One strategy to combat nitrate (NO3-N) contamination in rivers is to understand its sources. NO3-N sources in the East Tiaoxi River of the Yangtze Delta Region were investigated by applying a 15N–18O dual isotope approach. Water samples were collected from the main channel and from the tributaries. Results show that high total N and NO3-N are present in both the main channel and the major tributaries, and NO3-N was one of the most important N forms in water. Analysis of isotopic compositions (δ18O, δD) of water suggests that the river water mainly originated from three tributaries during the sampling period. There was a wide range of δ15N-NO3 (?1.4 to 12.4 ‰) and a narrow range of δ18O-NO3 (3.7 to 9.0 ‰) in the main channel waters. The δ15N and δ18O-NO3 values in the upper, middle, and lower channels along the river were shifted as 8.2, 3.5, and 9.5 ‰, and 9.0, 4.2, and 6.0 ‰, respectively. In the tributary South Tiao, the δ15N and δ18O-NO3 values were as high as 9.5 and 7.0 ‰, while in the tributaries Mid Tiao and North Tiao, NO3-N in most of the samples had relatively low δ15N and δ18O-NO3 values from 2.3 to 7.5 ‰ and 4.7 to 7.0 ‰, separately. Our results also suggest that the dual isotope approach can help us develop the best management practice for relieving NO3-N pollution in the rivers at the tributary scale. 相似文献
Sustainability indicators are well recognized for their potential to assess and monitor sustainable development of agricultural systems. A large number of indicators are proposed in various sustainability assessment frameworks, which raises concerns regarding the validity of approaches, usefulness and trust in such frameworks. Selecting indicators requires transparent and well-defined procedures to ensure the relevance and validity of sustainability assessments. The objective of this study, therefore, was to determine whether experts agree on which criteria are most important in the selection of indicators and indicator sets for robust sustainability assessments. Two groups of experts (Temperate Agriculture Research Network and New Zealand Sustainability Dashboard) were asked to rank the relative importance of eleven criteria for selecting individual indicators and of nine criteria for balancing a collective set of indicators. Both ranking surveys reveal a startling lack of consensus amongst experts about how best to measure agricultural sustainability and call for a radical rethink about how complementary approaches to sustainability assessments are used alongside each other to ensure a plurality of views and maximum collaboration and trust amongst stakeholders. To improve the transparency, relevance and robustness of sustainable assessments, the context of the sustainability assessment, including prioritizations of selection criteria for indicator selection, must be accounted for. A collaborative design process will enhance the acceptance of diverse values and prioritizations embedded in sustainability assessments. The process by which indicators and sustainability frameworks are established may be a much more important determinant of their success than the final shape of the assessment tools. Such an emphasis on process would make assessments more transparent, transformative and enduring. 相似文献
Environmental Science and Pollution Research - Bioreduction of selenium oxyanions to elemental selenium is ubiquitous; elucidating the properties of this biogenic elemental selenium (BioSe) is thus... 相似文献
The effectiveness of environmental protection measures is based on the early identification and diagnosis of anthropogenic pressures. Similarly, restoration actions require precise monitoring of changes in the ecological quality of ecosystems, in order to highlight their effectiveness. Monitoring the ecological quality relies on bioindicators, which are organisms revealing the pressures exerted on the environment through the composition of their communities. Their implementation, based on the morphological identification of species, is expensive because it requires time and experts in taxonomy. Recent genomic tools should provide access to reliable and high-throughput environmental monitoring by directly inferring the composition of bioindicators’ communities from their DNA (metabarcoding). The French-Swiss program SYNAQUA (INTERREG France-Switzerland 2017–2019) proposes to use and validate the tools of environmental genomic for biomonitoring and aims ultimately at their implementation in the regulatory bio-surveillance. SYNAQUA will test the metabarcoding approach focusing on two bioindicators, diatoms, and aquatic oligochaetes, which are used in freshwater biomonitoring in France and Switzerland. To go towards the renewal of current biomonitoring practices, SYNAQUA will (1) bring together different actors: scientists, environmental managers, consulting firms, and biotechnological companies, (2) apply this approach on a large scale to demonstrate its relevance, (3) propose robust and reliable tools, and (4) raise public awareness and train the various actors likely to use these new tools. Biomonitoring approaches based on such environmental genomic tools should address the European need for reliable, higher-throughput monitoring to improve the protection of aquatic environments under multiple pressures, guide their restoration, and follow their evolution. 相似文献
In this study, different pretreatment strategies of sugarcane bagasse prior to citric acid modification were investigated in terms of Pb2+ adsorption capacity. Pretreatment strategies included the use of NaOH, HCl, and C2H5OH in various concentrations. In order to fundamentally understand how these pretreatment methods affect the modification of sugarcane bagasse by citric acid as well as the Pb2+ adsorption capacity of sugarcane bagasse, three main components of sugarcane bagasse namely cellulose, hemicellulose, and lignin were isolated and esterified by citric acid under the same conditions. ATR-FTIR, XPS, SEM, and an analysis of the number of carboxylic acid groups were used to investigate the physicochemical and chemical properties of the materials. These three components were proved to participate in adsorption and induce the esterification with citric acid. Hence, pretreatment with ethanol and 0.01 M NaOH which could retain cellulose, hemicellulose, and lignin in sugarcane bagasse achieved a high Pb2+ adsorption capacity, i.e., 122.4 and 97 mg/g after the esterification with citric acid. In contrast, pretreatment with 0.5 M NaOH and 0.1 M HCl removed lignin and hemicellulose, leading to the lowest value of approximately 45 mg/g for citric acid esterified-pretreated sugarcane bagasse. XPS analysis and number of carboxylic group measurement confirmed the esterification between bagasse and citric acid. To understand the adsorption mechanism of adsorbent, two kinetic models including pseudo-first-order model and pseudo-second-order model were applied. The experimental data were well described by the pseudo-second-order model. The adsorption isotherm data were fitted Langmuir and Freundlich.
