Physiological and biochemical stress responses in grassland species are influenced by both early-season ozone exposure and interspecific competition

The effects of two-year early season ozone exposure on physiological and biochemical stress response were investigated in model plant communities. Achillea millefolium and Veronica chamaedrys target plants were grown in monocultures and in mixed cultures with Poa pratensis (phytometer) and exposed in open-top chambers over two years for five weeks to charcoal-filtered (CF) air plus 25 nl l(-1) O3 (control) and non-filtered (NF) air plus 50 nl l(-1) O3. Significant O3 effects were detected in different physiological and biochemical parameters, evidencing interspecific differences in metabolic stress responses and a strong influence of the competition factor. O3 induced strong oxidative effects in Achillea irrespective to the different growth modality. Veronica showed less O3-induced effects in monoculture than when grown in competition with the phytometer. Poa exhibited a different behaviour against O3 depending on the species in competition, showing an overall higher sensitivity to O3 when in mixture with Achillea.     

Sensitive Parameters In Predicting Exposure Contaminants Concentration In A Risk Assessment Process

A sensitivity analysis (SA) was conducted on the analytical models considered in the risk-based corrective-action (RBCA) methodology of risk analysis, as developed by the American Society for Testing of Materials (ASTM), to predict a contaminant‘s concentration in the affected medium at the point of human exposure. These models are of interest because evaluations regarding the best approach to contaminated site remediation are shifting toward increased use of risk-based decision, and the ASTM RBCA methodology represents the most effective and internationally widely used standardized guide for risk assessment process. This paper identifies key physical and chemical parameters that need additional precision and accuracy consideration in order to reduce uncertainty in models prediction, thereby saving time, money and engineering effort in the data collection process. SA was performed applying a variance-based method to organic contaminants migration models with reference to soil-to-groundwater leaching ingestion exposure scenario. Results indicate that model output strongly depends on the organic-carbon partition coefficient, organic-carbon content, net infiltration, Darcy velocity, source-receptor distance, and first-order decay constant.     

100 years of high GEM concentration in the Central Italian Herbarium and Tropical Herbarium Studies Centre (Florence, Italy)

Up to 1980s, the most used preservative for herbaria specimens was HgCl₂, sublimating at ambient air conditions; ionic Hg then reduces to Hg⁰ (gaseous elemental mercury, GEM) and diffuses throughout poor ventilated environments. High GEM levels may indeed persist for decades, representing a health hazard. In this study, we present new GEM data from the Central Italian Herbarium and Tropical Herbarium Studies Centre of the University of Florence (Italy). These herbaria host one of the largest collection of plants in the world. Here, HgCl₂ was documented as plant preservative up to the 1920s. GEM surveys were conducted in July 2013 and July and December 2017, to account for temporal and seasonal variations.Herbaria show GEM concentrations well above those of external locations, with peak levels within specimen storage cabinets, exceeding 50,000?ng/m³. GEM concentrations up to ~ 7800?ng/m³ were observed where the most ancient collections are stored and no ventilation systems were active. On the contrary, lower GEM concentrations were observed at the first floor. Here, lower and more homogeneously distributed GEM concentrations were measured in 2017 than in 2013 since the air-conditioning system was updated in early 2017.GEM concentrations were similar to other herbaria worldwide and lower than Italian permissible exposure limit of 20,000?ng/m³ (8-hr working day). Our results indicate that after a century from the latest HgCl₂ treatment GEM concentrations are still high, i.e., the treatment itself is almost irreversible. Air conditioning and renewing is probably the less expensive and more effective method for GEM lowering.     

Environmental photochemistry of fluoroquinolones in soil and in aqueous soil suspensions under solar light

The photodegradation fate of widely used fluoroquinolone (FQ) drugs has been studied both at the water–soil interface and in soil at actual concentrations (500 ng g^?1) under natural solar light. Both human and veterinary drugs have been examined, namely ciprofloxacin, danofloxacin, enrofloxacin, levofloxacin, marbofloxacin and moxifloxacin. After spiking and irradiation, samples were submitted to microwave-assisted extraction and analyzed by high-performance liquid chromatography coupled to fluorescence detection (HPLC–FD). FQs degradation was faster in aqueous soil suspension than in neat soil (but lower than in “clean” water). A number of byproducts were identified by HPLC electrospray ionization tandem mass spectrometry after a post-extraction cleanup based on a molecularly imprinted polymer phase, for a more accurate detection. The distribution in the suspension was intermediate between those observed in soils and in aqueous solutions.     

Climate change and agricultural vulnerability: a case study of rain-fed wheat in Kairouan,Central Tunisia

In the Maghreb and North African regions, the interannual climate variability causes severe impacts on agriculture through long drought episodes. Impacts are expected to increase due to projected climate change. Decreasing water availability will have a direct impact on the agriculture sector and could endanger the socioeconomic development and social stability in Tunisia where rain-fed agriculture represents the main occupancy and means of subsistence for the large rural population.     

