Analysing Seasonal Differences between a Soil Water Balance Model and in Situ Soil Moisture Measurementsat Nine Locations Across Europe

We compared soil moisture from the soil water balance model for European Water Accounting (swbEWA) with in situ observations from nine locations in three European climatic zones (continental, Mediterranean and maritime temperate), for different periods between 2003 and 2011. Despite the simplicity of the swbEWA model, the patterns of temporal changes in soil moisture content are well represented at all locations. Annual averages show that the model overestimates the soil moisture content, and that overestimations are the smallest when measurements are obtained from more than one depth. These results suggest that the relationship between simulated and observed soil moisture also depends on the number of measurements and the depth over which they are taken. In the continental climate, where snow cover and frozen soil influence soil moisture, we observe higher root mean square error values in winter months. However, in the Mediterranean and maritime temperate climates, we do not observe clear common seasonal patterns in the soil moisture profile, which makes it difficult to relate the model’s accuracy to climate. With the percentage of correctness and probability of detection measures, we tested the model performance in simulating dry versus non-dry events. The percentage of the correctly classified dry and non-dry events is higher than 84 % at all locations, whereas the probability to detect dry events is significantly lower, exceeding 50 % at only four out of nine stations. The frequency distribution of consecutive days with dry soil (CDDS) confirms the model performance: higher number of short dry periods (with less than 20 days of soil moisture near wilting point) are reproduced and observed in continental climates, whereas long dry periods (longer than 50 days) are noted in the Mediterranean climate. Overall, the statistical measures suggest that the model produces the highest accuracy in summer months at the stations in continental climates, whereas in the Mediterranean climate, the accuracy is slightly higher in the colder seasons.     

Using data mining to predict soil quality after application of biosolids in agriculture

The amount of biosolids recycled in agriculture has steadily increased during the last decades. However, few models are available to predict the accompanying risks, mainly due to the presence of trace element and organic contaminants, and benefits for soil fertility of their application. This paper deals with using data mining to assess the benefits and risks of biosolids application in agriculture. The analyzed data come from a 10-yr field experiment in northeast France focusing on the effects of biosolid application and mineral fertilization on soil fertility and contamination. Biosolids were applied at agriculturally recommended rates. Biosolids had a significant effect on soil fertility, causing in particular a persistent increase in plant-available phosphorus (P) relative to plots receiving mineral fertilizer. However, soil fertility at seeding and crop management method had greater effects than biosolid application on soil fertility at harvest, especially soil nitrogen (N) content. Levels of trace elements and organic contaminants in soils remained below legal threshold values. Levels of extractable metals correlated more strongly than total metal levels with other factors. Levels of organic contaminants, particularly polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons, were linked to total metal levels in biosolids and treated soil. This study confirmed that biosolid application at rates recommended for agriculture is a safe option for increasing soil fertility. However, the quality of the biosolids selected has to be taken into account. The results also indicate the power of data mining in examining links between parameters in complex data sets.     

Protected area characteristics that help waterbirds respond to climate warming

Protected area networks help species respond to climate warming. However, the contribution of a site's environmental and conservation-relevant characteristics to these responses is not well understood. We investigated how composition of nonbreeding waterbird communities (97 species) in the European Union Natura 2000 (N2K) network (3018 sites) changed in response to increases in temperature over 25 years in 26 European countries. We measured community reshuffling based on abundance time series collected under the International Waterbird Census relative to N2K sites’ conservation targets, funding, designation period, and management plan status. Waterbird community composition in sites explicitly designated to protect them and with management plans changed more quickly in response to climate warming than in other N2K sites. Temporal community changes were not affected by the designation period despite greater exposure to temperature increase inside late-designated N2K sites. Sites funded under the LIFE program had lower climate-driven community changes than sites that did not received LIFE funding. Our findings imply that efficient conservation policy that helps waterbird communities respond to climate warming is associated with sites specifically managed for waterbirds.     

Economic,ecological, and health aspects of β-diketonate application in the process of water purification

Environmental Science and Pollution Research - Water pollution is a constant challenge for humanity. Sustainable economic development and environmental protection through a green economy structure...     

