Bibliometric analysis of European publications between 2001 and 2016 on concentrations of selected elements in mushrooms

Environmental Science and Pollution Research - This article presents a bibliometric study of 200 European publications released between 2001 and 2016, about the contamination of mushrooms by...     

Storm water contamination and its effect on the quality of urban surface waters

We studied the effect of storm water drained by the sewerage system and discharged into a river and a small reservoir, on the example of five catchments located within the boundaries of the city of Poznań (Poland). These catchments differed both in terms of their surface area and land use (single- and multi-family housing, industrial areas). The aim of the analyses was to explain to what extent pollutants found in storm water runoff from the studied catchments affected the quality of surface waters and whether it threatened the aquatic organisms. Only some of the 14 studied variables and 22 chemical elements were important for the water quality of the river, i.e., pH, TSS, rain intensity, temperature, conductivity, dissolved oxygen, organic matter content, Al, Cu, Pb, Zn, Fe, Cd, Ni, Se, and Tl. The most serious threat to biota in the receiver came from the copper contamination of storm water runoff. Of all samples below the sewerage outflow, 74 % exceeded the mean acute value for Daphnia species. Some of them exceeded safe concentrations for other aquatic organisms. Only the outlet from the industrial area with the highest impervious surface had a substantial influence on the water quality of the river. A reservoir situated in the river course had an important influence on the elimination of storm water pollution, despite the very short residence time of its water.     

Environmental Bioindication Studies by Bayesian Network with Use of Grey Heron as Model Species

The article presents a procedure for assessing the quality of the environment, using eggshells of birds as a biomarker implemented into a Bayesian network. An environmental quality index (EQI) was proposed and calculated on the basis of local quality indicators. Experimental data on concentrations of toxic elements in grey heron (Ardea cinerea) eggshells (biomarker of river valleys) were used to determine the empirical variables (nodes) and the probability distributions on the set of these variables. A probabilistic graphical model represents a multitude of relationships between variables in a system that enables the prediction of EQI. The model presented is a useful tool for environmental quality management.     

Mercury concentration in lichen, moss and soil samples collected from the forest areas of Praded and Glacensis Euroregions (Poland and Czech Republic)

The concentration of mercury was determined in samples of the lichen Hypogymnia physodes, the moss Pleurozium schreberi, and the soil humus collected in Polish and Czech Euroregions Praded and Glacensis. The sampling sites were located in Bory Stobrawskie, Bory Niemodlińskie and Kotlina K?odzka in Poland, and in Jeseniki and Gory Orlickie in the Czech Republic. The mean concentrations of mercury accumulated in the lichen (0.129?mg?g(-1)), in the moss (0.094?mg?g(-1)) and in soil (0.286?mg?g(-1)) were fairly close to the corresponding concentrations in other low-industrialized regions. The highest concentrations of mercury were observed in the lichen and the moss samples from Kotlina K?odzka. The primary deposition of mercury was evaluated using the comparison factor, defined as the ratio of a difference between the concentrations of a bioavailable analyte in lichens and in mosses, to the arithmetic mean of these concentrations.     

Particulate matter on two Prunus spp. decreases survival and performance of the folivorous beetle Gonioctena quinquepunctata

Woody plants growing along streets and construction sites play an important role in removing harmful particulate matter (PM). Researchers rarely consider the impact of different types and size fractions of PM deposited on the leaves on insect folivores. We determined differences in the accumulation of cement and roadside PM on the leaves of two Prunus species (P. padus and P. serotina) with different leaf surface structures. We also determined the effect of PM on the beetle Gonioctena quinquepunctata, the main pest of these plants. Saplings were artificially dusted in greenhouses and leaves were utilised for larval and adult insect stages feeding in laboratory conditions. Road PM accumulated in greater amounts than did cement PM, regardless of plant species. For both PM sources, P. padus accumulated twofold more than did P. serotina. Insect survival was negatively affected by PM pollution; however, neither Prunus species nor PM source variant significantly affected masses of larvae and pupae, duration of larval and pupal development or relative growth rates. The experiment showed strong negative influences of PM were noted only for adult insects, due to the grazing period being longer than that in larvae. The mass of adult insects and the efficiency of conversion of ingested food (ECI) were lower for insects exposed to PM than those for control insects. Insects compensated for lower ECI by eating a greater total amount of food (TFE). Adult insects gained significantly higher mass when fed with P. serotina than with P. padus. The effect of PM on analysed plant metabolites was insignificant. Only Prunus sp. and date of collection affected the level of condensed tannins and total phenols. Our results indicate that, when investigating the effect of the host plant on folivore performance, the accumulation of PM, as well as its type and quantity, should be taken into account.

