Effect of mineral and manure phosphorus sources on runoff phosphorus

Concern over nonpoint-source phosphorus (P) losses from agricultural lands to surface waters has resulted in scrutiny of factors affecting P loss potential. A rainfall simulation study was conducted to quantify the effects of alternative P sources (dairy manure, poultry manure, swine slurry, and diammonium phosphate), application methods, and initial soil P concentrations on runoff P losses from three acidic soils (Buchanan-Hartleton, Hagerstown, and Lewbeach). Low P (12 to 26 mg kg(-1) Mehlich-3 P) and high P (396 to 415 mg kg(-1) Mehlich-3 P) members of each soil were amended with 100 kg total P ha(-1) from each of the four P sources either by surface application or mixing, and subjected to simulated rainfall (70 mm h(-1) to produce 30 min runoff). Phosphorus losses from fertilizer and manure applied to the soil surface differed significantly by source, with dissolved reactive phosphorus (DRP) accounting for 64% of total phosphorus (TP) (versus 9% for the unamended soils). For manure amended soils, these losses were linearly related to water-soluble P concentration of manure (r2 = 0.86 for DRP, r2 = 0.78 for TP). Mixing the P sources into the soil significantly decreased P losses relative to surface P application, such that DRP losses from amended, mixed soils were not significantly different from the unamended soil. Results of this study can be applied to site assessment indices to quantify the potential for P loss from recently manured soils.     

Characterization and reactivity assessment of organic substrates for sulphate-reducing bacteria in acid mine drainage treatment

Acid mine drainage (AMD), which contains high concentrations of sulphate and dissolved metals, is a serious environmental problem. It can be treated in situ by sulphate reducing bacteria (SRB), but effectiveness of the treatment process depends on the organic substrate chosen to supply the bacteria's carbon source. Six natural organic materials were characterized in order to investigate how well these promote sulphate reduction and metal precipitation by SRB. Maple wood chips, sphagnum peat moss, leaf compost, conifer compost, poultry manure and conifer sawdust were investigated in terms of their carbon (TOC, TIC, DOC) and nitrogen (TKN) content, as well as their easily available substances content (EAS). Single substrates, ethanol, a mixture of leaf compost (30% w/w), poultry manure (18% w/w), and maple wood chips (2% w/w), and the same mixture spiked with formaldehyde were then tested in a 70-day batch experiment to evaluate their performance in sulphate reduction and metal removal from synthetic AMD. Metal removal efficiency in batch reactors was as high as 100% for Fe, 99% for Mn, 99% for Cd, 99% for Ni, and 94% for Zn depending on reactive mixtures. Early metal removal (0-12d) was attributed to the precipitation of (oxy)hydroxides and carbonate minerals. The lowest metal and sulphate removal efficiency was found in the reactor containing poultry manure as the single carbon source despite its high DOC and EAS content. The mixture of organic materials was most effective in promoting sulphate reduction, followed by ethanol and maple wood chips, and single natural organic substrates generally showed low reactivity. Formaldehyde (0.015% (w/v)) provided only temporary bacterial inhibition. Although characterization of substrates on an individual basis provided insight on their chemical make-up, it did not give a clear indication of their ability to promote sulphate reduction and metal removal.     

A fuzzy logic expert system for evaluating policy progress towards sustainability goals

Evaluating progress towards environmental sustainability goals can be difficult due to a lack of measurable benchmarks and insufficient or uncertain data. Marine settings are particularly challenging, as stakeholders and objectives tend to be less well defined and ecosystem components have high natural variability and are difficult to observe directly. Fuzzy logic expert systems are useful analytical frameworks to evaluate such systems, and we develop such a model here to formally evaluate progress towards sustainability targets based on diverse sets of indicators. Evaluation criteria include recent (since policy enactment) and historical (from earliest known state) change, type of indicators (state, benefit, pressure, response), time span and spatial scope, and the suitability of an indicator in reflecting progress toward a specific objective. A key aspect of the framework is that all assumptions are transparent and modifiable to fit different social and ecological contexts. We test the method by evaluating progress towards four Aichi Biodiversity Targets in Canadian oceans, including quantitative progress scores, information gaps, and the sensitivity of results to model and data assumptions. For Canadian marine systems, national protection plans and biodiversity awareness show good progress, but species and ecosystem states overall do not show strong improvement. Well-defined goals are vital for successful policy implementation, as ambiguity allows for conflicting potential indicators, which in natural systems increases uncertainty in progress evaluations. Importantly, our framework can be easily adapted to assess progress towards policy goals with different themes, globally or in specific regions.     

