The effect of Na and Ca salts on MSWI bottom ash activation for reuse as a pozzolanic admixture

In this study the possibility of both chemical and combined chemical + thermal activation of municipal solid waste incinerator bottom ash was investigated. A number of chemical activators including Na₂SiO₃·9H₂O, NaOH, Na₂SO₄ and CaCl₂·2H₂O were individually added at varying concentrations to bottom ash/Portland cement mixtures having different bottom ash contents. The effect of the selected compounds was evaluated in terms of macroscopic properties including mechanical strength and composition of cementitious materials/water slurries. The results showed that Na-based activators were not capable of improving the characteristics of the cementitious products if compared to Portland cement under both normal and accelerated curing. Conversely, the use of calcium chloride at 40 °C-curing did promote the pozzolanic properties of bottom ash, leading to UCS values of 45.5 and 60.0 MPa after 10 and 20 days, respectively, as opposed to a value of 43.6 MPa obtained after 28 days for Portland cement under normal curing conditions.     

Accelerated soil dissipation of tebuconazole following multiple applications to peanut

Repeated application may increase rates of pesticide dissipation in soil and reduce persistence. The potential for this to occur was investigated for the fungicide, tebuconazole (alpha-[2-(4-chlorophenyl)ethyl]-alpha-(1,1-dimethylethyl)-1H-1,2,4-triazole-1-ethanol), when used for peanut (Arachis hypogaea L.) production. Soil samples were collected from peanut plots after each of four tebuconazole applications at 2-wk intervals. Soil moisture was adjusted to field capacity as necessary and samples were incubated in the laboratory for 63 d at 30 degrees C. Untreated plot samples spiked with the compound served as controls. Results indicated accelerated dissipation in field-treated samples with the time to fifty percent dissipation (DT50) decreasing from 43 to 5 d after three tebuconazole applications. Corresponding increases in rates of accumulation and decay of degradates were also indicated. Best-fit equations (r2 = 0.84-0.98) to dissipation kinetic data combined with estimates of canopy interception rates were used to predict tebuconazole and degradates concentration in soil after each successive application. Predicted concentrations compared with values measured in surface soil samples were from twofold less to twofold greater. Use of kinetic data will likely enhance assessments of treatment efficacy and human and ecological risks from normal agronomic use of tebuconazole on peanut. However, the study indicated that varying soil conditions (in particular, soil temperature and water content) may have an equal or greater impact on field dissipation rate than development of accelerated dissipation. Results emphasize that extension of laboratory-derived kinetic data to field settings should be done with caution.     

Green roof stormwater retention: effects of roof surface, slope, and media depth

Urban areas generate considerably more stormwater runoff than natural areas of the same size due to a greater percentage of impervious surfaces that impede water infiltration. Roof surfaces account for a large portion of this impervious cover. Establishing vegetation on rooftops, known as green roofs, is one method of recovering lost green space that can aid in mitigating stormwater runoff. Two studies were performed using several roof platforms to quantify the effects of various treatments on stormwater retention. The first study used three different roof surface treatments to quantify differences in stormwater retention of a standard commercial roof with gravel ballast, an extensive green roof system without vegetation, and a typical extensive green roof with vegetation. Overall, mean percent rainfall retention ranged from 48.7% (gravel) to 82.8% (vegetated). The second study tested the influence of roof slope (2 and 6.5%) and green roof media depth (2.5, 4.0, and 6.0 cm) on stormwater retention. For all combined rain events, platforms at 2% slope with a 4-cm media depth had the greatest mean retention, 87%, although the difference from the other treatments was minimal. The combination of reduced slope and deeper media clearly reduced the total quantity of runoff. For both studies, vegetated green roof systems not only reduced the amount of stormwater runoff, they also extended its duration over a period of time beyond the actual rain event.     

