Habitat structure is associated with the expression of carotenoid-based coloration in nestling blue tits Parus caeruleus

We investigated how the expression of carotenoid-based plumage coloration (lightness and chroma) in nestling blue tits Parus caeruleus is associated with forest structure in oak forests of central Spain. We found evidence of a reduced expression of carotenoid-based coloration in nestlings growing up in successionally young and structurally simple forest territories. Our results suggest that breast feather coloration can be used as an indicator of nestling quality because nestlings with more intense yellow plumage coloration had larger body size and stronger immune responses to the injection of phytohemagglutinin (PHA). Given the association of forest structural complexity with carotenoid-based plumage coloration, our findings suggest that variation in habitat structure may have a significant impact on forest birds in their first stages of life which has implications for forest management practices.     

Anaerobic mesophilic treatment of cattle manure in an upflow anaerobic sludge blanket reactor with prior pasteurization

Different autonomous communities located in northern Spain have large populations of dairy cattle. In the case of Asturias, the greatest concentration of dairy farms is found in the areas near the coast, where the elimination of cattle manure by means of its use as a fertilizer may lead to environmental problems. The aim of the present research work was to study the anaerobic treatment of the liquid fraction of cattle manure at mesophilic temperature using an upflow anaerobic sludge blanket (UASB) reactor combined with a settler after a pasteurization process at 70 degrees C for 2 hr. The manure used in this study came from two different farms, with 40 and 200 cows, respectively. The manure from the smaller farm was pretreated in the laboratory by filtration through a 1-mm mesh, and the manure from the other farm was pretreated on the farm by filtration through a separator screw press (0.5-mm mesh). The pasteurization process removed the pathogenic microorganisms lacking spores, such as Enterococcus, Yersinia, Pseudomonas, and coliforms, but bacterial spores are only reduced by this treatment, not removed. The combination of a UASB reactor and a settler proved to be effective for the treatment of cattle manure. In spite of the variation in the organic loading rate and total solids in the influent during the experiment, the chemical oxygen demand (COD) of the effluent from the settler remained relatively constant, obtaining reductions in the COD of approximately 85%.     

Increased levels of polychlorobiphenyls in Italian women with endometriosis

Endometriosis has been hypothesised to be linked to persistent and toxic organochlorinated chemicals. Dioxins and dioxin-like compounds have in particular been associated with the disease, mainly on the basis of experimental studies. Data in women are conflicting. A case-control study on 80 Italian nulliparous women of reproductive age was carried out to assess whether there is a correlation between the presence of endometriosis and blood levels of polychlorobiphenyls (PCBs), a family of ubiquitary environmental pollutants which comprises congeners with dioxin-like activity. Higher levels of PCBs were found in women with endometriosis. A mean cumulative value of 410 ng g(-1), lipid base, was found in cases versus the value of 250 ng g(-1) observed in the control group (odds ratio for upper tertile 4.0, CI 95% 1.3-13; p = 0.0003). PCB increase involved both dioxin-like (PCBs 105, 118, 156, and 167) and non-dioxin-like congeners (PCBs 101, 138, 153, 170, 180).     

Effluents from MBT plants: Plasma techniques for the treatment of VOCs

Mechanical–biological treatments (MBTs) of urban waste are growing in popularity in many European countries. Recent studies pointed out that their contribution in terms of volatile organic compounds (VOCs) and other air pollutants is not negligible. Compared to classical removal technologies, non-thermal plasmas (NTP) showed better performances and low energy consumption when applied to treat lowly concentrated streams. Therefore, to study the feasibility of the application of NTP to MBTs, a Dielectric Barrier Discharge reactor was applied to treat a mixture of air and methyl ethyl ketone (MEK), to simulate emissions from MBTs. The removal efficiency of MEK was linearly dependent upon time, power and specific input energy. Only 2–4% of MEK was converted to carbon dioxide (CO₂), the remaining carbon being involved in the formation of byproducts (methyl nitrate and 2,3-butanedione, especially). For future development of pilot-scale reactors, acting on residence time, power, convective flow and catalysts will help finding a compromise between energy consumption, desired abatement and selectivity to CO₂.     

