Plant uptake and soil retention of radionuclides and metals in vineyard environments

Environmental Science and Pollution Research - In most European countries, each adult citizen drinks on average more than 20 L of wine every year. Three popular wine-growing areas (Aleksandrovac,...     

Long-term investigations of radiocaesium activity concentrations in carp in North Croatia after the Chernobyl accident

Long-term investigations of radiocaesium activity concentrations in carp in the Republic of Croatia are presented. The radiocaesium levels in carp decreased exponentially and the effective ecological half-life of (137)Cs was estimated to be about 1 year during 1987-2002 and 5 years during 1993-2005. The observed (134)Cs:(137)Cs activity ratio in carp was found to be similar to the ratio observed in other environmental samples. The concentration factor for carp (wet weight) was estimated to be 128+/-74 Lkg(-1), which is in reasonable agreement with model prediction based on K(+) concentrations in water. Estimated annual effective dose received by adult members of the Croatian population due to consumption of carp contaminated with (134)Cs and (137)Cs are small: per capita dose from this source during 1987-2005 was estimated to be 0.5+/-0.2 microSv. Due to minor freshwater fish consumption in Croatia and low radiocaesium activity concentrations in carp, it can be concluded that carp consumption was not a critical pathway for the transfer of radiocaesium from fallout to humans after the Chernobyl accident.     

The forecasting of municipal waste generation using artificial neural networks and sustainability indicators

The feasibility of modeling municipal waste generation (MWG) for countries at different levels of development using artificial neural networks (ANN) and selected generic indicators of sustainability was investigated. The main goals of this research were to develop ANN-based models for predicting MWG, to overcome the problem of incomplete MWG data, which is notable in developing countries, and to provide a new method for the planning of municipal solid waste management systems as well as for the simulation of various other scenarios. Data from 26 European countries was used in this study as training, test and validation datasets for the developing of ANN models. Since this kind of modeling is particularly important for developing countries where MWG data is missing or incomplete, emphasis was placed on modeling of MWG for Bulgaria and Serbia. Based on a comparison of actual MWG data with predictions given by the model, we show that ANNs can be applied successfully to modeling and forecasting MWG on a national scale. Moreover, the scope for possible application of the model is broad, since it uses generic indicators of sustainability such as gross domestic product, domestic material consumption and resource productivity, and performs well for countries with highly diversified levels of economic development, industrial structure, productivity and output.     

Sources of airborne particulates (PM10) in the port city of Rijeka,Croatia

Environmental Science and Pollution Research - The air quality monitoring in Rijeka started in the early 1970s and has been oriented to air pollution caused by the big industrial sources (new...     

Shewanella spp. from wastewater treatment plant-affected environment: isolation and characterization

Bacteria from the genus Shewanella are inhabitants of marine and freshwater ecosystems, recognized fish spoilage bacteria, but less known as fish disease agents. Shewanella spp. isolated from fish living in waters close to effluents of a wastewater treatment plant (WWTP) were not previously characterized. We have tested Shewanella isolates from WWTP-affected waters and related fish. Genotypic characterization identified most strains as S. baltica and S. oneidensis. In order to investigate the sensibility and accuracy of their MALDI-TOF MS identification, they were grown on two culture media enriched by various NaCl concentrations, incubated at different temperatures and duration. We analyzed their antimicrobial susceptibility on a panel of antimicrobial drugs and capacity for biofilm production. With a view to demonstrate their capacity to produce fatty acids, we assessed the impact of different culture media on their lipid profile. We performed zebrafish embryotoxicity tests to simulate the environmental infection of the earliest life stages in S. baltica-contaminated waters. The best MALDI-TOF MS identification scores were for strains cultivated on TSA for 24 h at 22 °C and with supplementation of 1.5% NaCl. Less than 17% of isolates demonstrated antimicrobial resistance. Most isolates were weak biofilm producers. Strain-to-strain variation of MIC and MBC was low. The major fatty acids were C15:0, C16:0, C16:1, C17:1, and iC15:0. Exposure of Danio rerio to different S. baltica concentrations induced severe effects on zebrafish development: decreased heartbeat rate, locomotor activity, and melanin pigmentation. S. baltica passed through chorionic pores of zebrafish.

     

Actinide analysis of a depleted uranium penetrator from a 1999 target site in southern Serbia

Following the detection of 236U in depleted uranium (DU) ammunition used during the Balkans conflict in the 1990s, concern has been expressed about the possibility that other nuclides from the nuclear fuel cycle and, in particular, transuranium nuclides, might be present in this type of ammunition. In this paper, we report the results of uranium and plutonium analyses carried out on a depleted uranium penetrator recovered from a target site in southern Serbia. Our data show the depleted nature of the uranium and confirm the presence of trace amounts of plutonium in the penetrator. The activity concentration of (239+240)PU, at 45.4+/-0.7 Bq kg(-1), is the highest reported to date for any penetrator recovered from the Balkans. This concentration, however, is comparable to that expected to be present naturally in uranium ores and, from a radiological perspective, would only give rise to a very small increase in dose to exposed persons compared to that from the DU itself.     

The Environmental Capacity Approach to the Control of Marine Pollution: The Case of Copper in the Krka River Estuary

Changes in soil pH, soil heavy metal forms, and the metabolic diversity of microbial communities were examined in soil samples collected in 1-mm increments from barley roots in soil contaminated with cadmium (Cd) and zinc (Zn) using a rhizobox system. Concentrations of exchangeable Cd and Zn increased near the roots owing to a decrease in soil pH. Conversely, the concentration of inorganically bound Cd and Zn decreased near the roots. Despite having the highest concentration of the most toxic exchangeable metals, the rhizosphere also had the highest bacterial and fungal metabolic activity and diversity when assessed using BIOLOG plates. Therefore, the promoting effects of root exudates on microbial activity could outweigh the adverse effects of Cd and Zn on microorganisms in the rhizosphere.     

Worldviews,institutions and sustainability: An introduction to a co-evolutionary perspective

This work analyzes hierarchical and causal relationship between worldview, institutions, technology and economic behaviour under conditions of informational uncertainty.

In our pursuit of sustainable living, institutions function both as constraints and as primary instruments of change of socio-economic behaviour. The process of radical institutional change is contingent upon prior change in the dominant worldview, while its dynamics resembles that of a paradigm change in political and scientific arenas. Therefore, the timely and adaptive outcome of institutional change with respect to global environmental problems remains intrinsically uncertain.     

Adsorption of arsenic (V) by iron (III)-modified natural zeolitic tuff

Adsorption of arsenic (V) by natural zeolitic tuff, modified with iron (III), was investigated. Also, the iron (III) adsorption characteristics by natural zeolitic tuff was evaluated. It was determined that iron (III) adsorption by starting zeolitic tuff was best represented by the Freundlich type of isotherm, having correlation coefficient (r ²) of 0.990. Arsenic (V) adsorption by iron (III)-modified zeolitic tuff followed a nonlinear type of isotherm. The best fit of the experimental data was obtained using the Langmuir–Freundlich model (r ² = 0.99), with the estimated maximum of arsenic (V) adsorption to iron (III)-modified zeolitic tuff of 1.55 mg/g.