Rapid manganese removal from mine waters using an aerated packed-bed bioreactor

In the UK, the Environmental Quality Standard for manganese has recently been lowered to 30 microg/L (annual average), which is less than the UK Drinking Water Inspectorate's Maximum Permitted Concentration Value (50 microg/L). Current passive treatment systems for manganese removal operate as open-air gravel-bed filters, designed to maximize either influent light and/or dissolved oxygen. This requires large areas of land. A novel enhanced bioremediation treatment system for manganese removal has been developed that consists of a passively aerated subsurface gravel bed. The provision of air at depth and the use of catalytic substrates help overcome the slow kinetics usually associated with manganese oxidation. With a residence time of only 8 h and an influent manganese concentration of approximately 20 mg/L, >95% of the manganese was removed. The treatment system also operates successfully at temperatures as low as 4 degrees C and in total darkness. These observations have positive implications for manganese treatment using this technique in both colder climates and where large areas of land are unavailable. Furthermore, as the operation of this passive treatment system continually generates fresh manganese oxyhydroxide, which is a powerful sorbent for most pollutant metals, it potentially has major ancillary benefits as a removal process for other metals, such as zinc.     

HISTORICAL TRENDS IN SEDIMENTATION RATES AND SEDIMENT PROVENANCE,FAIRFIELD LAKE,WESTERN NORTH CAROLINA1

Sedimentation rates and sediment provenance were examined for lacustrine sediments deposited in Fairfield Lake, western North Carolina, during the past 111 years. Stratigraphic, radionuclide, and cartographic data indicate that sedimentation rates have increased several fold during the past three decades in response to localized development. The magnitude of increased sedimentation was surprising given limited development within the basin: 0.12 to 0.68 buildings/ha in 2000 in those parts directly delivering sediment to the dated cores. Thus, the analysis illustrates the potential sensitivity of watersheds in the southern Appalachians to changes in land cover. An approach that combined geochemical fingerprinting with sediment mixing models was subsequently evaluated to determine its ability to accurately estimate the contribution of sediment from (1) major bedrock formations that underlie the watershed and (2) potential sources associated with four land cover categories. Sediment sources in both analyses proved difficult to geochemically fingerprint to greater than 90 percent accuracy using data on acid‐soluble metals and selected isotopes of lead (Pb). The relative contributions of sediment from delineated sources, estimated by the mixing models, generally corresponded with known temporal and spatial patterns of land cover. However, the models were plagued by two significant problems — the chemical alteration of sediments as they were transported through upland streams to depositional sites within the lake and the loss of elemental mass. Thus, future investigations using the fingerprinting approach in this area of intense weathering, and presumably others, will need to modify the existing methods to more accurately elucidate changes in sediment provenance related to development.     

BASE FLOW TRENDS IN URBANIZING WATERSHEDS OF THE DELAWARE RIVER BASIN1

Rapid land development is raising concern regarding the ability of urbanizing watersheds to sustain adequate base flow during periods of drought. Long term streamflow records from unregulated watersheds of the lower to middle Delaware River basin are examined to evaluate the impact of urbanization and imperviousness on base flow. Trends in annual base flow volumes, seven‐day low flows, and runoff ratios are determined for six urbanizing watersheds and four reference watersheds across three distinct physiographic regions. Hydrograph separation is used to determine annual base flow and stormflow volumes, and nonparametric trend tests are conducted on the resulting time series. Of the watersheds examined, the expected effects of declining base flow volumes and seven‐day low flows and increasing stormflows are seen in only one watershed that is approximately 20 percent impervious and has been subject to a net water export over the past 15 years. Both interbasin transfers and hydrologic mechanisms are invoked to explain these results. The results show that increases in impervious area may not result in measurable reductions in base flow at the watershed scale.     

