Nitrogen fertilizer recommendations for corn grown on soils amended with oily food waste

Soil and plant indices of soil fertility status have traditionally been developed using conventional soil and crop management practices. Data on managing N fertilizer for corn (Zea mays L.) produced on soils amended with C-rich organic materials, such as oily food waste (OFW) is scarce. Identification of a reliable method for making N fertilizer recommendations under these conditions is imperative. The objective of this research was to evaluate soil NO(3)-N (0- to 30-cm depth) at preplant and presidedress (PSNT) times of sampling for predicting N requirements for corn grown on fields receiving OFW. Experiments were conducted at two locations in Ontario, Canada over 3 yr (1995-1997) where OFW was applied at different rates (0, 10, and 20 Mg ha(-1)), times (fall and spring), and slope positions (upper, mid, and lower) within the same field. Presidedress soil NO(3)-N contents were higher compared with preplant time of sampling under all OFW management conditions. Corn grain yields were significantly affected by OFW management and N fertilizer application rates. Maximum economic rate of N application (MERN) varied depending on OFW management conditions. Presidedress soil NO(3)-N contents had a higher inverse relationship with MERN (r = -0.88) compared with soil NO(3)-N at preplant (r = -0.74) time of sampling. A linear regression model (Y = 180.1 - 8.22 NO(3)-N at PSNT) is proposed for making N fertilizer recommendations to corn grown on soils amended with OFW in this geographical region.     

Investigating effect of proton-exchange membrane on new air-cathode single-chamber microbial fuel cell configuration for bioenergy recovery from Azorubine dye degradation

Environmental Science and Pollution Research - One of the biggest challenges of using single-chamber microbial fuel cells (MFCs) that utilize proton-exchange membrane (PEM) air cathode for...     

Identification of the processes controlling groundwater quality in shallow aquifers of Moradabad city,west Uttar Pradesh,India

Environment, Development and Sustainability - Present study has been carried out to identify the processes controlling groundwater quality of Moradabad city, Uttar Pradesh. A total 188 groundwater...     

Perfluorocarbon background concentrations in Europe

Five studies of the background level of several perfluorocarbon compounds in Europe are here presented together with measurements from the European Tracer Experiment (ETEX). The tracers used during the two ETEX tracer releases were the perfluorocarbons (PFCs); perfluoromethylcyclohexane (C₇F₁₄, PMCH) and perfluoromethylcyclopentane (C₆F₁₂, PMCP). Their background concentrations were detected by using both passive and active sampling techniques, to define the spatial and temporal variation of the PFCs over Europe. Also the background variations of four isomers of the PFC compound perfluorodimethylcyclohexane (C₈F₁₆, PDCH) were studied. The results were compared to other PFC tracer studies in the U.S.A. and Europe. The mean and median values of the measured PFCs were found to vary slightly and randomly in space and time. They were found to be higher and to have a larger standard deviation than the measurements from the American studies. The background concentrations were still found to be low and stable enough for PFCs to be highly suitable for use in tracer studies. The following concentrations were found: PMCP; 4.6±0.3 fl ℓ^-1, PMCH: 4.6±0.8 fl ℓ^-1, ocPDCH: 0.96±0.33 fl ℓ^-1, mtPDCH: 9.3±0.8 fl ℓ^-1, mcPDCH: 8.8±0.8 fl ℓ^-1, ptPDCH: 6.1±0.8 fl ℓ^-1. A study of the correlation between the measured PFC compounds showed a significant correlation between most of the compounds, which indicate that there are no major PFC sources in Europe.     

Generating sustainable towns from Chinese villages: a system modeling approach

The great majority of China's developing towns will be extensions of already existing villages. With the prospect of hundreds of millions of Chinese farmers projected to leave their villages to become industrial workers in new and expanded towns within the next few years, new challenges will be faced. As expansion and modernization progress, this development moves from the traditional village model that operates not far from resource sustainability to increasingly unsustainable patterns of commerce, urban development, and modern life. With such an unprecedented mass migration and transformation, how can Chinese culture survive? What is to become of the existing million plus agricultural villages? How can these massively unsustainable new industrial towns survive? In the European Commission sponsored research program SUCCESS, researchers worked from the scale of the Chinese village to find viable answers to these questions.     

Industrial ecology—an organizing framework for environmental management

Industrial ecology is a systemic organizing framework for the many facets of environmental management. It views the industrial world as a natural system, embedded in local ecosystems and the global biosphere. It provides a fundamental understanding of the value of modeling the industrial system on ecosystems to achieve sustainable environmental performance. In this article, the author shows how it offers powerful tools of analysis that complement and enhance those offered by such approaches as Total Quality Environmental Management or pollution prevention.     

A simple model for describing the concentration of 212Pb in the atmosphere

The implementation of the Comprehensive Test Ban Treaty is resulting in the construction of a world-wide system of 80 monitoring stations that will be able to detect air-borne radioactivity, not only from atomic bombs but also from other anthropogenic and natural sources. A prototype monitoring station has been operating since April 1996 in Vancouver, BC, Canada. This station provides daily reports of natural radioactivity, including 7Be and decay products of 220Rn (thoron). Data for 212Pb concentrations have been analyzed over a 6-month period. The concentration is reduced by rainfall, high wind velocity, and low temperatures and it also depends on the wind direction, but atmospheric inversions appeared to have little impact. We present a relatively simple model, which is easy to use and which offers predictive powers that can be applied to other similar environmental situations.