Improvement of health risk factors after reduction of VOC concentrations in industrial and urban areas

After reductions of fugitive and diffuse emissions by an industrial complex, a follow-up study was performed to determine the time variability of volatile organic compounds (VOCs) and the lifetime cancer risk (LCR). Passive samplers (3 M monitors) were placed outdoors (n?=?179) and indoors (n?=?75) in industrial, urban, and control areas for 4 weeks. Twenty-five compounds including n-alkanes, cycloalkanes, aromatics, chlorinated hydrocarbons, and terpenes were determined by GC/MS. The results show a significant decrease of all VOCs, especially in the industrial area and to a lesser extent in the urban area. The median outdoor concentration of benzene in the industrial area declined compared to the former study, around 85 % and about 50 % in the urban area, which in the past was strongly influenced by industrial emissions. Other carcinogenic compounds like styrene and tetrachloroethylene were reduced to approximately 60 %. VOC concentrations in control areas remained nearly unchanged. According to the determined BTEX ratios and interspecies correlations, in contrast to the previous study, traffic was identified as the main emission source in the urban and control areas and showed an increased influence in the industrial area. The LCR, calculated for benzene, styrene, and tetrachloroethylene, shows a decrease of one order of magnitude in accordance to the decreased total VOC concentrations and is now acceptable according to values proposed by the World Health Organization.     

Evaluation of spatial distribution and accumulation of novel brominated flame retardants,HBCD and PBDEs in an Italian subalpine lake using zebra mussel (Dreissena polymorpha)

Because of the reduction in the use of polybrominated diphenyl ethers (PBDEs) and hexabromocyclododecane (HBCD), novel brominated flame retardants (NBFRs), including 1,2-bis(2,4,6-tribromophenoxy) ethane (BTBPE), decabromodiphenyl ethane (DBDPE), hexabromobenzene (HBB), and pentabromoethylbenzene (PBEB), started to be marketed as alternatives to the banned formulations. In this study, the spatial distribution and accumulation of NBFRs, PBDEs, and HBCD in the biota have been investigated in the littoral compartment of a large and deep subalpine lake (Lake Maggiore, Northern Italy), using zebra mussel Dreissena polymorpha and roach (Rutilus rutilus) as bioindicators. To our knowledge, this is the first study reporting the contamination of NBFRs in the freshwater invertebrate D. polymorpha. Contamination of zebra mussel due to PBEB, HBB, and BTBPE was low, ranging from 0.9 to 2.9 ng/g lipid weight, from 1.1 to 2.9 ng/g l.w., and from 3.5 to 9.5 ng/g l.w., respectively. PBEB and BTBPE in roach were always below the detection limit, while the contamination of HBB ranged from < limits of detection (LOD) to 1.74 ng/g l.w., indicating a weak contamination. DBDPE was < LOD in all the considered biological samples. Finally, HBCD was detected in all organic tissues with mean concentrations up to 74.4 ng/g l.w. PBDE results, supported by principal component analysis elaboration, suggested a possible contamination due to the congeners composing the penta- and deca-BDE technical formulations, which are present in the Lake Maggiore basin. The biomagnification factor values showed that tetra- and penta-BDE biomagnified, while octa-, nona-, and deca-BDE were still bioavailable and detectable in the fish muscles, but they do not biomagnified. Considering the other BFRs, only HBCD showed a moderate biomagnification potential.     

Children and elders exposure assessment to particle-bound polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) in the city of Rome,Italy

It has been amply demonstrated that exposure to fine particulate matter, containing polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs), may have adverse effects on human health, affecting especially the respiratory and cardiovascular systems. Among population, school-age children and elders present particular susceptibilities and unique exposures to environmental factors. The study presented in this paper belongs to the Project EXPAH, founded by the European (EU) LIFE+ instrument, and consists of the personal monitoring of five elementary school children and four elders during the spring and the summer/autumn of the year 2012 in the city of Rome, Italy. The average exposure, expressed as the sum of eight high-molecular-weight PAHs, resulted equal to 0.70 ng/m³ (SD?=?0.37) for children and 0.59 ng/m³ (SD?=?0.23) for the elderly people. The mean levels of gravimetric PM_2.5 were equal to 23 μg/m³ (SD?=?10) and 15 μg/m³ (SD?=?4) for children and elders, respectively. During spring and summer seasons, personal BaP_eq resulted well below the EU Air Quality reference value of 1 ng/m³. The personal monitoring average values were in the same order of magnitude with available indoor and outdoor environmental data in Rome during the same periods, for both PAHs and PM_2.5. The results suggest that, during non-heating seasons, the personal exposure to PAHs in the city of Rome can be mainly ascribed to the urban background, especially traffic emissions and road dust resuspension; secondhand cigarette smoke can be also considered another possible source of PAHs personal exposure.     

