Estimating combined health risks of nanomaterials and antibiotics from natural water: a proposed framework

Environmental Science and Pollution Research - Nanoparticles (NPs) are one of the major class of emerging contaminants identified in aquatic environment. There is a probability that they can...     

Neem extract–blended nanocellulose derived from jackfruit peel for antibacterial packagings

Environmental Science and Pollution Research - The use of jackfruit peel as a source for natural and fully biodegradable “nanocellulose” (NC) for the production of bioplastics with...     

Developing Nutrient Criteria for Streams: An Evaluation of the Frequency Distribution Method1

Abstract: The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency recommends two statistical methods to States and Tribes for developing nutrient criteria. One establishes a criterion as the 75th percentile of a reference‐population frequency distribution, the other uses the 25th percentile of a general‐population distribution; the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency suggests either method results in similar criteria. To evaluate each method, the Montana Department of Environmental Quality (MT DEQ) assembled data from STORET and other sources to create a nutrient general population. MT DEQ’s reference‐stream project provided reference population data. Data were partitioned by ecoregions, and by seasons (winter, runoff, and growing) defined for the project. For each ecoregion and season, nutrient concentrations at the 75th percentile of the reference population were matched to their corresponding concentrations in the general population. Additionally, nutrient concentrations from five regional scientific studies were matched to their corresponding reference population concentrations; each study linked nutrients to impacts on water uses. Reference‐to‐general population matches were highly variable between ecoregions, as nutrients at the 75th percentile of reference corresponded to percentiles ranging from the 4th to the 97th of the general population. In contrast, case studies‐to‐reference matches were more consistent, matching on average to the 86th percentile of reference, with a coefficient of variation of 13%.     

The role of ICT diffusion in sustainable human development: an empirical analysis from SAARC economies

Environmental Science and Pollution Research - This study intends to examine the impact of ICT diffusion, globalization, financial development, government effectiveness, and economic growth on...     

Performance comparison of solar still with inbuilt condenser and agitator over conventional solar still with energy and exergy analysis

Environmental Science and Pollution Research - Demand for fresh water increases day by day. Solar desalination is one of the promising technologies to meet this demand in an economical fashion...     

Effect of latex material on antioxidant enzymes,lipid peroxidation,DNA damage,and chromosomal aberration

Cell integrity is affected by oxidative stress when the production of active oxidants overwhelms antioxidant defense mechanisms. Latex, a natural polymer obtained from Hevea brasiliensis, is used in medical industry for manufacturing surgical gloves, urinary catheters, and dental dams. The aim of this study was to evaluate the effects of latex material on oxidative stress by in vivo and in vitro methods. In addition, the material was screened for its ability to induce any chromosomal aberrations (CAs) by in vitro method. In vivo studies were carried out with implanted latex material onto subcutaneous tissue of various batches of experimental Wistar rats. At the end of experimental period, animals were anesthetized, blood was collected for serum analysis, and sacrificed. Liver was excised for the determination of antioxidant enzymes and lipid peroxidation (LPO). Subcutaneous tissues were obtained for the extraction of genomic DNA from implanted animals and checked for the presence of 8-hydroxy-2-deoxyguanosine (8-OHdG), considered an indicator of DNA damage. Simultaneously, in vitro studies were carried out using fresh liver and subcutaneous tissue obtained from Swiss albino mice treated with physiological saline extract of latex material. For the estimation of both in vitro and in vivo oxidative stress, 10% liver homogenate was assessed for stress indicators like reduced glutathione, glutathione reductase, glutathione peroxidase, LPO and protein content. The results of both in vivo and in vitro studies indicated that the chemical leachents from the latex material did not significantly affect LPO and the levels of antioxidant enzymes. There was also no significant increase in 8-OHdG content due to the presence of implanted latex material. Finally, the results of in vitro CA test and G banding indicated that extracts of test material did not induce any chromosomal abnormalities.     

