PCDD/F enviromental impact from municipal solid waste bio-drying plant

The present work indentifies some environmental and health impacts of a municipal solid waste bio-drying plant taking into account the PCDD/F release into the atmosphere, its concentration at ground level and its deposition. Four scenarios are presented for the process air treatment and management: biofilter or regenerative thermal oxidation treatment, at two different heights. A Gaussian dispersion model, AERMOD, was used in order to model the dispersion and deposition of the PCDD/F emissions into the atmosphere. Considerations on health risk, from different exposure pathways are presented using an original approach. The case of biofilter at ground level resulted the most critical, depending on the low dispersion of the pollutants. Suggestions on technical solutions for the optimization of the impact are presented.     

The effects of dietary nickel on the detoxification enzymes, innate immunity and resistance to the fungus Beauveria bassiana in the larvae of the greater wax moth Galleria mellonella

In this study, we tested the effects of dietary nickel on the activity of glutathione S-transferase (GST), esterases, phenoloxidase, and encapsulation in the haemolymph of larvae of the greater wax moth Galleria mellonella. We also explored the effects of dietary nickel on larval resistance to infection by the fungus Beauveria bassiana. Larvae fed a low dose of nickel (10 μg g⁻¹) had significantly higher GST, phenoloxidase activity and encapsulation responses than controls fed on a nickel-free diet. We also found that larvae fed a sublethal dose of nickel (50 μg g⁻¹) had increased GST, esterase activity and encapsulation rates but decreased phenoloxidase activity. Although, a sublethal dose of dietary nickel enhanced innate immunity, we found that this reduced resistance against the real pathogen. Our results suggest that enhanced immunity and detoxification enzyme activity of insects may not be beneficial to resistance to fungal infection. It appears that there is a trade off between different resistance mechanisms in insects under different metal treatments.     

Polychlorinated dibenzo-p-dioxin and dibenzofuran in urban air of an Andean city

Particle-bound polychlorinated dibenzo-p-dioxins and polychlorinated dibenzofurans (PCDD/Fs) in ambient air were monitored together with particulate matter less than 10 μm (PM₁₀) at three sampling sites of the Andean city of Manizales, Colombia; during September 2009 and July 2010. PCDD/Fs ambient air emissions ranged from 1 fg WHO-TEQ m⁻³ to 52 fg WHO-TEQ m⁻³ in particulate fraction. The PM₁₀ concentrations ranged from 23 μg m⁻³ to 54 μg m⁻³. Concentrations of PM₁₀ and PCDD/Fs in ambient air observed for Manizales - a medium sized city with a population of 380 000 - were comparable to concentrations in larger cities. The highest concentrations of PCDD/Fs and PM₁₀ found in this study were determined at the central zone of the city, characterized by public transportation density, where diesel as principal fuel is used. In addition, hypothetical gas fractions of PCDD/Fs were calculated from theoretical K_p data. Congener profiles of PCDD/Fs exhibited ratios associated with different combustion sources at the different sampling locations, ranging from steel recycling to gasoline and diesel engines. Taking into account particle and gas hypothetical fraction of PCDD/Fs, Manizales exhibited values of PCDD/Fs equivalent to rural and urban-industrial sites in the southeast and center of the city respectively. Poor correlation of PCDDs with PM₁₀ (r = −0.55 and r = 0.52) suggests ambient air PCDDs were derived from various combustion sources. Stronger correlation was observed of PCDFs with PM₁₀. Poor correlation between precipitation and reduced PM₁₀ concentration in ambient air (r = −0.45) suggested low PM₁₀ removal by rainfall.     

