Comparison of linuron degradation in the presence of pesticide mixtures in soil under laboratory conditions

It is widely recognised that complex interactions occur between chemicals in mixtures. In many agricultural situations, the use of tank mixes and complex spray programs is a common practice. Insecticides, fungicides and a herbicide being applied in potato protection were used in this research. Interactions between linuron and insecticides, such as thiamethoxam or clothianidin, and fungicides, such as mancozeb or chlorothalonil, were examined in soil. The degradation rate of linuron in soil during laboratory incubation in six treatments was studied. Mixtures of linuron with mancozeb in sandy loam and clay loam soils had a significant effect on the persistence of this herbicide. For example, for the same herbicide, t _1/2 values for linuron were from 37 days in sandy loam to 44 days in clay loam. These values changed (64–67 days) when thiamethoxam and mancozeb were in soil. When mancozeb was added only, the half-life values were from 59 to 62 days, respectively. Other mixtures with chlorothalonil, thiamethoxam and clothianidin did not have any effect. In order to compare linuron degradation rates in soils, a single first-order model and expanded statistical analysis were used.     

The economic,environmental and agricultural land use effects in the European Union of agricultural labour subsidies under the Common Agricultural Policy

In this study, we assessed the economic, environmental and agricultural land use impacts in the EU of a 20% reduction in the Pillar I budget of the Common Agricultural Policy (CAP) of the European Union (EU) and spending the saved money via a subsidy on labour in primary agriculture. The impact of such a policy has been assessed with a computable general equilibrium (CGE) model and a partial equilibrium (PE) model. It is concluded that reallocation of Pillar I budgets to a coupled agricultural labour subsidy increased employment in agriculture, especially in agricultural sectors and regions that are relatively labour intensive. Average employment in agriculture in the EU increased with 1.6% in the CGE model and with 0.6% in the PE model. Agricultural production and environmental emissions from agriculture increased as well. At the same time, prices of agricultural outputs decreased. Value added including subsidies increased for agricultural labour, but total value added in agriculture decreased. The latter was especially explained by decreased land prices and land-related value added. Measured in terms of equivalent variation, total welfare in the EU decreased. Welfare costs equalled about 1400 € per full-time work equivalent in agriculture extra. These results show that policy makers should weigh carefully the pros and cons of the direct and indirect overall economic, environmental and land use impacts of a subsidy on agricultural labour at the expense of the Pillar I budget of the EU CAP.

     

A cross-scale impact assessment of European nature protection policies under contrasting future socio-economic pathways

Regional Environmental Change - Protection of natural or semi-natural ecosystems is an important part of societal strategies for maintaining biodiversity, ecosystem services, and achieving overall...     

Bioelements and mineral matter in human livers from the highly industrialized region of the Upper Silesia Coal Basin (Poland)

Contents of mineral substance, silica, and a range of bioelements and toxic elements (Mg, Na, K, Ca, Ba, Zn, Cr, P Al, Cd, Mn Cu, Ni, Pb, Sr, Fe) in 38 livers of donors from the Upper Silesia Coal Basin (southern Poland) are presented. Elements were determined by inductively coupled plasma-atomic emission spectrometry (ICP-AES) with the exception of silica that was estimated colorimetrically. Concentrations, concentration variability, and correlations between selected liver components determined for the total population are related to donor age, gender, and lesion occurrence. Correlations between particular elements were found using correlation coefficient values and the Fisher transformation. Mineral substance in the livers lies in the range 0.40–5.03 wt%. With increasing donor age, mineral-matter content decreases to a minimum for the 40–60 years of age range. Microbioelement contents show a similar tendency, while microbioelements and toxic elements reach maximum contents in donors aged 60–80 years. All elements show content decreases in livers from the oldest group (>80 years). Silica contents increase with age. Variability of element contents is lowest in the older subpopulations. Livers with lesions show lower element contents and variability. The results are compared to literature data for regions of Poland assumed to be of low pollution and to data from comparable regions in Japan and Hungary. Up to our knowledge, this paper is the first work describing the total contents, as distinct from contents of selected elements, of mineral substance in human livers.     

Kickback risk of portable chainsaws while cutting wood of different properties: laboratory tests and deductions

Portable chainsaws are associated with substantial risk and can cause serious injury to operators, especially during kickback. This paper presents new results from research and analyses conducted regarding the impact between the different properties of wood on this occurrence. In an open area, such differences may include: wood species, humidity, temperature and the facing angle of the wood fibres in relation to the kerf and shape of the wood surface that comes in contact with the tip of the guide bar. This paper investigates chainsaw kickback including the research results on kickback and wood-cutting energy, saw chain speed and the efficiency of the chainsaw engine. It also presents conclusions drawn from the tests that can be useful for chainsaw users, showing the dependencies between the different properties of wood and the risk of injury.     