ENVIRONMENTAL AUDITING: Economic Values of Recreational Power Boating Resources in Pennsylvania

/ The travel cost method was used to estimate the economic value of seven major power boating resources in Pennsylvania. A significant relationship between number of visitor trips and cost per visitor trip existed for five of the seven water bodies. The annual total value for those five resources was $396 million, which was 2.5 times greater than the total out-of-pocket expenditures of approximately $157 million visitors spent to visit them. Research results can help resource managers plan and craft programs and policies that are founded on economic values of the natural resources involved.     

ECONOMIC INCENTIVES FOR AGRICULTURAL NONPOINT SOURCE POLLUTION CONTROL1

ABSTRACT. The limited success of command-and-control policies for reducing nonpoint source (NPS) water pollution mandated under the Federal Water Pollution Control Act (FWPCA) has prompted increased interest in economic incentive policies as an alternative control mechanism. A variety of measures have been proposed ranging from fairly minor modifications of existing policies to substantial revisions including watershed-wide polices that rely on economic incentives. While greater use of economic incentive policies, such as environmental bonds and point/nonpoint source trading is being advocated in the reauthorization of the CWA, the expected effects of individual proposals will be modest. The characteristics of NPS pollution, namely uncertainty and asymmetrical information, underscores that there is no single, ideal policy instrument for controlling the many types of agricultural NPS water pollution. Some of the usual incentive-based policies, such as effluent taxes, are not well suited to the task. Individual incentive policies proposed for the reauthorized CWA, such as pollution trading or deposit/refund systems, are not broadly applicable for heterogeneous pollution situations. Economic incentive policies may be appropriate in some cases, and command-and-control policies will be preferable in others and may in fact complement incentive policies.     

SEM-EDX analysis of various sizes aerosols in Delhi India

Scanning electron microscopy-energy dispersive X-ray analysis (SEM-EDX) was used to understand the differences in morphology, elemental composition and particle density of aerosols in different five size ranges to further investigate the potential sources as well as transport of pollutants from/at a much polluted and a very clean area of Delhi. Aerosol samples were obtained in five different size ranges viz. > or = 10.9, 10.9-5.4, 5.4-1.6, 1.6-0.7 and < or = 0.7 microm from a considerably very clean and a much polluted area of Delhi. It was observed that at polluted area most of the particles irrespective of size are of anthropogenic origin. At clean area, in coarse size fractions particles are of natural origin while in fine size range the presence of anthropogenic particles suggests the transport of particles from one area to the other.     

Characterization of Super Paramagnetic Nanoparticles Coated with a Biocompatible Polymer Produced by Dextransucrase from <Emphasis Type="Italic">Weissella cibaria</Emphasis> JAG8

Magnetic nanoparticles (MNPs) synthesised by chemical co-precipitation method was subjected to dextran coating by sonication method. The dextran was enzymatically synthesised by extracellular dextransucrase isolated from Weissella cibaria JAG8. The crystalline nature of MNPs and dextran coated MNPs were confirmed by X-ray diffraction studies with average particle size of 25 nm, which was confirmed further by high resolution transmission electron microscopy. The surface morphology of MNPs and dextran coated MNPs were monitored by scanning electron microscopy studies. The vibrating sample magnetometer investigation displayed the super paramagnetic nature of MNPs and dextran coated MNPs. FT-IR analysis of MNPs and dextran coated MNPs, displayed characteristic band of Fe–O bond at 582 cm^?1. Thermo-gravimetric analysis of MNPs and dextran coated MNPs (1:1) ratio displayed a weight loss of 15 and 18 %, which clearly indicated 3.0 % of dextran was coated on to the MNPs. The elemental composition study by scanning electron microscopy confirmed the association of dextran with MNPs. The in vitro effect of MNPs and dextran coated MNPs was performed on human colon cancer (HT-29) cell lines and the results showed that dextran coated: MNPs (2:1) displayed good biocompatibility results over dextran coated: MNPs (1:1) and un-coated MNPs.