In the eye of the stakeholder: The challenges of governing social forest values

This study examines which kinds of social benefits derived from forests are emphasised by Swedish stakeholders and what governance modes and management tools they accept. Our study shows that there exists a great variety among stakeholders’ perceptions of forests’ social values, where tourism and recreation is the most common reference. There are also differences in preferred governance modes and management where biomass and bioenergy sectors advocate business as usual (i.e. framework regulations and voluntarism) and other stakeholders demand rigid tools (i.e. coercion and targeting) and improved landscape planning. This divide will have implications for future policy orientations and require deliberative policy processes and improved dialogue among stakeholders and authorities. We suggest that there is a potential for these improvements, since actors from almost all stakeholder groups support local influence on governance and management, acknowledged and maintained either by the authorities, i.e. targeting, or by the stakeholders themselves, i.e. voluntarism.     

Organic micropollutants’ distribution within sludge organic matter fractions explains their dynamic during sewage sludge anaerobic digestion followed by composting

The simultaneous fate of organic matter and 4 endocrine disruptors (3 polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) (fluoranthene, benzo(b)fluoranthene, and benzo(a)pyrene) and nonylphenols (NP)) was studied during the anaerobic digestion followed by composting of sludge at lab-scale. Sludge organic matter was characterized, thanks to chemical fractionation and 3D fluorescence deciphering its accessibility and biodegradability. Total chemical oxygen demand (COD) removal was 41% and 56% during anaerobic digestion and composting, respectively. 3D fluorescence highlighted the quality changes of organic matter. During continuous anaerobic digestion, organic micropollutants’ removal was 22?±?14%, 6?±?5%, 18?±?9%, and 0% for fluoranthene, benzo(b)fluoranthene, benzo(a)pyrene, and nonylphenols, respectively. Discontinuous composting allowed to go further on the organic micropollutants’ removal as 34?±?8%, 31?±?20%, 38?±?10%, and 52?±?6% of fluoranthene, benzo(b)fluoranthene, benzo(a)pyrene, and nonylphenols were dissipated, respectively. Moreover, the accessibility of PAH and NP expressed by their presence in the various sludge organic matter fractions and its evolution during both treatments was linked to both the quality evolution of the organic matter and the physicochemical properties of the PAH and NP; the presence in most accessible fractions explained the amount of PAH and NP dissipated.

     

Effect of dissolved oxygen concentration on nitrite accumulation in nitrifying sequencing batch reactor.

A mathematical model based on Activated Sludge Model No. 3 (International Water Association, London) and laboratory-scale experiments were used to investigate ammonia conversion by nitrification in a sequencing batch reactor (SBR). The purpose of the study was to assess the effect of dissolved oxygen concentration on nitrite accumulation in the SBR. As the dissolved oxygen concentration in the SBR depends on the balance between oxygen consumption and oxygen transfer rates, ammonium conversion was measured for different air flowrate values to obtain different dissolved oxygen concentration profiles during the cycle. The ammonia concentration in the feeding medium was 500 mg ammonium as nitrogen (N-NH4(+))/L, and the maximum nitrite concentration achieved during a cycle was approximately 50 mg nitrite as nitrogen (N-NO2)/L. The air flow supplied to the reactor was identified as a suitable parameter to control nitrite accumulation in the SBR. This identification was carried out based on experimental results and simulation with a calibrated model. At a low value of the volumetric mass-transfer coefficient (kLa), the maximum nitrite concentration achieved during a cycle depends strongly on k(L)a, whereas, at a high value of k(L)a, the maximum nitrite concentration was practically independent of kL(a).     

Monitoring the sonochemical degradation of phthalate esters in water using solid-phase microextraction

The sonochemical degradation of aqueous solutions containing low concentrations of six phthalate esters at an ultrasonic frequency of 80 kHz has been investigated. Ultrasonic treatment was found capable of removing the four higher molecular mass phthalates (di-n-butyl phthalate, butylbenzyl phthalate, di-(2-ethylhexyl) phthalate and di-n-octyl phthalate) within 30-60 min of irradiation. The rest (dimethyl phthalate and diethyl phthalate) were more recalcitrant and nearly complete removal could be achieved only after prolonged irradiation times. The relative reactivity of phthalates was explained in terms of their hydrophobicity. Experiments were carried out at an overall initial phthalate concentration of 240 microg l(-1), values of electric power of 75 and 150 W, temperatures of 21 and 50 degrees C and in the presence of NaCl to study the effect of various operating conditions on degradation. Solid-phase microextraction (SPME) coupled with GC-MS proved to be a powerful analytical tool to monitor the sonochemical degradation of phthalate esters at low microg l(-1) concentration levels, minimising the risk of secondary contamination during sample preparation, a major parameter to consider during phthalates analysis. The advantages as well as disadvantages of using SPME are also highlighted.     

