Short- and medium-term effects of experimental nitrogen fertilization on arthropods associated with Calluna vulgaris heathlands in north-west Spain

We studied the short- and medium-term effects of experimental nitrogen fertilization (3 and 15 months after the treatment) on the arthropods of Calluna vulgaris heathlands in NW Spain. Three heathland sites were selected with two permanent plots per site: control and fertilized. Ammonium nitrate fertilizer (56 kg N ha(-1) yr(-1)) was applied monthly and insects were caught using pitfall traps. We found mainly species-level responses to nitrogen addition. Seven species (e.g. Lochmaea suturalis) showed a consistent trend (benefited or harmed) in both periods and were proposed as possible reliable indicators of the effects of nitrogen deposition in these ecosystems. We also found variable arthropod trophic-group responses: (a) herbivores (leaf beetles, true bugs) increased in abundance on a short-term scale; (b) predators (carabid beetles, true bugs) showed opposite and less clear responses in both periods. Further long-term studies are needed to determine the mechanisms underlying the observed arthropod responses.     

Forest planning across Europe: the spatial scale,tools, andinter-sectoral integration in land-use planning

New approaches to forest planning are needed to support the transition of European forests to sustainable management. The aim of this study is to review forest planning systems already in place throughout Europe by exploring a set of case-study countries reflecting the main silvicultural schools of Western Europe, including Belgium, Finland, France, Italy, Portugal, and Slovenia.

A literature review and case-study data were used to assess the scale factors (vertical logic) as well as the relationships between forest planning and other environmental/land-use planning sectors (horizontal logic). The influence of EU policy on the development of forest planning is also discussed. As assessed using the vertical logic, the multi-scale and multi-topic planning approaches adopted in the countries studied here are highly heterogeneous. The horizontal logic shows that despite the importance of an inter-sectoral and harmonic relational framework between forest planning and the planning efforts of other sectors such as landscape and urban planning, the various plans are barely consistent with each other across the European countries studied here. Although interest is growing in the multi-functionality of forests, their sustainable management calls for the development of better integrated planning approaches across Europe.     

Fertilization of maize with compost from cattle manure supplemented with additional mineral nutrients

An alternative approach for cattle manure management on intensive livestock farms is the composting process. An industrial-scale composting plant has been set up in northwest Spain for producing compost from cattle manure. Manure composting involved an increase in pH, electrical conductivity (EC), cation exchange capacity (CEC) and NO3(-)--N concentration, and a decrease in temperature, moisture content, organic matter (OM) content, NH4+--N concentration and C/N ratio. Cu, Zn and Ni concentrations increased due to the reduction of pile mass during the composting process. The resulting compost was applied to a field to study the viability of applying this compost combined with a nitrogen mineral fertilizer as a replacement for the mineral fertilization conventionally used for maize (Zea mays L.). The thermophilic phase of the composting process was very prolonged in the time, which may have slowed down the decomposition of the organic matter and reduced the nitrification process, leading to an over-short maturation phase. The humification and respirometric indexes, however, determined immediately after compost application to the soil, showed it to be stable. Compost application did not decrease the grain yield. A year later, soil pH, OM content and CEC were higher with the compost treatment. Total P, K, Ca and Na concentrations in compost-amended plots were higher than in mineral-fertilized ones, and no significant differences between treatments were found in soil concentrations of NH4+--N,NO3- --N, available P, Mg and B. Compost caused no heavy metal pollution into the soil. Therefore, this compost would be a good substitute for the mineral fertilizers generally used for basal dressing in maize growing.     

Organic compounds temporal trends at some invertebrate species from the Balearics, Western Mediterranean

Concentrations of persistent organic pollutants (POPs) such as hexachlorobenzene (HCB), dichlore diphenyl trichloretane (DDT), polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs), and gamma-hexachlorocyclohexane (gamma-HCH or lindane) were determined in tissue of marine benthic invertebrates such as Mytilus galloprovincialis, Chamelea gallina, Venus verrucosa, Lithophaga lithophaga and Paracentrotus lividus. Species were selected due to their habitat, trophic level, feeding behaviour and their consumption. Invertebrate species were systematically sampled from December 1996 to December 2005 from several sites along the Balearic Islands. The highest concentrations of PCBs (785ng/g lipid) were found in M. galloprovincialis while the lowest concentrations were found in the sea-urchin P. lividus (193ng/g lipid). Among the 7 PCB quantified congeners the higher values are mainly obtained for CB138 and CB153. All bivalves presented higher PCBs contents than the sea-urchin P. lividus are possibly linked with the bioaccumulation process of POPs throughout the food web and to differential detoxifying mechanisms. The concentration of SigmaDDT exceeds that of HCB and gamma-HCH at all species and sampling stations. DDT concentrations ranged from 0.4ng/g ww at the bivalve C. gallina in 2002, to values of 15.8ng/g ww at the bivalve L. lithophaga in 1998. The values obtained for the organic compounds (HCH, HCB, PCBs, DDT) depend upon the place and year of sampling and are compared to values found by other authors for the mussel M. galloprovincialis in other Mediterranean areas. gamma-HCH and HCB were found in lower concentrations than the other POPs.     