GHG emission factors developed for the collection,transport and landfilling of municipal waste in South African municipalities

Greenhouse gas (GHG) emission factors are used with increased frequency for the accounting and reporting of GHG from waste management. However, these factors have been calculated for developed countries of the Northern Hemisphere and are lacking for developing countries. This paper shows how such factors have been developed for the collection, transport and landfilling of municipal waste in South Africa. As such it presents a model on how international results and methodology can be adapted and used to calculate country-specific GHG emission factors from waste. For the collection and transport of municipal waste in South Africa, the average diesel consumption is around 5 dm³ (litres) per tonne of wet waste and the associated GHG emissions are about 15 kg CO₂ equivalents (CO₂ e). Depending on the type of landfill, the GHG emissions from the landfilling of waste have been calculated to range from ?145 to 1016 kg CO₂ e per tonne of wet waste, when taking into account carbon storage, and from 441 to 2532 kg CO₂ e per tonne of wet waste, when carbon storage is left out. The highest emission factor per unit of wet waste is for landfill sites without landfill gas collection and these are the dominant waste disposal facilities in South Africa. However, cash strapped municipalities in Africa and the developing world will not be able to significantly upgrade these sites and reduce their GHG burdens if there is no equivalent replacement of the Clean Development Mechanism (CDM) resulting from the Kyoto agreement. Other low cost avenues need to be investigated to suit local conditions, in particular landfill covers which enhance methane oxidation.     

Simulating the potential for ecological restoration of dryland forests in Mexico under different disturbance regimes

Examining the potential for ecological restoration is important in areas where anthropogenic disturbance has degraded forest landscapes. However, the conditions under which restoration of degraded tropical dry forests (TDF) might be achieved in practice have not been determined in detail. In this study, we used LANDIS-II, a spatially explicit model of forest dynamics, to assess the potential for passive restoration of TDF through natural regeneration. The model was applied to two Mexican landscapes under six different disturbance regimes, focusing on the impact of fire and cattle grazing on forest cover, structure and composition. Model results identified two main findings. First, tropical dry forests are more resilient to anthropogenic disturbance than expected. Results suggested that under both a scenario of small, infrequent fires and a scenario of large, frequent fires, forest area can increase relatively rapidly. However, forest structure and composition differed markedly between these scenarios. After 400 years, the landscape becomes increasingly occupied by relatively shade-tolerant species under small, infrequent fires, but only species with both relatively high shade tolerance and high fire tolerance can thrive under conditions with large, frequent fires. Second, we demonstrated that different forms of disturbance can interact in unexpected ways. Our projections revealed that when grazing acts in combination with fire, forest cover, structure and composition vary dramatically depending on the frequency and extent of the fires. Results indicated that grazing and fire have a synergistic effect causing a reduction in forest cover greater than the sum of their individual effects. This suggests that passive landscape-scale restoration of TDF is achievable in both Mexican study areas only if grazing is reduced, and fires are carefully managed to reduce their frequency and intensity.     

Transfer activities among Canadian researchers: Evidence in occupational safety and health

The purpose of this paper is to investigate activities of research transfer, the extent of the use of these activities, and the research transfer determinants. This study is based on a population of more than 400 researchers in the field of occupational safety and health (OSH) in Canada, who completed an electronic questionnaire. The results show notably that there is no significant statistical difference between fields for the four activities of research transfer and that several factors have a significant impact on research transfer. Researchers in OSH constituted a rather homogenous unit and can improve the research transfer notably by the adaptation of knowledge, by focusing the research on users’ needs and by improving their link with users.     

Zooming on light packaging waste differences by scanning electron microscopy

Environmental Science and Pollution Research - In the present paper, different types of pure and commercial plastic waste from different EU countries (UK, France, Italy, and Romania) were...