Treatment of a wastewater from a pesticide manufacture by combined coagulation and Fenton oxidation

The treatment of a non-biodegradable agrochemical wastewater has been studied by coupling of preliminary coagulation—flocculation step and further Fenton oxidation. High percentages of chemical oxygen demand (COD) removal (up to 58 %) were achieved in a first step using polyferric chloride as coagulant. This reduced significantly the amount of H₂O₂ required in the further Fenton oxidation. Using the stoichiometric amount relative to COD around 80 % of the remaining organic load was mineralized. The combined treatment allowed achieving the regional discharge limits of ecotoxicity at a cost substantially lower than the solution used so far where these wastewaters are managed as hazardous wastes.     

Comparative study of the urban quality of life in Cuban first-level cities from an objective dimension

The urban quality of life (UQoL) from objective dimension was analyzed in the main Cuban cities. An Urban Quality of Life Index (UQoLI) was developed in collaboration with 60 experts (five in each city). These experts belong to one of two categories: in charge of the planning of the city and members of the Municipal Council of Administration. One hundred and forty-two directors of the Local District Administration also participated in the analysis. The UQoLI includes three dimensions: social services, economic performance, and urban services, the importance of which is weighed according to expert criteria. A Ranking of the studied cities, sorted by the UQoLI, shows a tendency of increase it UQoL in the west even and central regions. This tendency contradicts one of the foundations of the Cuban sustainable development framework, i.e., equity.     

Let’s play transformations! Performative methods for sustainability

Coping with global environmental change demands new forms of civic engagement and interaction able to transform passive audiences attending to the drama of unsustainability into committed actors for sustainability. This entails linking diverse sources of scientific knowledge with personal experiences, emotion and ethical judgments. In this paper, we assess the potential as well as the limitations of innovative theatre-based participatory tools and methods aimed at supporting sustainability learning and agent transformation. To this aim, we first review a series of experiences using theatrical performance and introduce the notion of performative methods. Second, we assess to what extent these new approaches can be of relevance in environmental action research and sustainability science, practice and learning. Finally, we list a series of key research questions to further guide methodological innovation in this promising area of sustainability science and practice. Our findings show a growing and successful use of such methodologies worldwide, both in academia and in implementation-oriented approaches. An increasing number of topics and complexity is being embraced by these methods, offering a fertile ground for innovation in participatory sustainability science.     

A framework for the social valuation of ecosystem services

Methods to assess ecosystem services using ecological or economic approaches are considerably better defined than methods for the social approach. To identify why the social approach remains unclear, we reviewed current trends in the literature. We found two main reasons: (i) the cultural ecosystem services are usually used to represent the whole social approach, and (ii) the economic valuation based on social preferences is typically included in the social approach. Next, we proposed a framework for the social valuation of ecosystem services that provides alternatives to economics methods, enables comparison across studies, and supports decision-making in land planning and management. The framework includes the agreements emerged from the review, such as considering spatial–temporal flows, including stakeholders from all social ranges, and using two complementary methods to value ecosystem services. Finally, we provided practical recommendations learned from the application of the proposed framework in a case study.

Electronic supplementary material

The online version of this article (doi:10.1007/s13280-014-0555-2) contains supplementary material, which is available to authorized users.     

Growth and photosynthetic responses to copper in wild grapevine

The present study evaluates the tolerance and accumulation potential of Vitis vinifera ssp. sylvestris under moderate and high external Cu levels. A greenhouse experiment was conducted in order to investigate the effects of a range of external Cu concentrations (0–23 mmol L⁻¹) on growth and photosynthetic performance by measuring gas exchange, chlorophyll fluorescence parameters and photosynthetic pigments. We also measured the total copper, nitrogen, phosphorus, sulphur, calcium, magnesium, iron, potassium and sodium concentrations in the plant tissues. All the experimental plants survived even with external Cu concentrations as high as 23 mmol L⁻¹ (1500 mg Cu L⁻¹), although the excess of metal resulted in a biomass reduction of 35%. The effects of Cu on growth were linked to a reduction in net photosynthesis, which may be related to the effect of the high concentration of the metal on photosynthetic electron transport. V. vinifera ssp. sylvestris survived with leaf Cu concentrations as high as 80 mg kg⁻¹ DW and growth parameters were unaffected by leaf tissue concentrations of 35 mg Cu kg⁻¹ DW. The results of our study indicate that plants of V. vinifera ssp. sylvestris from the studied population are more tolerant to Cu than the commercial varieties of grapevine that have been studied in the literature, and could constitute a basis for the genetic improvement of Cu tolerance in grapevine.     