Trace elements in biodeposits and sediments from mussel culture in the Ria de Arousa (Galicia, NW Spain)

The trace elements present at highest concentrations were Cr and Zn, which probably originated from the dumping of effluent from a tanning factory. High proportions of these two elements were associated with the residual fraction. Biodeposits and sediments showed high concentrations of Cd and Pb in the reactive fraction, with a high proportion of the concentration in the reactive fraction being associated with carbonates. Nickel showed a higher degree of pyritization than the previous elements, although most of the Ni was associated with the residual and reactive fractions. Arsenic, Hg and Cu showed high degrees of pyritization, particularly below a depth of 5 cm. The results demonstrate that those elements with a high degree of pyritization may be released into the water through oxidation of the metal sulphides that they form when in suspension in oxic sea water, with the subsequent risk of increased bioavailability to benthic fauna.     

Environmental diagnosis methodology for municipal waste landfills

A large number of countries are involved in a process of transformation with regard to the management of municipal solid waste. This process is a consequence of environmental requirements that occasionally materialise in legislation, such as the European Council Directive 31/99/EC on waste release in the European Union. In some cases, the remediation of old landfills can be carried out in compliance with environmental requirements; in other cases, it is necessary to proceed with the closure of the landfill and to assimilate it into its own environment. In both cases, it is necessary to undertake a diagnosis and characterisation of the impacted areas in order to develop an adequate action plan. This study presents a new methodology by which environmental diagnosis of landfill sites may be carried out. The methodology involves the formulation of a series of environmental indeces which provide information concerning the potential environmental problems of the landfills and the particular impact on different environmental elements, as well as information related to location, design and operation. On the basis of these results, it would be possible to draw up action plans for the remediation or closure of the landfill site. By applying the methodology to several landfills in a specific area, it would be possible to prioritize the order of actions required.     

Organization of School Centres and Environmental Education: In Search of Action Models for the Greening of School Organization

The introduction of environmental education (EE) in school centres is a process which has mainly followed two paths. One centred on teaching actions, on the curriculum organization and administration in order to enable educational practice orientated towards attaining the aims of EE. The other, which is here denominated 'organizational strategy' focuses, basically, on the organization and administration of the centre from an environmental perspective. The characteristics and main results of this 'environmental education and school organization' research project are described, dedicating special attention to the assessments of some of the participants. A series of elements for discussion and debate which could be useful in the development of future projects and actions within the framework of school organization greening is presented.     

Quantification of Human Adenoviruses in European Recreational Waters

The presence of human adenoviruses (HAdV) in recreational water might cause disease in the population upon exposure. HAdV detected by PCR could also serve as indicators of the virological water quality. In order to assess the applicability of HAdV to the evaluation of the faecal contamination in European bathing waters, a real-time quantitative PCR assay was used for the quantification of HAdV in 132 samples collected from 24 different recreational marine and freshwater sites in nine European countries. Selected samples presenting positive nested PCR results for HAdV were analyzed using quantitative PCR and 80 samples from a total of 132 produced quantitative results with mean values of 3.2 × 10² per 100 ml of water, being human adenovirus 41 the most prevalent serotype between the samples where adenovirus was typified. HAdV were quantified in samples from all 15 surveillance laboratories. Statistical analysis showed no homogeneous linear relation between HAdV and E. coli, intestinal enterococci or somatic coliphages concentrations in the tested samples when considering all the data together. Significant correlations between HAdV and at least one of the other indicators were observed only when data from individual laboratories were considered. The quantification of HAdV may provide complementary information in relation to the use of bacterial standards in the control of water quality in bathing water.     

Responses of evergreen and deciduous Quercus species to enhanced ozone levels

Plants of one evergreen oak (Quercus ilex) and three deciduous oaks (Q. faginea, with small leaves; Q. pyrenaica and Q. robur, with large leaves) were exposed both to filtered air and to enhanced ozone levels in Open-Top Chambers. Q. faginea and Q. pyrenaica were studied for the first time. Based on visible injury, gas exchange, chlorophyll content and biomass responses, Q. pyrenaica was the most sensitive species, and Q. ilex was the most tolerant, followed by Q. faginea. Functional leaf traits of the species were related to differences in sensitivity, while accumulated ozone flux via stomata (POD_1.6) partly contributed to the observed differences. For risk assessment of Mediterranean vegetation, the diversity of responses detected in this study should be taken into account, applying appropriate critical levels.