PTR-MS measurements and analysis of models for the calculation of Henry's law constants of monosulfides and disulfides

Sulfides are known for their strong odor impact even at very low concentrations. Here, we report Henry’s law constants (HLCs) measured at the nanomolar concentration range in water for monosulfides (dimethylsulfide, ethylmethylsulfide, diethylsulfide, allylmethylsulfide) and disulfides (dimethyldisulfide, diethylsulfide, dipropylsulfide) using a dynamic stripping technique coupled to Proton Transfer Reaction-Mass Spectrometry (PTR-MS). The experimental data were compared with literature values and to vapor/solubility calculations and their consistency was confirmed employing the extra-thermodynamic enthalpy-entropy compensation effect. Our experimental data are compatible with reported literature values, and they are typically lower than averaged experimental literature values by about 10%. Critical comparison with other freely available models (modeled vapor/solubility; group and bond additivity methods; Linear Solvation Energy Relationship; SPARC) was performed to validate their applicability to monosulfides and disulfides. Evaluation of theoretical models reveals a large deviation from our measured values by up to four times (in units of M atm⁻¹). Two group contribution models were adjusted in view of the new data, and HLCs for a list of sulfur compounds were calculated. Based on our findings we recommend the evaluation and adaption of theoretical models for monosulfides and disulfides to lower values of solubility and higher values of fugacity.     

Assessing sediment hazard through a weight of evidence approach with bioindicator organisms: a practical model to elaborate data from sediment chemistry, bioavailability, biomarkers and ecotoxicological bioassays

Quality assessments are crucial to all activities related to removal and management of sediments. Following a multidisciplinary, weight of evidence approach, a new model is presented here for comprehensive assessment of hazards associated to polluted sediments. The lines of evidence considered were sediment chemistry, assessment of bioavailability, sub-lethal effects on biomarkers, and ecotoxicological bioassays. A conceptual and software-assisted model was developed with logical flow-charts elaborating results from each line of evidence on the basis of several chemical and biological parameters, normative guidelines or scientific evidence; the data are thus summarized into four specific synthetic indices, before their integration into an overall sediment hazard evaluation. This model was validated using European eels (Anguilla anguilla) as the bioindicator species, exposed under laboratory conditions to sediments from an industrial site, and caged under field conditions in two harbour areas. The concentrations of aliphatic hydrocarbons, polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons and trace metals were much higher in the industrial compared to harbour sediments, and accordingly the bioaccumulation in liver and gills of exposed eels showed marked differences between conditions seen. Among biomarkers, significant variations were observed for cytochrome P450-related responses, oxidative stress biomarkers, lysosomal stability and genotoxic effects; the overall elaboration of these data, as those of standard ecotoxicological bioassays with bacteria, algae and copepods, confirmed a higher level of biological hazard for industrial sediments. Based on comparisons with expert judgment, the model presented efficiently discriminates between the various conditions, both as individual modules and as an integrated final evaluation, and it appears to be a powerful tool to support more complex processes of environmental risk assessment.     

Assessing the sustainability and adaptive capacity of the gooseneck barnacle co-management system in Asturias,N. Spain

The gooseneck barnacle fishery in Asturias (N. Spain) has undergone three important changes: (1) the early implementation of a co-management system based on Territorial User Rights for Fishing, (2) a change in management measures (due to a decrease in landings), and (3) an economic crisis. This has allowed us to analyze the systems’ sustainability in time through examining five critical variables: landings, effort, catch per unit effort (CPUE), mean market prices, and annual revenue. Additionally, we used focus groups and questionnaires to determine the response of the system to these three changes. Co-management has succeeded in maintaining or increasing CPUE throughout all management areas and produced stable mean market prices. This was achieved through flexible management policies and adaptive strategies adopted by the fishers, such as increased selectivity and diversification. The analysis of this fishery provides important lessons regarding the need to understand the evolutionary dynamics of co-management and the importance of embracing adaptive capacity.

Electronic supplementary material

The online version of this article (doi:10.1007/s13280-015-0687-z) contains supplementary material, which is available to authorized users.     

Outbreak of fatal nitrate toxicosis associated with consumption of fennels (Foeniculum vulgare) in cattle farmed in Campania region (southern Italy)

Nitrate and nitrite are toxicants that have become increasingly significant environmental chemicals. Increase in environmental distribution of nitrogenous compounds, especially in surface and ground water, has been attributed to the intensive use of nitrate as agricultural fertilizers and to increasing amounts of nitrogenous wastes produced by municipalities, industries, and feedlots. The purpose of this study is to illustrate a fatal nitrate toxicosis in cattle associated with the consumption of fennels (Foeniculum vulgare). Fifteen cows from the same farm suddenly developed weakness, muscular tremors, respiratory distress, and finally convulsions. The affected animals died within 24 to 48 h from the onset of the clinical signs. Five cows underwent a complete post-mortem examination. In all examined animals, gross lesions included presence of dark unclotted blood around the nostrils and the anal region, moderate inflammation of the gastrointestinal mucosa, and brown discoloration of the skeletal muscles and kidneys. The histological examination showed tubular degeneration and congestion of glomerular vessels in the kidney. Toxicological analysis detected nitrates at 4 672.2 ppm in the fennels used to feed the animals. The source of exposure to nitrates was identified in the fennels. The fennels were grown in a polluted area of the Campania region in southern Italy and distributed in a public market for human consumption. The waste from the sale of the fennels was fed to the cows. The accumulation of nitrates in some vegetables poses a risk not only for animal health but also for human and environmental safety.