Eco-Labelling of Shampoos,Shower Gels and Foam Baths (6 pp)

GOAL, SCOPE AND BACKGROUND: Environmental issues of personal care products have been met with little attention in the past. Monitoring data as well as preliminary environmental risk assessments indicate that some ingredients in personal care products might be relevant pollutants in the environment. Following the precautionary principle, eco-labelling is proposed as an effective tool for source control of one major group of personal care products, shampoos, shower gels and foam baths (SSBs). Eco-labelling is a soft, but effective market driven and product specific approach to lower discharge of environmentally detrimental substances. Products that fulfil the criteria proposed help to minimise the impact of SSBs on the environment. METHODS: Available assessment tools for dangerous substances (e.g. current legislation on environmental risk assessments and classification, and labelling, eco-labelling criteria for similar products, the calculation of the critical dilution volume) were adapted and integrated into the criteria for the eco-labelling of SSBs. RESULTS AND DISCUSSION: A short outline of the eco-labelling criteria developed for SSBs is provided. The basic criteria concern the effects of the substances discharged into the waste water during and after use. Products with an eco-label award may exclusively contain substances for which basic information about their effects on the environment is available. They may not contain persistent, bioaccumulating, toxic or ecotoxicological substances. In addition, the basic criteria include requirements for the container and consumer information. CONCLUSION: The basic criteria for eco-labelling SSBs are based on the actual state of science and are at the same time as simple and transparent as possible to ensure the best applicability. SSBs that comply with the described basic criteria can contribute to a lower chemical burden of waste water treatment plants and surface water. RECOMMENDATION AND OUTLOOK: The proposal for basic criteria described should stimulate discussion on eco-labelling of SSBs. It should help to pass valid criteria supported by authorities, producers and consumer groups for a national or international eco-label, e.g. for the European Flower or the German Blue Angel. In future, the successful introduction of labelled SSBs into the market will raise the awareness of the general public about the environmental effects of personal care products and it will help to promote environmentally compatible products.     

An assessment of the environmental and socio-economic impacts of alien rabbits and hares

Directly comparable data on the environmental and socio-economic impacts of alien species informs the effective prioritisation of their management. We used two frameworks, the Environmental Impact Classification for Alien Taxa (EICAT) and Socio-Economic Impact Classification for Alien Taxa (SEICAT), to create a unified dataset on the severity and type of impacts caused by alien leporids (rabbits and hares). Literature was reviewed to collate impact data, which was categorised following EICAT and SEICAT guidelines. We aimed to use these data to identify: (1) alien leporid species with severe impacts, (2) their impact mechanisms, (3) the native species and local communities vulnerable to impacts and (4) knowledge gaps. Native species from a range of taxonomic groups were affected by environmental impacts which tended to be more damaging than socio-economic impacts. Indirect environmental impacts were particularly damaging and underreported. No impact data were found for several alien leporid species.Supplementary InformationThe online version contains supplementary material available at 10.1007/s13280-021-01642-7.     

Implications of differing input data sources and approaches upon forest carbon stock estimation

Site index is an important forest inventory attribute that relates productivity and growth expectation of forests over time. In forest inventory programs, site index is used in conjunction with other forest inventory attributes (i.e., height, age) for the estimation of stand volume. In turn, stand volumes are used to estimate biomass (and biomass components) and enable conversion to carbon. In this research, we explore the implications and consequences of different estimates of site index on carbon stock characterization for a 2,500-ha Douglas-fir-dominated landscape located on Eastern Vancouver Island, British Columbia, Canada. We compared site index estimates from an existing forest inventory to estimates generated from a combination of forest inventory and light detection and ranging (LIDAR)-derived attributes and then examined the resultant differences in biomass estimates generated from a carbon budget model (Carbon Budget Model of the Canadian Forest Sector (CBM-CFS3)). Significant differences were found between the original and LIDAR-derived site indices for all species types and for the resulting 5-m site classes (p?<?0.001). The LIDAR-derived site class was greater than the original site class for 42% of stands; however, 77% of stands were within ±1 site class of the original class. Differences in biomass estimates between the model scenarios were significant for both total stand biomass and biomass per hectare (p?<?0.001); differences for Douglas-fir-dominated stands (representing 85% of all stands) were not significant (p?=?0.288). Overall, the relationship between the two biomass estimates was strong (R ²?=?0.92, p?<?0.001), suggesting that in certain circumstances, LIDAR may have a role to play in site index estimation and biomass mapping.     

