Spent Coffee Grounds and Coffee Silverskin as Potential Materials for Packaging: A Review

Journal of Polymers and the Environment - Coffee is a widely enjoyed beverage and one of the world’s most traded commodities. However, it also generates large amounts of bio-based waste...     

Erratum to: Elephants Also Like Coffee: Trends and Drivers of Human–Elephant Conflicts in Coffee Agroforestry Landscapes of Kodagu,Western Ghats,India

Kodagu district produces 2% of the world’s coffee, in complex, multistoried agroforestry systems. The forests of the district harbour a large population of the Asian elephant (Elephas maximus). The combined effects of high elephant density and major landscape changes due to the expansion of coffee cultivation are the cause of human–elephant conflicts (HEC). Mitigation strategies, including electric fences and compensation schemes implemented by the Forest Department have met with limited success. Building on previous studies in the area, we assessed current spatial and temporal trends of conflict, analysed local stakeholders’ perceptions and identified factors driving elephants into the estates. Our study, initiated in May 2007, shows that the intensity of HEC has increased over the last 10 years, exhibiting new seasonal patterns. Conflict maps and the lack of correlation between physical features of the coffee plantations and elephant visits suggest elephants move along corridors between the eastern and western forests of the district, opportunistically foraging when crossing the plantations. Dung analyses indicate elephants have selectively included ripe coffee berries in their diet. This is, to our knowledge, the first report of wild elephants feeding on coffee berries. If this new behaviour spreads through the population, it will compound an already severe conflict situation. The behavioural plasticity, the multiplicity of stakeholders involved, the difficulty in defining the problem and the limits of technical solutions already proposed suggest that HEC in Kodagu has the ingredients of a “wicked” problem whose resolution will require more shared understanding and problem solving work amongst the stakeholders.     

Influence of support on catalytic behavior of nickel catalysts in the steam reforming of ethanol for hydrogen production

Al₂O₃, MgO, SiO₂ and ZnO-supported nickel catalysts were prepared and evaluated in the ethanol steam reforming for hydrogen production. It is shown that the catalytic behavior can be influenced depending on the experimental conditions employed and chemical composition of the catalyst.     

POTENTIAL CLIMATE CHANGE IMPACTS ON WATER RESOURCES IN THE GREAT PLAINS1

ABSTRACT: This paper reports on the current assessment of climate impacts on water resources, including aquatic ecosystems, agricultural demands, and water management, in the U.S. Great Plains. Climate change in the region may have profound effects on agricultural users, aquatic ecosystems, and urban and industrial users alike. In the central Great Plains Region, the potential impacts of climate changes include changes in winter snowfall and snow-melt, growing season rainfall amounts and intensities, minimum winter temperature, and summer time average temperature. Specifically, results from general circulation models indicate that both annual average temperatures and total annual precipitation will increase over the region. However, the seasonal patterns are not uniform. The combined effect of these changes in weather patterns and average seasonal climate will affect numerous sectors critical to the economic, social and ecological welfare of this region. Research is needed to better address the current competition among the water needs of agriculture, urban and industrial uses, and natural ecosystems, and then to look at potential changes. These diverse demands on water needs in this region compound the difficulty in managing water use and projecting the impact of climate changes among the various critical sectors in this region.     

Habitat-specific bioaccumulation of methylmercury in invertebrates of small mid-latitude lakes in North America

We examined habitat-specific bioaccumulation of methylmercury (MeHg) in aquatic food webs by comparing concentrations in pelagic zooplankton to those in littoral macroinvertebrates from 52 mid-latitude lakes in North America. Invertebrate MeHg concentrations were primarily correlated with water pH, and after controlling for this influence, pelagic zooplankton had significantly higher MeHg concentrations than littoral primary consumers but lower MeHg than littoral secondary consumers. Littoral primary consumers and pelagic zooplankton are two dominant prey for fish, and greater MeHg in zooplankton is likely sufficient to increase bioaccumulation in pelagic feeders. Intensive sampling of 8 lakes indicated that habitat-specific bioaccumulation in invertebrates (of similar trophic level) may result from spatial variation in aqueous MeHg concentration or from more efficient uptake of aqueous MeHg into the pelagic food web. Our findings demonstrate that littoral-pelagic differences in MeHg bioaccumulation are widespread in small mid-latitude lakes.     