BRC4Env,a network of Biological Resource Centres for research in environmental and agricultural sciences

The Biological Resource Centre for the Environment BRC4Env is a network of Biological Resource Centres (BRCs) and collections whose leading objectives are to improve the visibility of genetic and biological resources maintained by its BRCs and collections and to facilitate their use by a large research community, from agriculture research to life sciences and environmental sciences. Its added value relies on sharing skills, harmonizing practices, triggering projects in comparative biology, and ultimately proposing a single-entry portal to facilitate access to documented samples, taking into account the partnership policies of research institutions as well as the legal frame which varies with the biological nature of resources. BRC4Env currently includes three BRCs: the Centre for Soil Genetic Resources of the platform GenoSol, in partnership with the European Conservatory of Soil Samples; the Egg Parasitoids Collection (EP-Coll); and the collection of ichthyological samples, Colisa. BRC4Env is also associated to several biological collections: microbial consortia (entomopathogenic bacteria, freshwater microalgae…), terrestrial arthropods, nematodes (plant parasitic, entomopathogenic, animal parasitic...), and small mammals. The BRCs and collections of BRC4Env are involved in partnership with academic scientists, as well as private companies, in the fields of medicinal mining, biocontrol, sustainable agriculture, and additional sectors. Moreover, the staff of the BRCs is involved in many training courses for students from French licence degree to Ph.D, engineers, as well as ongoing training.     

Evolution of a beach nourishment project using dredged sand from navigation channel,Dunkirk, northern France

The largest beach replenishment project ever in France was completed in February 2014 in Dunkirk on the coast of northern France. A volume of 1.5 × 10⁶ m³ of sand extracted from a navigation channel was placed on the beach to build up a 150 to 300 m wide supratidal platform in front of a dike, called « Digue des Alliés », which protects several residential districts of Dunkirk from marine flooding. High resolution topographic surveys were carried out during 2½ years to monitor beach morphological changes, completed by a hydrodynamic field experiment conducted in February 2016. Approximately ?138,200 m³ of sand, corresponding to 9.2% of the initial nourishment volume, were eroded over the nourishment area in about 2 years. An obvious decrease in erosion eastward with a shift from erosion to accumulation was observed, suggesting an eastward redistribution of sand. This longshore sand drift is beneficial for the eastward beach of Malo-les-Bains where most of the recreational activities are concentrated. Hydrodynamic measurements showed that waves and wave-induced currents play a major role on the longshore sand redistribution compared to tidal flows. Strong relationships were observed between cumulative offshore wave power and beach volume change during distinct beach survey periods (R² = 0.79 to 0.87), with more significant correlations for northerly waves. A slight decrease in erosion during the second year compared to the first year after nourishment suggests that the loss of sand should decrease after an initial phase of rapid readjustment of the beach shape towards equilibrium.     

Modification of hosts' behavior by a parasite: field evidence for adaptive manipulation

Parasites relying on trophic transmission to complete their life cycles often induce modifications of their host's behavior in ways that may increase their susceptibility to predation by final hosts. These modifications have often been interpreted as parasite adaptations, but very few studies have demonstrated that host manipulation has fitness benefits for the parasite. The aim of the present study was to address the adaptive significance of parasite manipulation by coupling observations of behavioral manipulation to estimates of trophic transmission to the definitive host in the natural environment. We show that the acanthocephalan parasite Pomphorhynchus laevis manipulates the drifting behavior of one of its intermediate hosts, the amphipod Gammarus pulex, but not of a sympatric host, the introduced amphipod Gammarus roeseli. We found a 26.3-28.3 times higher proportion of infected G. pulex in the stomach content of one of the definitive hosts of P. laevis, the bullhead Cottus gobio, than in the benthos. No such trend was observed for G. roeseli. The bell-shaped curve of mean parasite abundance (MPA) relative to host size observed in G. pulex also supported an increased predation mortality of P. laevis-infected individuals compared to uninfected amphipods. Again, no such pattern was observed in G. roeseli. Furthermore, our results indicate that the modifications induced by P. laevis are specific to the definitive host and do not increase the risk of predation by inappropriate hosts, here the adult edible frog Rana esculenta. Overall, our study is original in that it establishes, under field conditions, a direct link between parasitic manipulation and increased transmission to the definitive host, and more importantly, identifies the specificity of the manipulation both in the intermediate host species and toward the definitive host.