that SDS removed the most crude oil from soil, followed by rhamnolipid and then saponin. However, the different surfactants showed preferences in terms of which crude oil components they removed from the contaminated soil. SDS removed more of the aliphatics than aromatic hydrocarbons whereas saponin removed the aromatic hydrocarbon preferentially to the aliphatic hydrocarbons. Clearly these results provide important information for the selection of surfactants used to remove crude oil from contaminated soils.     

Antimicrobial-resistant patterns of Escherichia coli and Salmonella strains in the aquatic Lebanese environments

This study is the first to be conducted in Lebanon on the isolation and molecular characterization and the antimicrobial resistance profile of environmental pathogenic bacterial strains. Fifty-seven samples of seawater, sediment, crab, and fresh water were collected during the spring and summer seasons of 2003. The isolation of Escherichia coli and Salmonella using appropriate selective media revealed that 94.7% of the tested samples were contaminated with one or both of the tested bacteria. The polymerase chain reaction (PCR) was then used to identify the species of both bacteria using various sets of primers. Many pathogenic E. coli isolates were detected by PCR out of which two were identified as O157:H7 E. coli. Similarly, the species of many of the Salmonella isolates was molecularly identified. The confirmed isolates of Salmonella and E. coli were then tested using the disk diffusion method for their susceptibility to four different antimicrobials revealing high rates of antimicrobial resistance.     

Contamination in sediments, bivalves and sponges of McMurdo Sound, Antarctica

This study examined the concentrations of total hydrocarbons (THC), polychlorinated biphenyls (PCB), polyaromatic hydrocarbons (PAH), and trace metals (Cu, Zn, Cd, Pb, Hg and As) in marine sediments off Scott Base (NZ) and compared them with sediments near the highly polluted McMurdo Station (US) as well as less impacted sites including Turtle Rock and Cape Evans. The Antarctic mollusc, Laternula elliptica and three common sponge species were also analysed for trace metals. The mean THC concentration in sediments from Scott Base was 3 fold higher than the pristine site, Turtle Rock, but 10 fold lower than samples from McMurdo Station. McMurdo Station sediments also contained the highest concentrations of PAHs, PCBs and the trace metals, Cu, Zn, Pb, Cd and Hg. Copper was significantly higher in bivalves from McMurdo Station than other sites. Trace metal concentrations in sponges were generally consistent within sites but no spatial patterns were apparent.     

Validation of the digital opacity compliance system under regulatory enforcement conditions

U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) Emission Measurement Center in conjunction with EPA Regions VI and VIII, the state of Utah, and the U.S. Department of Defense have conducted a series of long-term pilot and field tests to determine the accuracy and reliability of a visible opacity monitoring system consisting of a conventional digital camera and a separate computer software application for plume opacity determination. This technology, known as the Digital Opacity Compliance System (DOCS), has been successfully demonstrated at EPA-sponsored Method-9 "smoke schools", as well as at a number of government and commercially operated industrial facilities. Results from the current DOCS regulatory pilot study demonstrated that, under regulatory enforcement conditions, the average difference in opacity measurement between the DOCS technology and EPA Reference Method 9 (Method 9) was 1.12%. This opacity difference, which was computed from the evaluation of 241 regulated air sources, was found to be statistically significant at the 99% confidence level. In evaluating only those sources for which a nonzero visible opacity level was recorded, the     

Impacts from control operations on a recreationally hunted feral swine population at a large military installation in Florida

Feral swine were targeted for control at Avon Park Air Force Range in south-central Florida to avert damage to sensitive wetland habitats on the 40,000-ha base. We conducted a 5-year study to assess impacts from control to this population that had been recreationally hunted for many years. Control was initiated in early 2009. The feral swine population was monitored from 2008 to 2012 using a passive tracking index (PTI) during the dry and wet seasons and using recreational hunter take rates from the dry season. All three indices showed substantial feral swine declines after implementing control, with indices leveling for the final two study years. Military missions and recreational hunting seasons impacted temporal and spatial consistency of control application, thereby limiting further impacts of control efforts on the feral swine population. The PTI was also able to monitor coyotes, another invasive species on the base, and detect Florida black bear and Florida panther, species of particular concern.     