Ground level volume mixing ratio of methane in a tropical coastal city

Urban regions are hotspots of greenhouse gas emissions which include CO₂, CH₄, N₂O, etc. Methane is a strong greenhouse gas which is produced from a number of sources including fossil fuel combustion, municipal waste, and sewage processing, etc. Ground level mixing ratio of methane in the tropical coastal city of Thiruvananthapuram in South India, during calm early morning period was measured. Measurements were done during both winter and summer seasons. Concentrations were significantly higher than global average value. Intra-city variation in ground level mixing ratio was also significant. Ground level methane concentration at Thiruvananthapuram urban area showed maximum value of 3.16 ppmV. Under stable atmospheric conditions in early morning, ground level mixing ratio of methane was 2.79 ppmV in winter and 2.54 ppmV during summer. The spatial distribution of methane concentration shows correlation with urban heat island.     

Development of a Pollination Service Measurement (PSM) method using potted plant phytometry

The value of pollination to human society is not limited to agricultural production, but also in the sustainability of ecosystems and the services that they provide. Seed set can be used as a comparative measure of pollination effectiveness, with minimum variability expected when other resources are not limiting. Six species of self-incompatible fall asters (Symphyotrichum) were used to evaluate pollination service at 12 sites across a spectrum of expected levels of pollination. Seed set per inflorescence was generally lower at sites with lower pollinator numbers and diversity, although as expected pollinator assemblage characteristics were highly variable within and between sites. However, rankings of sites showed consistency of response across phytometer species and between years; the summed ranks across multiple species appears to have as the greatest value in Pollination Service Measurement (PSM). Abundance, richness, and Shannon diversity of pollinator assemblages were highly autocorrelated and showed variable relationships with seed set depending on plant species and temporal scale of pollinator assemblage assessment. Use of seed set to directly measure pollination service at a site was consistent and cost effective when compared to less certain and more labour-intensive methods of pollinator collection and identification, and shows promise for implementation in pollination monitoring and bioassessment practices.     

Future groundwater extraction scenarios for an aquifer in a semiarid environment: case study of Guadalupe Valley Aquifer,Baja California,Northwest Mexico

Semiarid northwestern Mexico presents a growing water demand produced by agricultural and domestic requirements during the last two decades. The community of Guadalupe Valley and the city of Ensenada rely on groundwater pumping from the local aquifer as its sole source of water supply. This dependency has resulted in an imbalance between groundwater pumpage and natural recharge. A two-dimensional groundwater flow model was applied to the Guadalupe Valley Aquifer, which was calibrated and validated for the period 1984–2005. The model analysis verified that groundwater levels in the region are subject to steep declines due to decades of intensive groundwater exploitation for agricultural and domestic purposes. The calibrated model was used to assess the effects of different water management scenarios for the period 2007–2025. If the base case (status quo) scenario continues, groundwater levels are in a continuous drawdown trend. Some wells would run dry by August 2017, and water demand may not be met without incurring in an overdraft. The optimistic scenario implies the achievement of the mean groundwater recharge and discharge. Groundwater level depletion could be stopped and restored. The sustainable scenario implies the reduction of current extraction (up to about 50 %), when groundwater level depletion could be stopped. A reduction in current extraction mitigates water stress in the aquifer but cannot solely reverse declining water tables across the region. The combination of reduced current extraction and an implemented alternative solution (such as groundwater artificial recharge), provides the most effective measure to stabilize and reverse declining groundwater levels while meeting water demands in the region.     

Agricultural practices in grasslands detected by spatial remote sensing

The major decrease in grassland surfaces associated with changes in their management that has been observed in many regions of the earth during the last half century has major impacts on environmental and socio-economic systems. This study focuses on the identification of grassland management practices in an intensive agricultural watershed located in Brittany, France, by analyzing the intra-annual dynamics of the surface condition of vegetation using remotely sensed and field data. We studied the relationship between one vegetation index (NDVI) and two biophysical variables (LAI and fCOVER) derived from a series of three SPOT images on one hand and measurements collected during field campaigns achieved on 120 grasslands on the other. The results show that the LAI appears as the best predictor for monitoring grassland mowing and grazing. Indeed, because of its ability to characterize vegetation status, LAI estimated from remote sensing data is a relevant variable to identify these practices. LAI values derived from the SPOT images were then classified based on the K-Nearest Neighbor (KNN) supervised algorithm. The results points out that the distribution of grassland management practices such as grazing and mowing can be mapped very accurately (Kappa index?=?0.82) at a field scale over large agricultural areas using a series of satellite images.     

