A rotational groups system approach for interdisciplinary research

Environmental research is characterized in each of its successive phases by a strong interdisciplinarity. A rotational groups system (RGS) method is proposed as an instrument to encourage interaction among researchers from fields that are traditionally far apart. Meetings conducted with the RGS procedure involve all the researchers, who, in repeated and topical encounters, are able to exchange information on a wide variety of environmental subjects. These meetings can be arranged according to a special calendar, through a series of phases treating different aspects of the same subjects to be discussed, and above all, referring to specific themes and working guidelines organized on the basis of criteria designed to favor an exchange of ideas and constructive discussion. At the end, the plenary assembly edits an overall resume of the proceedings, and votes on the final resolution, which brings together all the conclusive opinions regarding the themes discussed.     

Air and soil dioxin levels at three sites in Italy in proximity to MSW incineration plants

Levels of polychlorinated dibenzo-p-dioxins (PCDD) and polychlorinated dibenzofurans (PCDF) in both air and soil samples were measured at three different sites in Italy, in proximity to three municipal solid waste incinerators (MSWIs) to determine baseline contamination and the contributory role of incinerator emissions. At the first site, located in an agricultural, cattle-breeding, typically flattish area of the Po Valley, the dioxin concentrations had already been measured before the start-up of the new MSWI. These dioxin concentrations were then again measured after two years of continual operation of the incinerator. Despite the presence of the plant, the PCDD/Fs concentrations appear not to have been affected and were found to be in a range of 22-125 fg I-TEQ m(-3) in the air samples and 0.7-1.5 pg I-TEQ g(-1) in the soil samples. The second site is located in an industrial district of the Veneto Region, in the surroundings of an old MSWI that is not equipped with Best Available Technology (BAT) dioxin removal system. The PCDD/Fs concentrations in the air samples were between 144 and 337 fg I-TEQ m(-3). This is a typical range of values for industrial areas, while the soil samples showed contamination levels between 1.1 and 1.4 pg I-TEQ g(-1). The third site lies in the Adige Valley, near a MSWI that has been equipped with BAT for flue gas cleaning. The observed values ranged from 10 to 67 fg I-TEQ m(-3) for the air samples and 0.08-1.2 pg I-TEQ g(-1) for the soil samples. The contributory factors of the varying characteristics of the different areas together with the types of technology adopted at each MSWI plant are discussed. The PCDD/Fs levels are subsequently compared with established values from previous studies.     

Bibliometric analysis of Climate Change Vulnerability Assessment research

The first step in planning the actions for climate change adaptation involves performing Climate Change Vulnerability Assessment (CCVA) to vulnerable populations and ecological systems. The study aims to perform a bibliometric analysis on the CCVA research field to identify how it was structured in terms of the mostly occurring research terms and their citation impact. A set of scientific papers related to CCVA (n?=?8941) were retrieved via Elsevier’s Scopus database over the period 1996–2016 using specific keywords. The search was carried out in February 2017. The number of yearly papers published in CCVA research field increased after 2006, increasing more than six times in 2016. Our co-occurrences term analysis grouped four clusters related to (i) exposure, sensitivity, and quantitative methods for assessing CCVA, (ii) adaptive capacity and qualitative approaches, (iii) CCVA integrated approaches by combining participatory methods to quantitative ones, and (iv) collaboration and participation issues related to global change. The co-citation analysis showed that highly cited research terms were related to adaptation, exposure factors, and related changes and global change. This bibliometric analysis has provided an overall picture on the CCVA research field, particularly highlighting its utility for climate change adaptation.     

Using Fallout Lead-210 Measurements to Estimate Soil Erosion in Three Small Catchments in Southern Italy

Soil erosion and associated off-site environmental impacts have attracted increasing attention in recent decades, and there is a growing need for reliable information on rates of soil loss. The potential for using ¹³⁷Cs fallout to quantify rates and patterns of soil redistribution over medium-term timescales (ca. 45 years) has been successfully demonstrated in a wide range of environments around the world. The similar behaviour of fallout ²¹⁰Pb in soils offers potential for its use as an alternative to ¹³⁷Cs, in areas where ¹³⁷Cs inventories are low or are complicated by additional fallout from the Chernobyl accident. There have, however, to date been few attempts to validate the use of fallout ²¹⁰Pb measurements for assessing erosion rates. This paper reports an attempt to explore the use of fallout ²¹⁰Pb to estimate rates of water-induced soil erosion on uncultivated land. It focuses on three small forest/rangeland catchments located in Calabria, southern Italy, for which measurements of sediment output are available. Comparison of the estimates of net soil loss from the catchments derived from ²¹⁰Pb measurements with the measured sediment output, confirmed the validity of the ²¹⁰Pb approach. The soil redistribution rates estimated using ²¹⁰Pb measurements were also consistent with equivalent estimates obtained for the same study catchments using ¹³⁷Cs measurements.     

