Value addition of vegetable wastes by solid-state fermentation using Aspergillus niger for use in aquafeed industry

Vegetable waste typically has high moisture content and high levels of protein, vitamins and minerals. Its value as an agricultural feed can be enhanced through solid-state fermentation (SSF). Two experiments were conducted to evaluate the nutritional status of the products derived by SSF of a mixture of dried vegetable waste powder and oil cake mixture (soybean flour, wheat flour, groundnut oil cake and sesame oil cake at 4:3:2:1 ratio) using fungi Aspergillus niger S₁4, a mangrove isolate, and A. niger NCIM 616. Fermentation was carried out for 9 days at 35% moisture level and neutral pH. Significant (p < 0.05) increase in crude protein and amino acids were obtained in both the trials. The crude fat and crude fibre content showed significant reduction at the end of fermentation. Nitrogen free extract (NFE) showed a gradual decrease during the fermentation process. The results of the study suggest that the fermented product obtained on days 6 and 9 in case of A. niger S₁4 and A. niger NCIM 616 respectively contained the highest levels of crude protein.     

Greenhouse gas emissions from Australian open-cut coal mines: contribution from spontaneous combustion and low-temperature oxidation

Spontaneous combustion and low-temperature oxidation of waste coal and other carbonaceous material at open-cut coal mines are potentially significant sources of greenhouse gas emissions. However, the magnitude of these emissions is largely unknown. In this study, emissions from spontaneous combustion and low-temperature oxidation were estimated for six Australian open-cut coal mines with annual coal production ranging from 1.7 to more than 16 Mt. Greenhouse emissions from all other sources at these mines were also estimated and compared to those from spontaneous combustion and low-temperature oxidation. In all cases, fugitive emission of methane was the largest source of greenhouse gas; however, in some mines, spontaneous combustion accounted for almost a third of all emissions. For one mine, it was estimated that emissions from spontaneous combustion were around 250,000 t CO₂-e per annum. The contribution from low-temperature oxidation was generally less than about 1% of the total for all six mines. Estimating areas of spoil affected by spontaneous combustion by ground-based surveys was prone to under-report the area. Airborne infrared imaging appears to be a more reliable method.     

Methyl Tertiary Butyl Ether (MTBE) and Other Volatile Organic Compounds (VOCs) in Public Water Systems,Private Wells,and Ambient Groundwater Wells in New Jersey Compared to Regulatory and Human-Health Benchmarks

Potential threats to drinking water and water quality continue to be a major concern in many regions of the United States. New Jersey, in particular, has been at the forefront of assessing and managing potential contamination of its drinking water supplies from hazardous substances. The purpose of the current analysis is to provide an up-to-date evaluation of the occurrence and detected concentrations of methyl tertiary butyl ether (MTBE) and several other volatile organic compounds (VOCs) in public water systems, private wells, and ambient groundwater wells in New Jersey based on the best available data, and to put these results into context with federal and state regulatory and human-health benchmarks. Analyses are based on the following three databases that contain water quality monitoring data for New Jersey: Safe Drinking Water Information System (SDWIS), Private Well Testing Act (PWTA), and National Water Information System (NWIS). For public water systems served by groundwater in New Jersey, MTBE was detected at a concentration ≥10 μg/L, ≥20 μg/L, and ≥70 μg/L at least once in 30 (2%), 21 (1.4%), and five (0.3%) of sampled systems from 1997 to 2011, respectively. For private wells in New Jersey, MTBE was detected at a concentration ≥10 μg/L, ≥20 μg/L, and ≥70 μg/L at least once in 385 (0.5%), 183 (0.2%), and 46 (0.05%) of sampled wells from 2001 to 2011, respectively. For ambient groundwater wells in New Jersey, MTBE was detected at a concentration ≥10 μg/L, ≥20 μg/L, and ≥70 μg/L at least once in 14 (2.1%), 9 (1.3%), and 4 (0.6%) of sampled wells from 1993 to 2012, respectively. Average detected concentrations of MTBE, as well as detected concentrations at upper-end percentiles, were less than corresponding benchmarks for all three datasets. The available data show that MTBE is rarely detected in various source waters in New Jersey at a concentration that exceeds the State's health-based drinking water standard or other published benchmarks, and there is no evidence of an increasing trend in the detection frequency of MTBE. Other VOCs, such as tetrachloroethylene (PCE), trichloroethylene (TCE), and benzene, are detected more often above corresponding regulatory or human-health benchmarks due to their higher detected concentrations in water and/or greater toxicity values. The current analysis provides useful data for evaluating the nature and extent of historical and current contamination of water supplies in New Jersey and potential opportunities for public exposures and health risks due to MTBE and other VOCs on a statewide basis. Additional forensic or forecasting analyses are required to identify the sources or timing of releases of individual contaminants at specific locations or to predict potential future water contamination in New Jersey.     