Mapping of environmental and technological performance of food and beverage sector in Bosnia and Herzegovina

The objective of this paper is to discuss the mapping methodology implemented in the selection of BAT candidates and to present the results of the mapping of B&H food and beverage sector, prepared as a baseline for the development of national reference documents on Best Available Techniques. The subsectors subject to analysis were: dairy, fish farming, fish processing, fruit and vegetable processing, meat processing, breweries, and slaughterhouses.The sector was mapped from several aspects, including socio-economic, legal, and environmental point of view. The socio-economic aspect focused on understanding the sector’s structure and financial capabilities, pricing for water, energy, and solid waste consumption, as well as employee profiles, in order to better assess the sustainability of decisions taken. Legal mapping focused on relevant regulations, including policies from the following sectors: environment, water use and protection, food safety, agriculture, and veterinary, in order to determine legal requirements from an environmental protection aspect set in the various sector policies. Environmental performance indicators were calculated in order to assess present resource efficiencies and relevant environmental impacts. In addition, the mapping process also addressed the existing level of BAT implementation in the subsectors under consideration.The paper presents a rationale for methodology selection, offers a review of the mapping methodology used, discusses mapping results and provides conclusions in regards to that methodology used and discusses issues that need to be considered in the selection of BAT candidates.     

Levels and distribution of polybrominated diphenyl ethers in humans and environmental compartments: a comprehensive review of the last five years of research

Environmental Science and Pollution Research - Polybrominated diphenyl ethers (PBDEs) are a class of brominated flame retardants (BFRs), present in the environment, animals, and humans. Their...     

Eunuchs as better fighters?

Male–male competition for females can significantly affect a male’s reproductive success and hence his fitness. Game theory predicts that an individual should avoid fighting when its future reproductive potential is high, but should fight forcefully when its future reproductive potential is insignificant. When mates are scarce, extreme competition and fatal fighting is expected. We recently showed that Nephilengys malabarensis eunuchs, i.e. sterile spider males that lost their genitals during copulation, become more aggressive during male–male contests. Here, we add crucial comparative data by exploring eunuch fighting behaviour in Nephilengys livida from Madagascar, specifically by testing the ‘better fighter hypotheses’ in a laboratory setting. Similar to N. malabarensis, N. livida copulations resulted in total male castration with the severed palp plugging the female genitals in 70.83% cases, which mostly (63.63%) prevented subsequent copulations. Unexpectedly, however, N. livida eunuchs exhibited lower aggressiveness than virgin males. We interpret these results in the light of different mating biology between the so far studied species known for the eunuch phenomenon, which might reflect differing plug effectiveness due to variation in genital anatomy in N. livida, N. malabarensis and Herennia multipuncta. However, detected differences in aggressive behaviour of N. livida versus N. malabarensis eunuchs might also be explained by the species’ ecology, with lower population densities resulting in a relaxed male–male competition making excessive aggression and mate guarding redundant. This study thus questions the generality of overt aggressiveness in mated males with no reproductive value, and highlights the importance of understanding the natural history of species in the question.     

Impact of the toxicity of Cylindrospermopsis raciborskii (Woloszynska) Seenayya & Subba Raju on laboratory rats in vivo

In vivo laboratory studies of toxicity were performed on Wistar rats using a methanol extract produced by the natural population of Cylindrospermopsis raciborskii (abundance of 2.13 × 10⁵ trichomes mL⁻¹) collected at Aleksandrovac Lake (Serbia). HPLC analysis showed that the extract contains 6.65 μg cylindrospermopsin (CYN) mg⁻¹. The rats were killed 24 or 72 h after a single intraperitoneal injection of C. raciborskii extract in concentrations of 1500, 3000, 6000 and 12,000 μg kg⁻¹ body weight (bw) and an equivalent amount of CYN as present in the highest dose of the extract (79.80 μg CYN kg⁻¹ bw). The genotoxic effect on the livers treated with C. raciborskii was evaluated using comet assay and potential induction of oxidative stress as the toxicity mechanism associated with the presence of CYN in extract. The results from the analyses of DNA damage in the comet tail length, tail moment and percentage of DNA in the tail in the liver indicated that administration of extract and CYN present statistically significant difference when compared with the negative control group. Although an increase in the frequency of selected parameters induced by the CYN was observed in the liver, this damage was less than the damage resulting from the administration of the highest dose of extract. The changes in the biochemical parameters of the hepatic damage showed that the application of single doses of the extract and CYN did not cause serious liver damage in rats. The extract and CYN significantly increased oxidative stress in rats’ liver after a single exposure.