Several global corporations have been severely criticized by different lobbying groups for the impact of their operations on the natural environment and on the local communities. Because corporate operations cannot be studied in isolation but rather as a part of a large network often referred to as a supply chain, this paper investigates the potential link between supply chain characteristics and sustainable development at the country level. In particular, the linkage between supply chain strength, generally defined as the number and quality of the suppliers and customers in a country, and the three dimensions of sustainable development namely environmental performance, corporate environmental practices, and social sustainability is assessed. Using archival data from The Global Competitiveness Report (2004–2005) and the 2005 Environmental Sustainability Index, a statistical assessment of the linkage was conducted. The results indicate that supply chain strength is positively linked to all three dimensions of sustainable development. 相似文献
Ethylenediamene tetraacetic acid (EDTA) has been used to mobilize soil lead (Pb) and enhance plant uptake for phytoremediation. Chelant bound Pb is considered less toxic compared to free Pb ions and hence might induce less stress on plants. Characterization of possible Pb complexes with phytochelatins (PCn, metal-binding peptides) and EDTA in plant tissues will enhance our understanding of Pb tolerance mechanisms. In a previous study, we showed that vetiver grass (Vetiveria zizanioides L.) can accumulate up to 19,800 and 3350 mg Pb kg−1 dry weight in root and shoot tissues, respectively; in a hydroponics set-up. Following the basic incubation study, a greenhouse experiment was conducted to elucidate the efficiency of vetiver grass (with or without EDTA) in remediating Pb-contaminated soils from actual residential sites where Pb-based paints were used. The levels of total thiols, PCn, and catalase (an antioxidant enzyme) were measured in vetiver root and shoot following chelant-assisted phytostabilization. In the presence of 15 mM kg −1 EDTA, vetiver accumulated 4460 and 480 mg Pb kg−1 dry root and shoot tissue, respectively; that are 15- and 24-fold higher compared to those in untreated controls. Despite higher Pb concentrations in the plant tissues, the amount of total thiols and catalase activity in EDTA treated vetiver tissues was comparable to chelant unamended controls, indicating lowered Pb toxicity by chelation with EDTA. The identification of glutathione (referred as PC1) (m/z 308.2), along with chelated complexes like Pb-EDTA (m/z 498.8) and PC1-Pb-EDTA (m/z 805.3) in vetiver root tissue using electrospray tandem mass spectrometry (ES-MS) highlights the possible role of such species towards Pb tolerance in vetiver grass. 相似文献
The present work focuses on the fate of two cancerostatic platinum compounds (CPC), cisplatin and carboplatin, as well as of two inorganic platinum compounds, [PtCl4]2− and [PtCl6]2− in biological wastewater treatment. Laboratory experiments modelling adsorption of these compounds onto activated sludge showed promising specific adsorption coefficients KD and KOC and Freundlich adsorption isotherms. However, the adsorption properties of the investigated substances were differing significantly. Adsorption decreased following the order cisplatin > [PtCl6]2− > [PtCl4]2− > carboplatin. Log KD-values were ranging from 2.5 to 4.3 , log KOC from 3.0 to 4.7.
A pilot membrane bioreactor system (MBR) was installed in a hospital in Vienna and fed with wastewater from the oncologic in-patient treatment ward to investigate CPC-adsorption in a sewage treatment plant. During three monitoring periods Pt-concentrations were measured in the influent (3–250 μg l−1 Pt) and the effluent (2–150 μg l−1 Pt) of the treatment plant using ICP-MS. The monitoring periods (duration 30 d) revealed elimination efficiencies between 51% and 63% based on averaged weekly input–output budgets. The derived log KD-values and log KOC-values ranged from 2.4 to 4.8 and from 2.8 to 5.3, respectively. Species analysis using HPLC-ICP-MS proofed that mainly carboplatin was present as intact drug in the influent and – due to low log KD – in the effluent of the MBR. 相似文献