Exceptional responders in conservation

Conservation operates within complex systems with incomplete knowledge of the system and the interventions utilized. This frequently results in the inability to find generally applicable methods to alleviate threats to Earth's vanishing wildlife. One approach used in medicine and the social sciences has been to develop a deeper understanding of positive outliers. Where such outliers share similar characteristics, they may be considered exceptional responders. We devised a 4‐step framework for identifying exceptional responders in conservation: identification of the study system, identification of the response structure, identification of the threshold for exceptionalism, and identification of commonalities among outliers. Evaluation of exceptional responders provides additional information that is often ignored in randomized controlled trials and before–after control‐intervention experiments. Interrogating the contextual factors that contribute to an exceptional outcome allow exceptional responders to become valuable pieces of information leading to unexpected discoveries and novel hypotheses.     

联合基于野外的代谢组学和化学分析手段筛选优先关注新兴污染物：在五大湖流域的案例研究

由于毒性评估项目很难与日渐增长的需要测试的污染物保持同步,所以较难将关注点集中在影响水生生态系统的最为生物相关的污染物上。由于评估潜在毒性污染物所造成的生物影响已被证明是有效的,内生性代谢物的研究（代谢组学）对于剔除那些较低可能造成生物影响的污染物或许有一定帮助,从而找出生物重要性最高的污染物。本研究在北美五大湖流域的18个地点针对置于笼中的黑头软口鲦（Pimephales promelas）进行实验。我们测定了水体温度和水样中的污染物浓度（目标污染物132种,检出86种）,并使用1H-NMR谱测量了肝极性提取物中的内生性代谢物。利用偏最小二乘法回归来比对内生性代谢物的相对丰度与污染物浓度和环境温度。结果表明内生性极性代谢物的指标与最多49种污染物存在共同变化。因此我们认为至多52%的检出污染物与内生性代谢物变化的共同变化不显著,表明这些污染物很可能不会在这些地点造成可以检测到的影响。这是通过缩短对于实验地点有着潜在影响的污染物列表从而扫描出检出污染物生物相关性的第一步。类似的信息有助于风险评估者区分不同污染物的重要性并将重点毒性测试放在最为生物相关的污染物上。
精选自Nicol Janecko, Lucie Pokludova, Jana Blahova, Zdenka Svobodova, Ivan Literak. Linking field-based metabolomics and chemical analyses to prioritize contaminants of emerging concern in the Great Lakes basin. Environmental Toxicology and Chemistry: Volume 35, Issue 10, pages 2493–2502, October 2016. DOI: 10.1002/etc.3409
详情请见http://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1002/etc.3409/full
     

Effects of a zeolite-selective catalytic reduction system on comprehensive emissions from a heavy-duty diesel engine

The effects of a zeolite urea-selective catalytic reduction (SCR) aftertreatment system on a comprehensive spectrum of chemical species from diesel engine emissions were investigated in this study. Representative samples were collected with a newly developed source dilution sampling system after an aging process designed to simulate atmospheric dilution and cooling conditions. Samples were analyzed with established procedures and compared between the measurements taken from a baseline heavy-duty diesel engine and also from the same engine equipped with the exhaust aftertreatment system. The results have shown significant reductions for nitrogen oxides (NOx), carbon monoxide, total hydrocarbons, polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs), and organic carbon (OC) emissions. Additionally, less significant yet notable reductions were observed for particulate matter mass and metals emissions. Furthermore, the production of new species was not observed with the addition of the zeolite urea-SCR system joined with a downstream oxidation catalyst.     

Earliest and first Northern Hemispheric hoatzin fossils substantiate Old World origin of a “Neotropic endemic”

The recent identification of hoatzins (Opisthocomiformes) in the Miocene of Africa showed part of the evolution of these birds, which are now only found in South America, to have taken place outside the Neotropic region. Here, we describe a new fossil species from the late Eocene of France, which constitutes the earliest fossil record of hoatzins and the first one from the Northern Hemisphere. Protoazin parisiensis gen. et sp. nov. is more closely related to South American Opisthocomiformes than the African taxon Namibiavis and substantiates an Old World origin of hoatzins, as well as a relictual distribution of the single extant species. Although recognition of hoatzins in Europe may challenge their presumed transatlantic dispersal, there are still no North American fossils in support of an alternative, Northern Hemispheric, dispersal route. In addition to Opisthocomiformes, other avian taxa are known from the Cenozoic of Europe, the extant representatives of which are only found in South America. Recognition of hoatzins in the early Cenozoic of Europe is of particular significance because Opisthocomiformes have a fossil record in sub-Saharan Africa, which supports the hypothesis that extinction of at least some of these “South American” groups outside the Neotropic region was not primarily due to climatic factors.     

