Adverse Effects on Alfeios River Basin and an Integrated Management Framework Based on Sustainability

The Alfeios River, the longest and highest flow-rate river in Peloponnisos, constitutes an important water resource and ecosystem in Greece. In the present study, human activities in the Alfeios River Basin are described, and their impacts on water quality and the ecosystem are analyzed; effects resulting from interventions on river geomorphology between Flokas Dam and the river delta are determined. These actions have caused significant adverse impacts on the infrastructure (the dam, railroad, and road bridges), the level of aquifer water table and area water uses, and the aquatic and riparian ecosystem. A general integrated management strategy is formulated and a master management plan is proposed for resolving management problems in river basins. The plan considers local conditions and national requirements and complies with the European Communities legislation; it would help prevent further basin deterioration, improve water quality, and protect water resources and ecosystems in the area in accordance to sustainable development. The Alfeios River Basin serves as a case study in the development of the plan.Published online Note: This version was published online in June 2005 with the cover date of August 2004.     

Viruses Surveillance Under Different Season Scenarios of the Negro River Basin,Amazonia, Brazil

The Negro River is located in the Amazon basin, the largest hydrological catchment in the world. Its water is used for drinking, domestic activities, recreation and transportation and water quality is significantly affected by anthropogenic impacts. The goals of this study were to determine the presence and concentrations of the main viral etiological agents of acute gastroenteritis, such as group A rotavirus (RVA) and genogroup II norovirus (NoV GII), and to assess the use of human adenovirus (HAdV) and JC polyomavirus (JCPyV) as viral indicators of human faecal contamination in the aquatic environment of Manaus under different hydrological scenarios. Water samples were collected along Negro River and in small streams known as class="EmphasisTypeItalic ">igarapés. Viruses were concentrated by an organic flocculation method and detected by quantitative PCR. From 272 samples analysed, HAdV was detected in 91.9 %, followed by JCPyV (69.5 %), RVA (23.9 %) and NoV GII (7.4 %). Viral concentrations ranged from 10² to 10⁶ GC L^?1 and viruses were more likely to be detected during the flood season, with the exception of NoV GII, which was detected only during the dry season. Statistically significant differences on virus concentrations between dry and flood seasons were observed only for RVA. The HAdV data provides a useful complement to faecal indicator bacteria in the monitoring of aquatic environments. Overall results demonstrated that the hydrological cycle of the Negro River in the Amazon Basin affects the dynamics of viruses in aquatic environments and, consequently, the exposure of citizens to these waterborne pathogens.     

Interactions of 233Pa with tissues of Mytilus galloprovincialis and Carcinus mediterraneus

Uptake of ²³³Pa from sea water by mussels Mytilus galloprovincialis L. and shore crabs Carcinus mediterraneus Csrn. was studied. Results indicate a high contamination factor in digestive tract, gills and skeleton of both investigated species and an increment of the contamination factor in mussel byssus. In spite of this, reproductive system, muscle and hemolymph were only negligibly contaminated. The presence of complexone EDTA in sea water has no effect on uptake of ²³³Pa in the animal tissues tested.     

Prevalence of Human Parainfluenza Viruses and Noroviruses Genomes on Office Fomites

