Towards metrics of sustainable food systems: a review of the resilience and vulnerability literature

Food and nutrition security is a persisting global issue and, in addition, food systems are now facing a new set of intersecting economic, social and environmental challenges. Recurrent socio-economic and biophysical changes put the sustainability of food systems at risk. There is an urgent need to develop knowledge-based tools to assess and monitor food sustainability and to identify pathways for food security and resource conservation. The systemic nature of these interactions calls for multidimensional approaches and integrated assessments for decision-making to guide change. This paper reviews social–ecological system frameworks with the view to conceptualize the sustainability issues that affect the food systems. It is argued that the understanding of the food systems as social–ecological systems, and inputs from the theories of vulnerability and resilience in particular, can provide the concepts necessary to understand and model the complex system dynamics involved in the multiple interactions between human and natural components.     

Minor crops for export: A case study of boscalid,pyraclostrobin, lufenuron and lambda-cyhalothrin residue levels on green beans and spring onions in Egypt

Dissipation rates of boscalid [2-chloro-N-(4′ -chlorobiphenyl-2-yl)nicotinamide], pyraclostrobin [methyl 2-[1-(4-chlorophenyl) pyrazol-3-yloxymethyl]-N-methoxycarbanilate], lufenuron [(RS)-1-[2,5-dichloro-4-(1,1,2,3,3,3-hexafluoropropoxy)phenyl]-3-(2,6-difluorobenzoyl)urea] and λ-cyhalothrin [(R)-cyano(3-phenoxyphenyl)methyl (1S,3S)-rel-3-[(1Z)-2-chloro-3,3,3-trifluoro-1-propenyl]-2,2-dimethylcyclopropanecarboxylate] in green beans and spring onions under Egyptian field conditions were studied. Field trials were carried out in 2008 in a Blue Nile farm, located at 70 kilometer (km) from Cairo (Egypt). The pesticides were sprayed at the recommended rate and samples were collected at pre-determined intervals. After treatment (T₀) the pesticide residues in green beans were 7 times lower than in spring onions. This is due to a different structure of vegetable plant in the two crops. In spring onions, half-life (t_1/2) of pyraclostrobin and lufenuron was 3.1 days and 9.8 days respectively. At day 14th (T₁₄) after treatment boscalid residues were below the Maximum Residue Limit (MRL) (0.34 versus 0.5 mg/kg), pyraclostrobin and λ -cyhalothrin residues were not detectable (ND), while lufenuron residues were above the MRL (0.06 versus 0.02 mg/kg). In green beans, at T₀, levels of boscalid, lufenuron and λ -cyhalothrin were below the MRL (0.28 versus 2 mg/kg; ND versus 0.02 mg/kg; 0.06 versus 0.2 mg/kg, respectively) while, after 7 days treatment (T₇) pyraclostrobin residues were above the MRL (0.03 versus 0.02 mg/kg). However, after 14 days the residue level could go below the MRL (0.02 mg/kg), as observed in spring onions.     

One-Year Study of the Elemental Composition and Source Apportionment of PM10 Aerosols in Florence,Italy

Abstract

An extensive investigation was carried out for the characterisation of the air particulate composition in Florence. The aim was to determine the aerosol elemental concentrations, as well as to identify pollution sources. For our investigation, the external Particle-Induced X-Ray Emission–Particle-Induced γ-Ray Emission beam facility of the Istituto Nazionale di Fisica Nucleare, Van de Graaff accelerator at the Physics Department of the Florence University was used. We report the results of the analysis of a long temporal series (approximately 1 yr) of PM₁₀ particulate samples, collected on Millipore filters on a daily basis in three different sites (characterised by different urban settings). Daily concentrations of more than 20 elements were detected. The long sampling period (approximately 1 yr) allowed a comparison with the air quality recommended values and the identification of seasonal variations. Four main sources (traffic, oil-combustion, soil-dust, and wind transported sea-salt) were extracted with the help of Principal Component Analysis (PCA). An absolute PCA showed traffic to be the major source both in the high traffic site and in the urban background site.     

Agricultural and green infrastructures: the role of non-urbanised areas for eco-sustainable planning in a metropolitan region

Non-Urbanised Areas (NUAs) are part of agricultural and green infrastructures that provide ecosystem services. Their role is fundamental for the minimization of urban pollution and adaptation to climate change. Like all natural ecosystems, NUAs are endangered by urban sprawl. The regulation of sprawl is a key issue for land-use planning. We propose a land use suitability strategy model to orient Land Uses of NUAs, based on integration of Land Cover Analysis (LCA) and Fragmentation Analysis (FA). With LCA the percentage of evapotranspiring surface is defined for each land use. Dimensions and densities of NUAs patches are assessed in FA. The model has been developed with Geographical Information Systems, using an extensive set of geodatabases, including orthophotos, vectorial cartographies and field surveys. The case of the municipality of Mascalucia in Catania metropolitan area (Italy), characterized by a considerable urban sprawl, is presented.     