Veränderungen des NO/NO2-Verhältnisses in Nordrhein-Westfalen (1984–2004) und mögliche Ursachen

Objective and Background

The nitrogen oxides NO and NO₂ and, in particular, their ratio (NO/NO₂), play important roles in the radical-system of the atmospheric boundary layer. There were various indications upon a dropping NO/NO₂-ratio in citiex over the last years, however, no proof has been given yet Especially in densely populated areas such as the federal state of North Rhine-Westphalia (NRW), such a change can have significant influences upon various atmospheric reactions. The objective of this investigation was to prove the existence of a systematic change of the NO/NO₂-ratio, to describe the development of NO_x over the past 2 decades at different locations and to determine the causes for this development.

Methods

To detect changes of the NO/NO₂-ratio we processed the data of 11 continuously operating air quality stations of the State Environment Agency (LUA NRW) with time series reaching back up to 20 years. We investigated rural stations, stations in the urban background and heavily traffic influenced locations. It was possible to calculate and assess the NO/NO₂-ratio under consideration of the fast reaction of ozone with NO. There were clear indications towards existing trends and they could be determined as statistically significant using the nonparametric Mann-Kendall Test. The analysis of possible causes for the change of the NO/NO₂-ratio focused upon the change of the global radiation, the change of the patterns of the atmosphetic circulation, and the frequency of cyclones and anticyclones meteorological conditions in Central Europe, the introduction of automotive catalytic converters, and the development of the atmospheric oxidation-capacity.

Results and conclusions

The results are indicating a decline of the ratio at traffic-influenced stations with a statistical significance over 95%. The negative trend can also be detected at most urban background stations. It was problematic to perform the trend-analysis of the rural background station in the Egge-Mountains because of the fragmentary character of the dataset. Regional differences in the development of the NO/NO₂-ratio indicate towards various causes. Crucial for the situation at the rural areas are the changed trajectories of cyclones and anticyclones as well as the decline of the atmospheric oxidation-capacity, while the traffic plays another important role at urban stations. The negative trend at the traffic-stations was intensified by the introduction of catalytic converters, which lead to a reduction in emissions of NO_x

Recommendations and prospects

The significance of the NO/NO₂-ratio for the oxidation capacity of the atmosphere shows the necessity to further monitor this development. Previous investigations detected a decline in total NO_x without examining the relative development of the two nitrogen oxides towards each other. Gaining insight into the local differences of this ratio helps to allocate sources and to develop understanding of the atmospheric processes.     

Effects of Water Withdrawal From Ice‐Covered Lakes on Oxygen,Temperature, and Fish1

Abstract: In northern regions, large volumes of water are needed for activities such as winter road construction. Such withdrawals, particularly from small lakes, can reduce oxygen concentrations and water levels, potentially affecting aquatic organisms. Withdrawal limits have been developed by regulatory agencies, but are largely theoretical. Water withdrawal thresholds were tested in two small lakes by removing 10% and 20% of their respective under‐ice volumes and comparing oxygen parameters, temperature, over‐wintering habitat, and northern pike (Esox lucius) abundance to reference conditions. Because of a milder winter, oxygen parameters were elevated in reference lakes in the period following withdrawal compared to the prewithdrawal period. The 10% withdrawal resulted in a ?0.2 m shift in the oxygen concentration profile at 4 mg/l in that lake, but had no effect on total volume‐weighted oxygen, or volume of over‐wintering habitat. In contrast, the 20% withdrawal caused 0.7 m reduction in the oxygen concentration profile at 4 mg/l compared to the previous year, a 26% decline in the volume‐weighted oxygen concentration, and a 23% reduction in the volume of over‐wintering habitat compared to prewithdrawal conditions. Water temperatures were slightly (≤ 10%) colder in the upper strata in the year following the withdrawal in both withdrawal and reference lakes. Northern pike abundance was not impacted by water withdrawals in either of the lakes. The results of this study show that the effects of water withdrawal on the parameters investigated reflected the characteristics of the lakes, and would therefore be expected to vary from lake to lake. Policy development to mitigate impacts must therefore reflect the site‐specific nature of water withdrawal.