Chronic exposure to environmental stressors induces fluctuating asymmetry in shrews inhabiting protected Mediterranean sites

Many ecotoxicological studies have addressed the effects of contaminant exposure at various levels of biological organization. However, little information exists on the effects of toxicants on wildlife populations. Here we examined exposure of populations of the greater white-toothed shrew Crocidura russula (Soricomorpha, Soricidae) occupying two protected Mediterranean sites (a polluted area, the Ebro Delta, and a control site, Garraf Massif). Bioaccumulation of selected elements (Pb, Hg, Cd, Zn, Cu, Fe, Mn, Cr, Mo, Sr, Ba, and B), a body condition index (BCI) and fluctuating asymmetry (FA) were used to assess the chronic exposure to environmental pollution. BCI was correlated neither to metal concentrations nor to FA, suggesting that this fitness measure only reflects environmental disturbances at a local level. However, shrews from the polluted area showed higher concentrations of metals and metalloids (Pb, Hg, B, and Sr) and greater shape FA than specimens from the reference area. A correlation between FA was found for both first and second principal component vectors suggesting that developmental instability increases as a result of exposure to multiple pollutants. Our results corroborate the suitability of C. russula as a bioindicator of environmental quality and show that FA is an appropriate index to examine impact of developmental stressors in populations inhabiting disturbed areas.     

Phytomanagement of strongly acidic,saline eutrophic wetlands polluted by mine wastes: The influence of liming and Sarcocornia fruticosa on metals mobility

The aim of this study was to assess the effectiveness of combining liming and vegetation for the phytomanagement of strongly acidic, saline eutrophic wetlands polluted by mine wastes. Simulated soil profiles were constructed and four treatments were assayed: without liming + without plant, without liming + with plant, with liming + without plant and with liming + with plant. The plant species was the halophyte Sarcocornia fruticosa. Three horizons were differentiated: A (never under water), C1 (alternating flooding–drying conditions) and C2 (always under water). The soluble Cd, Cu, Mn, Pb and Zn concentrations were measured regularly for 18 weeks and a sequential extraction procedure was applied at the end of the experiment. Liming was effective (between ～70% and ～100%) in reducing the soluble Zn, Cu and Pb. In contrast, soluble Mn and Cd increased with liming, especially in the treatment with liming + with plant, where the concentrations were 2-fold higher than in the non-limed treatments. The amendment increased the contents of Zn, Mn and Cd bound to potentially-mobilisable soil fractions at the expense of the most-environmentally-inert fractions. Hence, the combined use of liming and vegetation may increase the long-term environmental risk of metals solubilisation.     

Determination of priority pesticides in water samples combining SPE and SPME coupled to GC–MS. A case study: Suquía River basin (Argentina)

This study reports a combined method using solid phase extraction (SPE), followed by solid phase microextraction (SPME) to concentrate different pesticides, including chlorinated, organophosphorus, triazines, pyretroids and chloroacetamides, present at trace levels in water samples. Identification and quantification was carried out by gas chromatography coupled to Mass Spectrometry (GC–MS). The optimized methodology showed LOQs at ng L^?1 levels (ranging 0.2–3.5 ng L^?1) in addition to acceptable precision and robustness (recoveries ranged 63–104%, RSD from 4% to 23%), presenting a novel method to reach trace levels, similar to that obtainable using EC detector, with structural confirmation by MS during the analysis of a wide range of environmental pollutants.This method was applied to the study of temporal and spatial distribution of pesticides in the Suquía River basin (Córdoba-Argentina). As expected, highest levels of agrochemicals were observed in areas with intensive agricultural practices, being atrazine (max. = 433.9 ng L^?1), alpha-cypermetrine (max. = 121.7 ng L^?1) and endosulfan sulfate (max. = 106.7 ng L^?1) predominant. In urban areas, the prevalent pesticide was alpha-cypermethrine. These results draw attention to the need of pesticide monitoring programs in rivers, considering both urban and rural sections.     

Association between biotic and abiotic parameters and the occurrence of cyanobacteria in a Brazilian reservoir

The water reservoir of Vargem das Flores, Brazil, has been subject to eutrophication problems. The occurrence of cyanobacterial blooms in this water body has raised concerns regarding the presence of toxic metabolites. In order to understand the factors that promote the proliferation and distribution of cyanobacteria in the reservoir, physicochemical parameters, species composition, and toxicity of the reservoir water column were analyzed at monthly intervals over a 3-year period (2004-2007) using a range of analytical techniques. The results showed that cyanobacteria were absent in the dry period, returning after the onset of stratification. A succession pattern was observed within this group. The Aphanocapsa genus was dominant in the last rainy period of the study (October 2006 to March 2007). However toxicity was only detected when the genera Microcystis and Sphaerocavum were present (October 2005). The principal components analysis showed negative correlation between cyanobacteria and orthophosphate. The change of dominant cyanobacteria along the 3 years of study and the final prevalence of nontoxic genera in the reservoir is an evidence of water quality improvement in response to the management techniques implemented in the reservoir basin.