Changes in pH as a measure of photosynthesis by marine macroalgae

An automatically operated method for high precision measurements of steady-state photosynthesis by macroalgae was developed. Changes in pH and oxygen content of seawater passing the algae in a flowthrough system, could be measured with extremely high accuracy over very long periods of time. The method is especially suitable for measurements on flowthrough systems with high rates of water exchanges (i.e. short retention time), and can be used to study exchange processes for marine plants, animals and small ecosystems. Since the same measuring unit is used for several flowthrough chambers, the method is very suitable for comparisons between different species, or between differently pretreated specimens of the same species (e.g. in toxicological studies). The method was used to study the ratio: [oxygen production] to [CO₂+H⁺ uptake] at different light intensities for several macroalgae belonging to different systematic groups and from different habitats. At lower photosynthetic rates this ratio was similar for all of the algae studied (1.17±0.02). For brown algae of the fucacean family, the ratio increased by 0.08 units at higher photosynthetic rates. This increase was thought to be related to the crassulacean acid metabolism (CAM)-like strategies connected to these algae. For all other algae studied, the ratio remained constant or decreased slightly (at most by 0.04 units) at higher photosynthetic rates. The relations between the abovementioned ratio and the photosynthetic quotient are discussed on a theoretical basis.     

Behavioral aspects of sperm competition in cuttlefish, Sepia officinalis (Sepioidea: Cephalopoda)

Sexual selection studies in cephalopods indicate that sperm competition is a central feature of their mating systems, yet this has not been studied experimentally in any detail. In 1998 we staged 20 matings of the cuttlefish, Sepia officinalis L., in the laboratory. Males rapidly initiated mating in the “head-to-head” position, with no apparent courtship. Mating lasted an average of 10 min (range 7 to 14 min). For the first 6 min (on average 63% of the mating duration), the male flushed strong jets of water directly at the female's buccal membrane, which sometimes resulted in the expulsion of parts of spermatangia placed there in recent matings. Then, in a single discrete movement that lasted an average of only 14 s, the male's modified fourth left arm – the hectocotylus – wrapped around a single large bundle of spermatophores (ca. 150 to 300) and transferred them to the female's buccal membrane. For the remainder of the mating (average 3 min, range 1.5 to 5.0 min), the hectocotylus repeatedly broke the spermatophores open, and manipulated them, so that sperm were released and many spermatangia were attached along the ventral buccal membrane, near the paired seminal receptacles. Approximately 140 spermatangia were attached in rows 3 to 5 deep around the ventral buccal membrane in a single mating; the rest were usually discarded during mating. Histology revealed that each of the seminal receptacles consists of a series of sperm storage bulbs connected by a central duct, which leads to a single pore at the surface of the buccal membrane. Baseline data on sperm motility were obtained, but the mechanism by which sperm enter the seminal receptacle remains unknown. Females seemed to initiate termination of mating, then males guarded their mates temporarily. These results, combined with other recent laboratory experiments, provide evidence that sperm competition may be a major feature of the mating system of S. officinalis. Received: 4 January 1999 / Accepted: 18 May 1999     

Ammonia emission from grassland and livestock production systems in the UK

Emissions of ammonia were measured from livestock excreta and fertilisers applied to grass swards, from grazed paddocks, from decomposing grass herbage and from an animal house containing dairy cows. Emissions from urine, dung, slurry and fertilisers were determined using a system of wind tunnels with each tunnel covering an area of 1 m(2). Emissions from grazed swards were determined using a micrometeorological mass balance method. From the results of these measurements, together with other published information, an inventory for ammonia emissions has been calculated for grassland and livestock production systems over the UK as a whole. It is estimated that emissions from grassland and cattle and sheep production amount to about 230 kt NH(3)-N annually, while emissions from pig and poultry production amount to about 40 kt and 80 kt NH(3)-N, respectively.     

Trace metals in the hair of habitants of the Ok Tedi region, Papua New Guinea

It has long been known that mining activity can markedly change the level and distribution of certain heavy metals in the adjacent environment. This pollution can be quite widespread and long lasting and often has deleterious effects on the health of local populations. In the present study scalp hair was used as the biopsy material because of its ease of collection and long history of use in this connection. Hair was collected from all the local villages in the vicinity of the mine site, as well as from Papua New Guinean nationals from other provinces, and European expatriates who were employed by the mining company and who were resident in the area. Hair from local people showed a remarkably high iron content by comparison with previously studied populations. The extreme variations in hair iron levels were reflected in the differential distribution of levels according to location, age and sex. Hair cadmium was also high in the population studied. Hair copper, lead, zinc and mercury all appeared to be within 'normal' limits by comparison with other general populations. These results are discussed in the context of the environmental and social impact of the mining operations on the local people.