Comparing the sensitivity of soil invertebrates to pesticides with that of Eisenia fetida

The sole routine testing of the standard earthworm Eisenia fetida for the terrestrial risk assessment of pesticides has been under much debate since other soil invertebrates may be more sensitive than this standard test species. However, the very low availability of laboratory toxicity data for taxa other than E. fetida has greatly hampered sensitivity comparisons. In the present study, the relative tolerance (T_rel) approach was used to enable comparing toxicity thresholds obtained from the US-EPA ECOTOX database, for main terrestrial taxonomic groups and pesticidal types of action (insecticides, fungicides, herbicides, and other) separately. Analyses confirmed previously reported lower and higher sensitivity of collembolans to fungicides and insecticides, respectively. However, various other discrepancies in susceptibility relative to E. fetida were encountered as indicated by species sensitivity distributions and/or calculated 95% confidence intervals of T_rel values. Arachnids and isopods were found to be more sensitive to insecticides, and nematodes to fungicides, as compared to E. fetida. Implications of study findings for the terrestrial risk assessment of pesticides are discussed.     

Assessing inter-laboratory comparability and limits of determination for the analysis of cyclic volatile methyl siloxanes in whole Rainbow Trout (Oncorhynchus mykiss)

Cyclic volatile methyl siloxanes (cVMS) are high volume production chemicals used in a wide range of industrial and consumer products. Three cVMS compounds (D4, D5, and D6) have and are undergoing environmental risk evaluations in several countries and have been proposed for legal regulation in Canada. As interest in monitoring concentrations of these chemicals in the environment increase, there is a need to evaluate the analytical procedures for cVMS in biological matrices in order to assess the quality of data produced. The purpose of this study was to determine laboratory testing performance for measuring residues of D4, D5, and D6 in a standard set of fish homogenate samples and to estimate limits of determination for each substance. The samples sent to each laboratory consisted of homogenized whole body tissues of hatchery raised rainbow trout which were fed food fortified with D4, D5, and D6 (dosed) and trout that were fed standard food rations (control). The participants analyzed each sample using their analytical method of choice using their own standards and procedures for quantification and quality control. With a few exceptions, participating laboratories generated comparable results for D4, D5, and D6 in both the dosed and control samples having z-scores between 2 and −2. Method detection limits for the whole fish matrix were on average 2.4 ng g⁻¹ ww for D4, 2.3 ng g⁻¹ ww for D5, and 1.8 ng g⁻¹ ww for D6.     

The reactive transport of trichloroethene is influenced by residence time and microbial numbers

The dechlorination rate in a flow-through porous matrix can be described by the species specific dechlorination rate observed in a liquid batch unless mass transport limitations prevail. This hypothesis was examined by comparing dechlorination rates in liquid batch with that in column experiments at various flow rates (3-9-12 cm day(-1)). Columns were loaded with an inoculated sand and eluted with a medium containing 1mM trichloroethene (TCE) for 247 days. Dechlorination in the column treatments increased with decreasing flow rate, illustrating the effect of the longer residence time. Zeroth order TCE or cis-DCE degradation rates were 4-7 folds larger in columns than in corresponding batch systems which could be explained by the higher measured Geobacter and Dehalococcoides numbers per unit pore volume in the columns. The microbial numbers also explained the variability in dechlorination rate among flow rate treatments marked by a large elution of the dechlorinating species' yield as flow increased. Stop flow events did not reveal mass transport limitations for dechlorination. We conclude that flow rate effects on reactive transport of TCE in this coarse sand are explained by residence time and by microbial transport and that mass transport limitations in this porous matrix are limited.     

Plant communities in relation to flooding and soil contamination in a lowland Rhine River floodplain

Using canonical correspondence analysis (CCA), relationships were investigated between plant species composition and flooding characteristics, heavy metal contamination and soil properties in a lowland floodplain of the Rhine River. Floodplain elevation and yearly average flooding duration turned out to be more important for explaining variation in plant species composition than soil heavy metal contamination. Nevertheless, plant species richness and diversity showed a significant decrease with the level of contamination. As single heavy metal concentrations seemed mostly too low for causing phytotoxic effects in plants, this trend is possibly explained by additive effects of multiple contaminants or by the concomitant influences of contamination and non-chemical stressors like flooding. These results suggest that impacts of soil contamination on plants in floodplains could be larger than expected from mere soil concentrations. In general, these findings emphasize the relevance of analyzing effects of toxic substances in concert with the effects of other relevant stressors.     