The hydraulic separator Multidune: preliminary tests on fluid-dynamic features and plastic separation feasibility

Recycling of plastic materials is a rapidly developing discipline because of environmental awareness, the need to conserve materials and energy, and the growing demand to increase the production economy. The main problem in plastics recovery and recycling is related to the variety of plastic wastes, even if selective collection occurs. Therefore, plastic materials can be recycled either as mixtures or as single types, separating the different typologies by their physical (size, specific mass, etc.) and/or chemical properties. However, separation of plastics in single typologies by traditional processes and devices is difficult due to their typical low variability in properties. This paper presents a new research development for recycling industry: the Multidune separator. This is a device constructed from a sequence of parallel semi-cylindrical tubes of transparent plastic welded together in a plane. The lower half is shifted laterally and then fixed relative to the upper half. Flow is then induced in the lateral direction normal to the axis of the tubes, creating a main flow channel and two recirculation zones. This apparatus creates a differential transport of particles of low specific mass, near to 1g/cm(3), allowing their separation. The flow field in the Multidune separator is studied via Particle Tracking Velocimetry (PTV). Eulerian analysis of the data is performed to gather information about the fluid-dynamics features established by different hydraulic heads at the inlet of the Multidune. Preliminary tests on monomaterial samples have been performed, varying several operative parameters to determine the best set of values. Therefore, separation tests have been executed on composite samples, obtaining satisfactory results in terms of plastic separation feasibility.     

The digital representation of safety systems at “Seveso” plants and its potential for improving risk management

At Seveso plants, duty holders must have a complex system for assessing and managing risks. The pillars of this system are the safety report and the safety management system, with a number of underlying documents. The strength of the system is the high standardization of these documents. Regulations, standard codes and guidelines define content, structure and formats. The weakness is the high complexity. Managers and workers perceive documents as difficult to understand and far from actual operations. Major threats for the credibility of documents (and therefore for the safety systems) come from the continuous organizational and technical changes, which in a short time can make most documents obsolete; as well as by near misses, which continuously show the holes in safety systems. A big effort is required to follow up the plant changes and the near misses. In order to help safety managers, a new software has been developed. At Seveso plants, it has been possible build an integrated digital representation, because all documents are perfectly structured. This representation may be used both for updating the relevant documents after a change and to improve documents after a near miss or an accident. In this way, safety documents are always up to date and trustworthy and the huge knowledge, which is usually hidden inside safety documents, is clearly revealed and revived. The approach is basically “knowledge based” and the intention is to provide safety managers with an easy and simple tool. IRISonLine is a software that has been developed by ISPESL to provide safety managers of “Seveso” establishments with a tool for improving the management of change and of near misses.     

Oil seeds industry emissions: A case study

Summary This study assessed the contribution of an oil seed industry to the organic loadings of an urban atmosphere, so that more realistic strategies can be developed to control such pollution. Emission measurements suggest that fatty acids, aldehydes and solvent related hydrocarbons are emitted in amounts comparable to or even exceeding anthropogenic organics. Technological options for controlling emissions in the context of the local situation with the data presented are discussed.Paolo Battistoni was born in Ancona, Italy in 1951 and received a degree in chemistry in 1974 at Bologna University. He started his activity at Ancona University where he is a permanent professor of waste water treatments. His research interests have centered on monitoring of organics in ambient air and waste streams and method developments in these areas.Gabriele L. Fava was born near Bologna, Italy in 1945 and received his degree in chemistry from the University of Bologna in 1972. He started his research activity at Ancona University where he is a permanent professor of pollution and environmental control. He has spent research terms at the Iowa State University, USA in 1976 and 1979. His main interest is in the environmental behaviour of toxic substances through physicochemical profiles.     

Poliovirus and Other Enteroviruses from Environmental Surveillance in Italy, 2009–2015

Within the initiatives for poliomyelitis eradication by WHO, Italy activated an environmental surveillance (ES) in 2005. ES complements clinical Acute Flaccid Paralysis (AFP) surveillance for possible polio cases, detects poliovirus circulation in environmental sewage, and is used to monitor transmission in communities. In addition to polioviruses, the analyses comprised: (i) the monitoring of the presence of non-polio enteroviruses in sewage samples and (ii) the temporal and geographical distribution of the detected viruses. From 2009 to 2015, 2880 sewage samples were collected from eight cities participating in the surveillance. Overall, 1479 samples resulted positive for enteroviruses. No wild-type polioviruses were found, although four Sabin-like polioviruses were detected. The low degree of mutation found in the genomes of these four isolates suggests that these viruses have had a limited circulation in the population. All non-polio enteroviruses belonged to species B and the most frequent serotype was CV-B5, followed by CV-B4, E-11, E-6, E-7, CV-B3, and CV-B2. Variations in the frequency of different serotypes were also observed in different seasons and/or Italian areas. Environmental surveillance in Italy, as part of the ‘WHO global polio eradication program’, is a powerful tool to augment the polio surveillance and to investigate the silent circulation or the re-emergence of enteroviruses in the population.