Monitoring of organochlorine pesticide residues in the Indian marine environment.

Organochlorine pesticide residues in sediment and fish samples collected from the east and west coasts of India are presented. HCH isomers and DDT and its metabolites are the predominantly identified compounds in most of the samples. Despite the higher quantity of consumption, HCH and DDT levels in fish in India were lower than those in temperate countries suggesting a lower accumulation in tropical fish, which could be due to rapid volatilization and degradation of these insecticides in the tropical environment. The predominance of alpha- and beta-HCH reflect the use of technical grade HCH in India. The high temperature in the tropics also enhances the elimination rate of chemicals in fish, as the biological half-lives of semivolatile compounds such as DDT are short at high temperature.     

Do we understand trends in atmospheric sulfur species?

Anomalies appear to exist in our understanding of atmospheric sulfur compounds, specifically as evidenced in the time trends of the different chemical forms of these compounds. Trends determined at a number of locations by several different groups seem to indicate that, responding to emission reductions across North America, the concentration of SO2 in the atmosphere is declining more rapidly than that of aerosol SO4(2-). A number of possible reasons for this discrepancy are examined, but it is not possible to provide a definitive answer at this stage. The intent is to stimulate debate, because shortcomings in our understanding of the processes involved could have profound implications for the credibility of abatement strategies and policies for both acid deposition and fine particulate matter (PM).     

Identification of novel eubacteria from spent mushroom compost (SMC) waste by DNA sequence typing: ecological considerations of disposal on agricultural land

A small study was undertaken to examine the microbiological characteristics of spent mushroom compost (SMC), which is the major waste by-product of the mushroom industry and which is regularly disposed off by application to agricultural land. The primary aim of this study was to examine SMC for the presence of faecal bacterial pathogens, including Campylobacter spp., Salmonella spp. and Listeria monocytogenes. Secondly it was desirable to quantify bacterial and fungal populations within SMC, and also qualitatively identify the diversity of bacterial populations within SMC, through employment of rDNA PCR and direct sequencing techniques on the culturable microflora. Conventional microbiological analyses of SMC material (n=30) from six commercial operations in both Northern Ireland and the Republic of Ireland, failed to detect Salmonella spp, Listeria spp. or Campylobacter spp. in any of the SMC material examined. Total aerobic plate counts gave a mean count of log10 7.01 colony forming units (cfu) per gram SMC material (range: log10 6.53-7.52 cfu/g). Fungal counts gave a mean count of log(10) 4.57 cfu per gram SMC material (range: log10 3.93-4.98 cfu/g). From a total of greater than 50 colony picks, a total of 12 bacterial morphotypes were identified and were further examined by employment of partial 16S rRNA gene amplification and sequencing techniques, yielding several genera and species, including Bacillus licheniformis, Bacillus subtilis, Klebsiella/Enterobacter sp. Microbacterium sp. Paenibacillus lentimorbus, Pseudomonas mevalonii, Sphingobacterium multivorum and Stenotrophomonas sp. This is the first preliminary report on the microbial diversity of SMC waste and demonstrates the presence of several species that have not been previously described in SMC, in addition to two potentially novel species within the genera Microbacterium and Stenotrophomonas. It is thereby important to examine the ecological microbe-microbe and plant-microbe interactions that are occurring between the native bacterial soil flora and those added annually (theoretically estimated at approximately 10(18) cells) through the application of SMC. Such studies would be beneficial in helping to ascertain the ecological consequences involved in the disposal of SMC waste on agricultural land.     

浅析宜昌市城区PM_(2.5)污染特征及防治对策研究

依据2013年白龙岗站点自动监测数据,对PM2.5污染特征及手工采集的PM2.5膜中水溶性阴离子进行分析,并结合实际提出相应的防治对策。结果表明,PM2.5作为首要污染物,其分布具有季节性特征,冬季最高,夏季最低;灰霾日PM2.5、PM10、SO2和NO2具有相同的变化趋势;NO-3/SO2-4的比值表明宜昌市呈现工业污染和机动车尾气污染的复合污染特征。     

Holistic correlation of world’s largest social safety net and its outcomes with Sustainable Development Goals

The five largest social safety net (SSN) programmes in the world are being implemented in India, China and Brazil. Mahatma Gandhi National Rural Employment Guarantee Act (MGNREGA) is one of these programmes and regarded as the world’s largest SSN. MGNREGA aims at enhancing livelihood security of households in rural India by providing guaranteed wage employment. The scheme has resulted in the creation of sustainable assets that promote the economic and infrastructure development. More than 33 million assets were built in the process of MGNREGA. These assets were spread out in 262,380 smallest units of administration covering 6887 sub-districts with the participation of more than 250 million human manpower. The Sustainable Development Goals (SDG) aims to end poverty, protect the planet and ensure that all people enjoy peace and prosperity. The 17 goals tackle the root cause of poverty and attempts to make a positive change for both people and planet. Ecological regeneration or rejuvenation during the development of the assets generated numerous tangible and intangible benefits to the community in a sustainable way. MGNREGA, a federal government-sponsored scheme, using a decentralized approach is directly or indirectly helping to achieve all the 17 goals of sustainable development in India. This article takes a holistic approach to correlate and map the concepts and outcomes of MGNREGA programme with SDG. This article emphasises the fact that community-based participation in the planning and development activities at the regional levels will yield benefits to the biosphere, society and economy at the national level.     

Multi-drug resistance,integron and transposon-mediated gene transfer in heterotrophic bacteria from Penaeus vannamei and its culture environment

Environmental Science and Pollution Research - Multi-drug resistance (MDR) in bacteria is regarded as an emerging pollutant in different food production avenues including aquaculture. One hundred...     

Assessment of coal spontaneous combustion index gas under different oxygen concentration environment: an experimental study

Environmental Science and Pollution Research - Oxygen plays a crucial role in coal spontaneous combustion (CSC), and the magnitude of oxygen concentration determines the oxidation reaction...     

Do pilot free trade zones improve the green total factor productivity? Evidence from a quasi-natural experiment in China

China’s pilot free trade zone (PFTZ) is an important national strategy to achieve high-quality development, so it is necessary to discuss the effect of PFTZ implementation on green total factor productivity (GTFP). Based on the data from 279 cities in China from 2004 to 2018, this study takes the establishment of PFTZ as a quasi-natural experiment and uses the difference-in-differences (DID) method to systematically evaluate the effect of PFTZ on urban GTFP. The empirical results of this paper are shown as follows: Firstly, the construction of PFTZ has a significant effect on urban GTFP, and this effect has increased gradually over time. Secondly, the construction of PFTZ mainly promotes the urban GTFP by increasing the level of science and technology innovation, reducing government intervention and improving the level of human capital. Thirdly, the effect of PFTZ construction on GTFP is more pronounced in regions with earlier waves of PFTZ and in western regions where environmental concerns are higher. In addition, there is a significant positive linkage between the construction of the PFTZ and the Belt and Road Initiative to improve the urban GTFP. The findings of this paper enrich the relevant literature on PFTAs and sustainable development and provide a theoretical basis for further promotion of PFTZ construction.

     

Novel coronavirus (COVID-19) in environmental engineering perspective

Environmental Science and Pollution Research -     

Effects of tetracycline on the secondary metabolites and nutritional value of oilseed rape (Brassica napus L.)

Environmental Science and Pollution Research - Secondary metabolism, which helps a plant cope with external stress, is sensitive to environmental changes and plays a prominent role in maintaining...