     

Simulation study of the Lower Cretaceous geothermal reservoir for aquifer thermal energy storage

Environmental Geochemistry and Health - The aquifer thermal energy storage (ATES) has gained attention in several countries as an installation for increasing the energy efficiency of geothermal...     

Physicochemical characteristics of the Dombrovska pit lake (Ukraine) formed in an opencast potassium salt mine and the genome response of Chironomus salinarius Kieffer (Chironomidae,Diptera) to these conditions

This study focuses on the Dombrovska pit lake, near the city of Kalush in Ukraine, which is a former potassium salt mine filled with brine and freshwater. The water level is still increasing and as a result the salinity is decreasing. We analyzed the benthic fauna communities and the genome instability by assessing the rearrangements in the polytene chromosomes of Chironomus salinarius and the physicochemical parameters of the near-bottom water (pH, conductivity, mineralization, major ions, NO₃⁻, NH₄⁺, metals Cd, Pb, Cu, Mn, and Fe) and sediment (pH, organic matter and metals Cd, Pb, Cu, Zn, Mn, and Fe) at four sites. The water mineralization ranged from 17.3 to 26.2 g dm⁻³ which are classified as mesohaline and polyhaline waters, respectively. The biodiversity of the benthic fauna was low, and the dominant species was C. salinarius. The density of C. salinarius varied spatially and changed from 637 ind./m² at a depth of 5 m to 8167 ind./m² at a depth of 2.5 m. The genome instability was analyzed by examining the structural and functional changes in the salivary gland chromosomes of C. salinarius. The exposure of C. salinarius damaged the chromosomes and the activities of key structures, such as the Balbiani ring and nucleolar organizer, were partially or completely suppressed.

     

Environmental benefits from geothermal energy use with a well doublet located in the Szczecin Trough (NW Poland)

Environmental Geochemistry and Health - The article presents environmental aspects related to the use of geothermal waters of the Lower Jurassic in the area of the Szczecin Trough. The research...     

Effects of zero-valent iron (Fe0) and temperature on the transformation of DDT and its metabolites in lake sediment

Zero-valent iron improves the transformation of DDT [1,1,1-trichloro-2,2-bis(p-chlorophenyl)ethane] and its metabolites in aged and highly contaminated lake sediment under biotic conditions. The addition of Fe0 has a strong effect on transformation rates at 22 degrees C and 9 degrees C, the most enhanced degradation being obtained for DDT and DDOH [2,2-bis(p-chlorophenyl)ethanol]. At 22 degrees C and 10 weeks' incubation, the DDT concentration is reduced from 2.75 micromol g(-1) (974 mg kg(-1)) to 0.98 micromol g(-1) (346 mg kg(-1)) and 1.98 micromol g(-1) (702 mg kg(-1)) in samples with and without the addition of iron, respectively. After 40 weeks' incubation these concentrations have further decreased to 0.19 micromol g(-1) (66 mg kg(-1)) and 0.74 micromol g(-1) (264 mg kg(-1)).There is no significant transformation of any of the compounds at 9 degrees C without the addition of Fe0. In the presence of iron, however, DDT is reduced to 1.25 micromol g(-1) (442 mg kg(-1)) within 40 weeks' incubation. This study demonstrates the ability of adapted microorganisms to transform DDT under elevated temperatures in original, aged sediments, and also the stimulating effect of zero-valent iron, which is significant even at low temperatures.