A Yin‐Yang approach to education policy regarding health and the environment: early‐careerists' image of the future and priority programmes

Since the inception of sustainable development (SD), there has been a somewhat ignored contradiction between paradigms that are ecosystem‐based and paradigms that are human‐based or purely economic. We suggest that this contradiction can be unified through a balance of the two. The Chinese Yin‐Yang philosophy is applied as a tool or approach to seeking balance between these ecocentric and anthropocentric paradigms. Priority education policy design for the merging of ecology and health are projected through an Ecohealth lens in response to increasing SD challenges and the intention of the international Ecohealth organization to contribute to SD goals. Meeting SD goals along the nexus of health and environment is further considered through early‐careerist cultural assessments and projections. The groups considered for their professional image of the future are: members of the Ecohealth Association Student Section and Chinese early‐careerists participating in a related conference. In response to SD goals, a problem‐based learning design is suggested as an education policy priority. Rather than approaching SD as a boolean concept, for example, by either focusing on ecosystem sustainability or economic development, we suggest education policy for programmes and curriculums that will help emerging professionals balance these paradigms, so as to best address national and global challenges.     

Management challenges of urban biosolids: narratives around facility siting in rural Ontario

The emerging challenge of managing increasing volumes of urban sewage has resulted in municipalities pursuing sustainable ways to manage urban biosolids and their by-products. Using content analysis of public debates, and situating the debate within science, policy and facility siting literature, this study examines claims and counterclaims relating to the siting of a biosolid processing facility in rural Ontario. The equivocal evidence on the health and environmental effects of biosolids resulted in a heated “expert versus lay” debate. The study critically evaluates the importance of trust and the shifting role of scientific evidence in politicised settings, while making relevant policy recommendations.     

Nitrogen and Phosphorus Removal in a Rain Garden Flooded with Wastewater and Simulated Stormwater

Rain gardens, also known as bioretention cells, are low‐impact developments designed to mitigate several problems associated with urban stormwater. This four‐month field study involved a rain garden at a wastewater treatment plant in north‐central Texas in the United States of America. Partially treated wastewater from an anaerobic digester spilled into the rain garden at the beginning of the study. Subsequently, inflow and outflow concentrations of nitrogen and phosphorus were measured for nine simulated floods, preceded by dry‐spell intervals of 5, 8, or 12 days. Despite large inputs from the wastewater spill, the rain garden gradually processed and flushed the nitrogen. Longer dry spells tended to produce relatively higher outflow nitrate concentrations. A large pool of phosphorus in the soil restricted the rain garden's ability to reduce outflow orthophosphate concentrations, which were stable and lower than inflow concentrations throughout the study; however, adsorptive processes attenuated a relatively high inflow concentration by the end of the study.     

Accuracy Assessment of NOAA Gridded Daily Reference Evapotranspiration for the Texas High Plains

The National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) provides daily reference evapotranspiration (ET_ref) maps for the contiguous United States using climatic data from North American Land Data Assimilation System (NLDAS). This data provides large‐scale spatial representation of ET_ref, which is essential for regional scale water resources management. Data used in the development of NOAA daily ET_ref maps are derived from observations over surfaces that are different from short (grass — ET_os) or tall (alfalfa — ET_rs) reference crops, often in nonagricultural settings, which carries an unknown discrepancy between assumed and actual conditions. In this study, NOAA daily ET_os and ET_rs maps were evaluated for accuracy, using observed data from the Texas High Plains Evapotranspiration (TXHPET) network. Daily ET_os, ET_rs and the climatic data (air temperature, wind speed, and solar radiation) used for calculating ET_ref were extracted from the NOAA maps for TXHPET locations and compared against ground measurements on reference grass surfaces. NOAA ET_ref maps generally overestimated the TXHPET observations (1.4 and 2.2 mm/day ET_os and ET_rs, respectively), which may be attributed to errors in the NLDAS modeled air temperature and wind speed, to which reference ET_ref is most sensitive. Therefore, a bias correction to NLDAS modeled air temperature and wind speed data, or adjustment to the resulting NOAA ET_ref, may be needed to improve the accuracy of NOAA ET_ref maps.     

The impact of career customization on work outcomes: Boundary conditions of manager support and employee age

The current paper investigated the longitudinal effects of mass career customization (MCC) on job attitudes and objective career outcomes of employees in a professional service firm in the Netherlands. On the basis of theory on individualization of career trajectories, it was expected that the possibility for employees to customize their careers would be positively related to their job attitudes and subsequent objective career success, as indicated by their levels of affective commitment, work engagement, and received salary and bonuses. However, these effects were expected to occur primarily under the combination of high manager support for implementation of career customization and, on the basis of lifespan theory, older workers, as customization fulfills their increased heterogeneous career preferences. A three‐wave longitudinal study largely showed support for the study hypotheses; the relation between MCC use and work engagement and subsequent career success was stronger for older workers who received support for MCC, whereas the relation between MCC use and commitment was negative for older workers who received low support. The study shows the benefits of career customization in organizations by showing the conditions under which these benefits will manifest. Copyright © 2015 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.