The aim of this study was to evaluate the potential role of office fomites in respiratory (human parainfluenza virus 1—HPIV1, human parainfluenza virus 3—HPIV3) and enteric (norovirus GI—NoV GI, norovirus GII—NoV GII) viruses transmission by assessing the occurrence of these viruses on surfaces in office buildings. Between 2016 and 2017, a total of 130 surfaces from open-space and non-open-space rooms in office buildings located in one city were evaluated for HPIV1, HPIV3, NoV GI, and NoV GII viral RNA presence. Detection of viruses was performed by RT-qPCR method. Study revealed 27 positive samples, among them 59.3% were HPIV3-positive, 25.9% HPIV1-positive, and 14.8% NoV GII-positive. All tested surfaces were NoV GI-negative. Statistical analysis of obtained data showed that the surfaces of office equipment including computer keyboards and mice, telephones, and desktops were significantly more contaminated with respiratory viruses than the surfaces of building equipment elements such as door handles, light switches, or ventilation tracts (class="EmphasisTypeItalic ">χ ² class="EmphasisTypeItalic ">p = 0.006; Fisher’s Exact class="EmphasisTypeItalic ">p = 0.004). All examined surfaces were significantly more contaminated with HPIVs than NoVs (class="EmphasisTypeItalic ">χ ² class="EmphasisTypeItalic ">p = 0.002; Fisher’s Exact class="EmphasisTypeItalic ">p = 0.003). Office fomites in open-space rooms were more often contaminated with HPIVs than with NoVs (class="EmphasisTypeItalic ">χ ² class="EmphasisTypeItalic ">p = 0.016; Fisher’s Exact class="EmphasisTypeItalic ">p = 0.013). The highest average concentration of HPIVs RNA copies was observed on telephones (1.66 × 10² copies/100 cm²), while NoVs on the light switches (1.40 × 10² copies/100 cm²). However, the Kruskal–Wallis test did not show statistically significant differences in concentration levels of viral RNA copies on surfaces between the all tested samples. This study unequivocally showed that individuals in office environment may have contact with both respiratory and enteric viral particles present on frequently touched surfaces.     

Selective detection of metal ions,sulfites and glutathione with fluorescent pyrazolines: a review

Environmental Chemistry Letters - Pollution by toxic metals is a worldwide health issue, yet analytical methods to monitor selectively metal ions in complex media are limited. Fluorescence sensing...     

Modeling the stream water nitrate dynamics in a 60,000-km2 European catchment, the Garonne, southwest France

The spatial and temporal dynamics in the stream water NO(3)-N concentrations in a major European river-system, the Garonne (62,700 km(2)), are described and related to variations in climate, land management, and effluent point-sources using multivariate statistics. Building on this, the Hydrologiska Byr?ns Vattenbalansavdelning (HBV) rainfall-runoff model and the Integrated Catchment Model of Nitrogen (INCA-N) are applied to simulate the observed flow and N dynamics. This is done to help us to understand which factors and processes control the flow and N dynamics in different climate zones and to assess the relative inputs from diffuse and point sources across the catchment. This is the first application of the linked HBV and INCA-N models to a major European river system commensurate with the largest basins to be managed under the Water Framework Directive. The simulations suggest that in the lowlands, seasonal patterns in the stream water NO(3)-N concentrations emerge and are dominated by diffuse agricultural inputs, with an estimated 75% of the river load in the lowlands derived from arable farming. The results confirm earlier European catchment studies. Namely, current semi-distributed catchment-scale dynamic models, which integrate variations in land cover, climate, and a simple representation of the terrestrial and in-stream N cycle, are able to simulate seasonal NO(3)-N patterns at large spatial (>300 km(2)) and temporal (> or = monthly) scales using available national datasets.     

Physical and numerical modelling of tsunami generation by a moving obstacle at the bottom boundary

This paper presents a study of the waves generated by a solid block landslide moving along a horizontal boundary. The landslide was controlled using a mechanical system in a series of physical experiments, and laser-induced fluorescence measurements resolved both spatial and temporal variations in the free surface elevation. During its constant-velocity motion, the landslide transferred energy into ‘trapped’ offshore-propagating waves within a narrow frequency band. The wave trapping is demonstrated by investigating the wave dispersion characteristics using a two-dimensional Fourier Transform. The first of the trailing waves broke at Froude numbers greater than or equal to 0.625. The parametric dependence of the largest-amplitude waves and the potential energy within the wave field are discussed. The experimental results were compared to the predictions of an incompressible Navier–Stokes solver with and without turbulence models. The numerical model under-predicted the measured wave amplitudes, although it accurately predicted the measured wave phasing. The turbulent model more accurately predicted the shapes of the trailing waves. Both experimental and numerical results confirmed that investigations into wave generation by submerged objects moving at constant velocity should also consider the initial acceleration of the object, as this affects the overall evolution of the wave field. The applicability of the horizontal-boundary results to more realistic field scenarios is discussed.