Polar organic chemical integrative sampler (POCIS): application for monitoring organic micropollutants in wastewater effluent and surface water

In this paper, we discuss the advantages and drawbacks of POCIS (Polar Organic Chemical Integrative Sampler) for the evaluation of river water quality downstream of wastewater treatment plants. POCIS proved well adapted to sampling alkylphenols and several pharmaceuticals. Concentration factors and the decrease in limits of quantification, compared to grab water sample analyses, were significant except for hormones, β-blockers and bronchodilators. Promising preliminary results obtained in situ on deuterated atenolol used as a performance reference compound need to be confirmed in-lab. This work confirms that POCIS is a valuable tool for monitoring hydrophilic organic molecules in river and wastewaters.     

Atmospheric deposition and storm induced runoff of heavy metals from different impermeable urban surfaces

Contaminants deposited on impermeable surfaces migrate to stormwater following rainfall events, but accurately quantifying their spatial and temporal yields useful for mitigation purposes is challenging. To overcome limitations in current sampling methods, a system was developed for rapid quantification of contaminant build-up and wash-off dynamics from different impervious surfaces. Thin boards constructed of concrete and two types of asphalt were deployed at different locations of a large carpark to capture spatially distributed contaminants from dry atmospheric deposition over specified periods of time. Following experimental exposure time, the boards were then placed under a rainfall simulator in the laboratory to generate contaminant runoff under controlled conditions. Single parameter effects including surface roughness and material composition, number of antecedent dry days, rain intensity, and water quality on contaminant build-up and wash-off yields could be investigated. The method was applied to quantify spatial differences in deposition rates of contaminants (TSS, zinc, copper and lead) at two locations varying in their distance to vehicle traffic. Results showed that boards exposed at an unused part of the carpark >50 m from vehicular traffic captured similar amounts of contaminants compared with boards that were exposed directly adjacent to the access route, indicating substantial atmospheric contaminant transport. Furthermore, differences in contaminant accumulation as a function of surface composition were observed. Runoff from asphalt boards yielded higher zinc loads compared with concrete surfaces, whereas runoff from concrete surfaces resulted in higher TSS concentrations attributed to its smoother surfaces. The application of this method enables relationships between individual contaminant behaviour and specific catchment characteristics to be investigated and provides a technique to derive site-specific build-up and wash-off functions required for modelling contaminant loads from impermeable surfaces.     

Uptake of arsenic by alkaline soils near alkaline coal fly ash disposal facilities

The attenuation of arsenic in groundwater near alkaline coal fly ash disposal facilities was evaluated by determining the uptake of arsenic from ash leachates by surrounding alkaline soils. Ten different alkaline soils near a retired coal fly ash impoundment were used in this study with pH ranging from 7.6 to 9.0, while representative coal fly ash samples from two different locations in the coal fly ash impoundment were used to produce two alkaline ash leachates with pH 7.4 and 8.2. The arsenic found in the ash leachates was present as arsenate [As(V)]. Adsorption isotherm experiments were carried out to determine the adsorption parameters required for predicting the uptake of arsenic from the ash leachates. For all soils and leachates, the adsorption of arsenic followed the Langmuir and Freundlich equations, indicative of the favorable adsorption of arsenic from leachates onto all soils. The uptake of arsenic was evaluated as a function of ash leachate characteristics and the soil components. The uptake of arsenic from alkaline ash leachates, which occurred mainly as calcium hydrogen arsenate, increased with increasing clay fraction of soil and with increasing soil organic matter of the alkaline soils. Appreciable uptake of arsenic from alkaline ash leachates with different pH and arsenic concentration was observed for the alkaline soils, thus attenuating the contamination of groundwater downstream of the retired coal fly ash impoundment.