Environmental concentrations of 3,4-methylenedioxymethamphetamine (MDMA)-induced cellular stress and modulated antioxidant enzyme activity in the zebra mussel

Recent monitoring studies showed measurable levels of the 3,4-methylenedioxymethamphetamine (MDMA) in aquatic environments. However, no information is currently available on its potential hazard to aquatic non-target organisms. The aim of this study was to investigate the potential sub-lethal effects induced by 14-day exposures to low MDMA concentrations (0.05 and 0.5 μg/L) to zebra mussel (Dreissena polymorpha) specimens through the application of a biomarker suite. The trypan blue exclusion method and the neutral red retention assay (NRRA) were used to assess MDMA cytotoxicity. The activity of superoxide dismutase (SOD), catalase (CAT), glutathione peroxidase (GPx), and glutathione S-transferase (GST), as well as the lipid peroxidation (LPO) and protein carbonyl content (PCC), were measured as oxidative stress indexes. The single cell gel electrophoresis (SCGE) assay, the DNA diffusion assay, and the micronucleus test (MN test) were applied to investigate DNA damage, while filtration rate was measured as physiological parameter. Despite significant decrease in lysosome membrane stability, hemocyte viability and imbalances in CAT and GST activities pointed out at the end of the exposure to 0.5 μg/L, no significant variations for the other end points were noticed at both the treatments, suggesting that environmentally relevant MDMA concentrations did not induce deleterious effects to the zebra mussel.     

Evaluating the Triple Bottom Line Using Sustainable Return on Investment

A sustainable return on investment (sROI) analysis is a quantitative approach that captures the economic, environmental, and social impacts of an investment strategy in monetary terms—today and into the future. By providing a broader accounting of the benefits and costs, sROI provides a framework for optimal decision making. sROI is a nonproprietary methodology based on economic principles and includes an uncertainty analysis to demonstrate the likelihood of realizing costs and benefits. This approach provides a more comprehensive picture of projects and supports the selection of investment strategies that are defensible and transparent. sROI can provide the framework and metrics for the evaluation and selection of remediation projects. A demonstration study of a DuPont remediation project illustrates the process and outcome of an sROI analysis. © 2014 Wiley Periodicals, Inc.     

Formaldehyde personal exposure measurements and time weighted exposure estimates in children

Residential concentrations of formaldehyde have been associated with poor respiratory health in children, where formaldehyde has been measured using stationary monitors inside homes. Although children spend most of their time indoors at home, there are few studies of children’s personal exposure to formaldehyde. The aim of this study was to investigate the relationship between personal exposure formaldehyde concentrations, microenvironmental concentrations and time weighted exposure estimates in children.Forty-one primary school children (aged between 9 and 12 years) wore a personal passive sampler over two 24 h periods in two seasons and completed 24 h daily activity diaries and a questionnaire about lifestyle and behaviour. Samplers were co located indoors at home, outdoors at centralised locations and indoors at school for the corresponding period.Personal exposure formaldehyde concentrations in this group of children were generally low with a geometric mean concentration of 9.1 ppb (range <detection limit to 27.3 ppb). There were strong correlations between personal exposure concentrations and both domestic indoor (r_s = .779, p < 0.001) and time weighted estimated (r_s = .802, p < 0.001) concentrations. The time weighted model did not improve the estimate of personal exposure compared with stationary indoor concentrations. Indoor air concentration measured with a single stationary monitor was a suitable surrogate for personal exposure.     

Partitioning of persistent organic pollutants (POPs) between human serum and breast milk: A literature review

The literature was reviewed to assess the relationship between the lipid adjusted concentration in human serum and breast milk (expressed as the serum/milk ratio) of a broad range of POPs in paired samples. Thirteen studies were identified, including seven studies that reported serum/milk ratios for polychlorinated dibenzo-dioxins and -furans (PCDD/Fs), ten for polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs), five for polybrominated diphenyl ethers (PBDEs), and five for organochlorine pesticides (OCPs). Mean serum/milk ratios ranged between 0.7 and 25 depending on the compound and congener. For PCDD/Fs, PCBs and PBDEs, a clear trend of increasing mean serum/milk ratio by increasing molar volume, hydrophobicity and number of halogen substitutes was observed. The mean serum/milk ratios reported by the 13 studies summarized here will aid comparison between human POPs exposure studies using either serum or milk samples. More studies are needed to allow a valid comparison between data obtained from analysis of breast milk and serum samples for a broader range of POPs. Furthermore such studies may shed light on compound specific factors as well as other determinants that may affect the partitioning and partition kinetics of POPs between serum and breast milk.     

Size-segregated trace elements in continental suburban aerosols: seasonal variation and estimation of local,regional, and remote emission sources

We have measured trace element contents in suburban aerosols from six size fractions in the range of PM_0.27–16 from a background station in Belgrade (Serbia). The distribution and concentration of elements were determined within each of the investigated Dp fractions with emphasis on the fine and coarse modes. Fine/coarse mode ratios of element can provide information regarding their anthropogenic or natural origin. Analysis of seasonal variations of element contents in fine and coarse mode show that Cd, Co, K, and V have higher concentrations in the fine mode during heating season, while Fe contents are lower. In the coarse mode, Cu and V have higher concentrations during the heating season, while Al, Fe, Mg, Mn, and Sb contents are lower. We also apply a distribution probability model (normal, log-normal, and three-parameter Weibull) as new approach to estimate the distances of emission sources that can contribute to pollutant contents in particulate matter of the investigated location.