Work ability in ageing workers suffering from chronic diseases.

The aim of this study was to investigate the work ability in ageing workers suffering from osteoarthritis (OA), coronary heart disease (CHD) or hypertension (H). One hundred and sixty-six OA and 355 CHD/H outpatients were evaluated. The Work Ability Index (WAI) served for work ability assessment. Patients' results were compared with the results of a control group of 225 healthy young workers. Statistical analysis was performed with ANOVA tests. WAI in female and male CHD/H patients was higher than in OA patients (p < .01), better work ability was related to better education (p < .01), white-collar work (p < .01) and better recreation (p < .01); subjective work ability was determined mostly by the objective health status. The promotion of work ability among workers suffering from advanced age-related diseases should be closely related to the promotion of health. It is indicative to improve occupational education and skills, already at an early stage of a disease.     

Workstations for people with disabilities: an example of a virtual reality approach

This article describes a method of adapting workstations for workers with motion disability using computer simulation and virtual reality (VR) techniques. A workstation for grinding spring faces was used as an example. It was adjusted for two people with a disabled right upper extremity. The study had two stages. In the first, a computer human model with a visualization of maximal arm reach and preferred workspace was used to develop a preliminary modification of a virtual workstation. In the second stage, an immersive VR environment was used to assess the virtual workstation and to add further modifications. All modifications were assessed by measuring the efficiency of work and the number of movements involved. The results of the study showed that a computer simulation could be used to determine whether a worker with a disability could access all important areas of a workstation and to propose necessary modifications.     

Preliminary study of acrylamide monomer decomposition during methane fermentation of dairy waste sludge

Polyacrylamide(PAM) used in sludge dewatering exists widely in high-solid anaerobic digestion. Acrylamide is registered in the list of chemicals demonstrating toxic, carcinogenic and mutagenic properties. Therefore, it is reasonable to ask about the mobility of such residual substances in the environment. The study was carried out to assess the impact of the mesophilic(39 ± 1°C) and thermophilic(54 ± 1°C) fermentation process on the level of acrylamide monomer(AMD) content in the dairy sludge. The material was analysed using high-performance liquid chromatography(HPLC) for quantification of AMD. The results indicate that the process of methane fermentation continues regardless of the temperature effects on the degradation of AMD in dairy sludge. The degree of reduction of acrylamide monomer for thermophilic fermentation is 100%, while for mesophilic fermentation it is91%. In practice, this means that biogas technology eliminates the risk of AMD migration to plant tissue. Moreover, it should be stressed that 90% of cumulative biogas and methane production was reached one week earlier under thermophilic conditions — the dynamics of the methanisation process were over 20% faster.     

Variations of anthropogenic CO2 in urban area deduced by radiocarbon concentration in modern tree rings

Radiocarbon concentration in the atmosphere is significantly lower in areas where man-made emissions of carbon dioxide occur. This phenomenon is known as Suess effect, and is caused by the contamination of clean air with non-radioactive carbon from fossil fuel combustion. The effect is more strongly observed in industrial and densely populated urban areas. Measurements of carbon isotope concentrations in a study area can be compared to those from areas of clear air in order to estimate the amount of carbon dioxide emission from fossil fuel combustion by using a simple mathematical model. This can be calculated using the simple mathematical model. The result of the mathematical model followed in this study suggests that the use of annual rings of trees to obtain the secular variations of 14C concentration of atmospheric CO2 can be useful and efficient for environmental monitoring and modeling of the carbon distribution in local scale.     

Effect of aerobic pretreatment of waste on the rate of anaerobic treatment processes

The efficiency of waste degradation can be expressed by the rate of waste decomposition in individual phases. This article presents the durations of degradation phases of pretreated and untreated waste stabilized in anaerobic laboratory reactors. In this investigation, the quantities of organic and nitrogen contaminants emitted from the waste during the study are presented. The study confirmed the beneficial effects of aerobic pretreatment of waste before landfilling on reducing the duration of hydrolysis and acid phases, and speeding up the start of the stable methane phase. In the pretreated waste reactor, the stable methane phase began about 19 weeks earlier than in the untreated waste. The total amounts of contaminants removed from the aerobic pretreatment waste were lower than from untreated waste, with values of COD, TOC, BOD₅, and VFA corresponding to 21, 18, 6, and 23 %, respectively, and values of TKN and NH₄ of 7 and 50 %, respectively.