Total fuel-cycle analysis of heavy-duty vehicles using biofuels and natural gas-based alternative fuels

Heavy-duty vehicles (HDVs) present a growing energy and environmental concern worldwide. These vehicles rely almost entirely on diesel fuel for propulsion and create problems associated with local pollution, climate change, and energy security. Given these problems and the expected global expansion of HDVs in transportation sectors, industry and governments are pursuing biofuels and natural gas as potential alternative fuels for HDVs. Using recent lifecycle datasets, this paper evaluates the energy and emissions impacts of these fuels in the HDV sector by conducting a total fuel-cycle (TFC) analysis for Class 8 HDVs for six fuel pathways: (1) petroleum to ultra low sulfur diesel; (2) petroleum and soyoil to biodiesel (methyl soy ester); (3) petroleum, ethanol, and oxygenate to e-diesel; (4) petroleum and natural gas to Fischer-Tropsch diesel; (5) natural gas to compressed natural gas; and (6) natural gas to liquefied natural gas. TFC emissions are evaluated for three greenhouse gases (GHGs) (carbon dioxide, nitrous oxide, and methane) and five other pollutants (volatile organic compounds, carbon monoxide, nitrogen oxides, particulate matter, and sulfur oxides), along with estimates of total energy and petroleum consumption associated with each of the six fuel pathways. Results show definite advantages with biodiesel and compressed natural gas for most pollutants, negligible benefits for e-diesel, and increased GHG emissions for liquefied natural gas and Fischer-Tropsch diesel (from natural gas).     

Issues with ozone attainment methodology for Houston, TX

To comply with the federal 8-hr ozone standard, the state of Texas is creating a plan for Houston that strictly follows the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency's (EPA) guidance for demonstrating attainment. EPA's attainment guidance methodology has several key assumptions that are demonstrated to not be completely appropriate for the unique observed ozone conditions found in Houston. Houston's ozone violations at monitoring sites are realized as gradual hour-to-hour increases in ozone concentrations, or by large hourly ozone increases that exceed up to 100 parts per billion/hr. Given the time profiles at the violating monitors and those of nearby monitors, these large increases appear to be associated with small parcels of spatially limited plumes of high ozone in a lower background of urban ozone. Some of these high ozone parcels and plumes have been linked to a combination of unique wind conditions and episodic hydrocarbon emission events from the Houston Ship Channel. However, the regulatory air quality model (AQM) does not predict these sharp ozone gradients. Instead, the AQM predicts gradual hourly increases with broad regions of high ozone covering the entire Houston urban core. The AQM model performance can be partly attributed to EPA attainment guidance that prescribes the removal in the baseline model simulation of any episodic hydrocarbon emissions, thereby potentially removing any nontypical causes of ozone exceedances. This paper shows that attainment of all monitors is achieved when days with observed large hourly variability in ozone concentrations are filtered from attainment metrics. Thus, the modeling and observational data support a second unique cause for how ozone is formed in Houston, and the current EPA methodology addresses only one of these two causes.     

Experimental investigation of outdoor and indoor mean concentrations and concentration fluctuations of pollutants

Tracer gas was released upwind of a two-compartment complex shaped building under unstable atmospheric conditions. The mean wind direction was normal to or at 45° to the long face of the building. The general patterns of concentration distribution on the building external walls and inside the building were analysed and the influence of natural and mechanical ventilation on indoor concentration distributions was discussed. Mean concentration levels, as well as the concentration fluctuation intensity, were higher on the windward walls of the building, although concentration levels varied along each wall. Concentration fluctuations measured inside the building were lower than those measured outside. Inside the two compartments of the building, the time series of concentrations had a similar general behaviour; however, gas concentrations took approximately 1.5 times longer to reach the mean maximum concentration value at the downwind compartment 02 while they also decreased more rapidly in the upwind compartment 01 after the source was turned off. The highest indoor concentration and concentration fluctuation values were observed at the detectors located close to the windward walls, especially when the building windows were open. Experiments with and without natural ventilation suggested that infiltration and exfiltration of contaminants is much faster when the building windows are open, resulting to higher indoor concentration levels. Furthermore, mechanical ventilation tends to homogenize concentrations and suppress concentration fluctuations, leading to lower maximum concentration values.