The effects of the insecticide lambda-Cyhalothrin on the earthworm Eisenia fetida under experimental conditions of tropical and temperate regions

Plant Protection Products can affect soil organisms and thus might have negative impacts on soil functions. Little research has been performed on their impact on tropical soils. Therefore, the effects of the insecticide lambda-Cyhalothrin on earthworms were evaluated in acute and chronic laboratory tests modified for tropical conditions, i.e. at selected temperatures (20 and 28 °C) and with two strains (temperate and tropical) of the compost worm Eisenia fetida. The insecticide was spiked in two natural soils, in OECD artificial soil and a newly developed tropical artificial soil. The effects of lambda-Cyhalothrin did rarely vary in the same soil at tropical (LC50: 68.5-229 mg a.i./kg dry weight (DW); EC50: 54.2-60.2 mg a.i./kg DW) and temperate (LC50: 99.8-140 mg a.i./kg DW; EC50: 37.4-44.5 mg a.i./kg DW) temperatures. In tests with tropical soils and high temperature, effect values differed by up to a factor of ten.     

Binational school-based monitoring of traffic-related air pollutants in El Paso, Texas (USA) and Ciudad Juárez, Chihuahua (México)

Paired indoor and outdoor concentrations of fine and coarse particulate matter (PM), PM2.5 reflectance [black carbon(BC)], and nitrogen dioxide (NO₂) were determined for sixteen weeks in 2008 at four elementary schools (two in high and two in low traffic density zones) in a U.S.-Mexico border community to aid a binational health effects study. Strong spatial heterogeneity was observed for all outdoor pollutant concentrations. Concentrations of all pollutants, except coarse PM, were higher in high traffic zones than in the respective low traffic zones. Black carbon and NO₂ appear to be better traffic indicators than fine PM. Indoor air pollution was found to be well associated with outdoor air pollution, although differences existed due to uncontrollable factors involving student activities and building/ventilation configurations. Results of this study indicate substantial spatial variability of pollutants in the region, suggesting that children’s exposures to these pollutants vary based on the location of their school.     

Trace Gases and Particulate Matter Emissions from Wildfires and Agricultural Burning in Northeastern Mexico during the 2000 Fire Season

Abstract

An inventory of air pollutants emitted from forest and agricultural fires in Northeastern Mexico for the period of January to August of 2000 is presented. The emissions estimates were calculated using an emissions factor methodology. The inventory accounts for the emission of carbon monoxide (CO), methane, nonmethane hydrocarbons, ammonia, nitrogen oxides, and particulate matter (PM). Particulate matter emissions include estimates for fine PM and coarse PM. A total of 2479 wildfires were identified in the domain for the period of interest, which represented ~810,000 acres burned and 621,130 short tons emitted (81% being CO). The main source of information used to locate and estimate the extent of the fires came from satellite imagery. A geographic information system was used to determine the type of vegetation burned by each fire. More than 54% of the total area burned during the period of study was land on the State of Tamaulipas. However, >58% of the estimated emissions came from the State of Coahuila. This was because of the mix of vegetation types burned in each state. With respect to the temporal distribution, 76.9% of the fires occurred during the months of April and May consuming almost 78% of the total area burned during the period of study. Analysis of wind forward trajectories of air masses passing through the burned areas and 850-mb wind reanalyses indicate possible transboundary transport of the emissions from Mexico to the United States during the occurrence of the major wildfires identified.     

Abbauverhalten von triadimefon und seinem metaboliten triadimenol in einer weizenmonokultur

Summary

In a 4‐year study, the behaviour of the residues of triadimefon and its metabolite triadimenol in different plant parts of winter wheat and in soil was investigated. The fungicide Bayleton DF (triadimefon + captafol) was applied at the beginning of earing. Triadimefon residues were quickly degraded in the great majority of the examined samples (more than 90% within the first 2 weeks after application in all aerial parts of the plant). Triadimenol residues were considerably more persistent. No residues either of triadimefon or triadimenol were found in grain at harvest time (detection limit 0.01 mg/kg).