Production, Purification and Activity of an Extracellular Depolymerase from Aspergillus fumigatus

A strain of Aspergillus fumigatus, which was observed to rapidly degrade poly-3-hydroxybutyrate (PHB) in a leaf compost, was found to secrete an extracellular hydrolase when grown on PHB as the sole carbon source. Isolation and characterization of the PHB hydrolase (depolymerase) from this fungus revealed that the enzyme had a molecular weight of 57 kDa, an isoelectric point of 7.2, and a PHB hydrolysis activity maxima which occurred at 70°C and pH 8.0. Affinity labeling experiments suggested that this fungal hydrolase is a type of serine esterase. The cyclic trimers of 3-hydroxybutyrate were found to reversibly inhibit the enzymes.     

Loblolly pine response to wet-weather harvesting on wet flats after 5 years

The timing of forestry operations relative to weather conditions is a consideration in applying Forestry Best Management Practices (BMPs). Harvesting during different seasons can result in degrees of soil disturbance, the distribution of logging debris, and potentially future stand productivity. The purpose of this study is to examine the response of loblolly pine (Pinus taeda L.) stands after wet- and dry-weather harvesting combined with three site preparation treatments. A 20 × 20 meter grid was established in fifteen 20-year-old, 3.3-ha loblolly pine plantations in South Carolina. A census of soil physical disturbance and slash distribution was made after harvesting. Growth was measured on 1/125th-ha plots at ages two and five. Dry-weather harvested (DWH) sites were 91% undisturbed, and 9% compressed. Wet-weather harvested (WWH) sites were 41% undisturbed, and 59% disturbed. WWH sites averaged 9% bare soil, while DWH sites averaged 16% with 1 kg m^-2 less logging residue; primarily in the form of heavy and light slash. At age five, the green-weight biomass of flat-planted DWH and WWH sites were 13.3 and 12.6 kg tree^-1 respectively, and on the bedded DWH and WWH sites were 18.6 and 22.8 kg tree^-1. Wet weather harvesting did not seem to adversely affect stand growth, and may have improved it. Due to a prolonged drought, bedding had a larger effect on WWH sites than DWH harvested sites. The effects of droughty conditions may be influencing treatment response on these highly productive sites; however, the long-term effects of harvesting on stand growth remain to be seen.     

Characterisation of weathered hydrocarbon wastes at contaminated sites by GC-simulated distillation and nitrous oxide chemical ionisation GC-MS, with implications for bioremediation

An extended analytical characterisation of weathered hydrocarbons isolated from historically contaminated sites in Alberta is presented. The characterisation of soil extracts, chromatographically separated into component classes, by GC-simulated distillation and nitrous oxide (N2O) chemical ionisation (CI) GC-MS provides new insights into the composition of the residual oil at these sites, the principal partition medium for risk critical components. The combined polar and asphaltene content of representative soil extracts ranged from 40% w/w to 70% w/w of the oils encountered. An abundance of C14-C22 2-4 ring alicyclics, alkylbenzenes and benzocycloparaffins is prevalent within the saturate fractions of site soils. Implications for the partitioning of risk critical compounds at sites with weathered hydrocarbons and the practical application of bioremediation technologies are discussed.     

A methodology for assessing blast protection in explosive ordnance disposal bomb suits.

To reduce human casualties associated with explosive ordnance disposal, a wide range of protective wear has been designed to shield against the blast effects of improvised explosive devices and munitions. In this study, 4 commercially available bomb suits, representing a range of materials and armor masses, were evaluated against 0.227 and 0.567 kg of spherical C-4 explosives to determine the level of protection offered to the head, neck, and thorax. A Hybrid III dummy, an instrumented human surrogate [1], was tested with and without protection from the 4 commercially available bomb suits. 20 tests with the dummy torso mounted to simulate a kneeling position were performed to confirm repeatability and robustness of the dummies, as well as to evaluate the 4 suits. Correlations between injury risk assessments based on past human or animal injury model data and various parameters such as bomb suit mass, projected area, and dummy coverage area were drawn.