Side effects of the herbicide triasulfuron on collembola under laboratory conditions

Triasulfuron, a member of the sulfonylureas class of herbicides, was tested under laboratory conditions on the collembolan Onychiurus pseudogranulosus. Pure triasulfuron and commercial formulations at different rates (starting from a dose about 5 times the recommended agricultural rate) were tested separately on one-week old juveniles and adults reared in the laboratory. The persistence of the herbicide at the end of the trials lasting 30 and 60 days was verified by HPLC analysis. Laboratory tests indicated that only the rates exceeding 500 times the soil concentration expected soon after field application of the herbicide directly affected the tested species.     

First steps in strategic environmental assessment (SEA) adoption for coastal planning in Sicily (South Italy)

The Industrial District (I.D.) of Messina was the first public authority to consider useful the application of the Strategic Environmental Assessment (SEA) procedure for the development of an Industrial Plan regarding a coastal area. At the moment the I.D. includes six areas, but the application of the SEA concerns only the area of Pace del Mela (along the north-eastern coast of Sicily), where a “District of the two Seas” will be created, based on the synergetic development between an industrialized niche (shipbuilding) and touristic development (port and hotels). The area in which this type of intervention will occur is not in use at the moment and it was not possible to collect environmental data. For this reason, in order to describe the environmental features of this territory, we took into consideration a few indicators which could be easily identified, necessary for a post evaluation which considers the Environmental Impact Assessment (EIA) of the industrial and suburban structures to be built.     

Seeds’ physicochemical traits and mucilage protection against aluminum effect during germination and root elongation as important factors in a biofuel seed crop (Ricinus communis)

We determined the length, volume, dry biomass, and density in seeds of five castor bean cultivars and verified notable physicochemical trait differences. Seeds were then subjected to different toxic aluminum (Al) concentrations to evaluate germination, relative root elongation, and the role of root apices’ rhizosphere mucilage layer. Seeds’ physicochemical traits were associated with Al toxicity responses, and the absence of Al in cotyledons near to the embryo was revealed by Al-hematoxylin staining, indicating that Al did not induce significant germination reduction rates between cultivars. However, in the more sensitive cultivar, Al was found around the embryo, contributing to subsequent growth inhibition. After this, to investigate the role of mucilage in Al tolerance, an assay was conducted using NH₄Cl to remove root mucilage before or after exposure to different Al concentrations. Sequentially, the roots were stained with hematoxylin and a quantitative analysis of staining intensity was obtained. These results revealed the significant contribution of the mucilage layer to Al toxicity responses in castor bean seedlings. Root growth elongation under Al toxicity confirmed the role of the mucilage layer, which jointly indicated the differential Al tolerance between cultivars and an efficient Al-exclusion mechanism in the tolerant cultivar.     

Visible-light driven oxidation of gaseous aliphatic alcohols to the corresponding carbonyls via TiO2 sensitized by a perylene derivative

Sensitized P25 TiO₂ was prepared by wet impregnation with a home-prepared perylene dye, i.e., N,N′-bis(2-(1-piperazino)ethyl)-3,4,9,10-perylene-tetracarboxylic acid diimide dichloride (PZPER). Energy levels of PZPER were found to be compatible with those of TiO₂ allowing fast electron transfer. The obtained catalyst has been characterized and used in the gas-phase partial oxidation of aliphatic primary and secondary alcohols, i.e., methanol, ethanol, and 2-propanol. The reaction was carried out under cut-off (λ?>?400 nm) simulated solar radiation in O₂ atmosphere. The perylene derivative allowed a good absorbance of visible radiation thanks to its low optical energy gap (2.6 eV) which was evaluated by cyclic voltammetry. The optimal organic sensitizing amount was found to be 5.6 % w/w in terms of yield in carbonyl derivatives. Moreover, no change in reactivity/selectivity was observed after 10-h irradiation thus confirming the catalyst stability. Yields into formaldehyde, acetaldehyde, and acetone were 67, 70, and 96 %, respectively. No significant amounts of organic byproducts were detected but for methanol oxidation, whereas a minor amount of the substrate degraded to CO₂.     

Elicitors as alternative strategy to pesticides in grapevine? Current knowledge on their mode of action from controlled conditions to vineyard

Development and optimisation of alternative strategies to reduce the use of classic chemical inputs for protection against diseases in vineyard is becoming a necessity. Among these strategies, one of the most promising consists in the stimulation and/or potentiation of the grapevine defence responses by the means of elicitors. Elicitors are highly diverse molecules both in nature and origins. This review aims at providing an overview of the current knowledge on these molecules and will highlight their potential efficacy from the laboratory in controlled conditions to vineyards. Recent findings and concepts (especially on plant innate immunity) and the new terminology (microbe-associated molecular patterns, effectors, etc.) are also discussed in this context. Other objectives of this review are to highlight the difficulty of transferring elicitors use and results from the controlled conditions to the vineyard, to determine their practical and effective use in viticulture and to propose ideas for improving their efficacy in non-controlled conditions.     

Implementing Criteria and Indicators for Sustainable Forest Management in a Decentralized Setting: Italy as a Case Study

The study explored the sub-national implementation of the Pan-European Criteria and Indicators (C&I) for Sustainable Forest Management in Italy, based on the statistical analysis of answers to a questionnaire provided by representatives of the Italian sub-national forest administrations. The questionnaire explored the implementation of C&I in five applications and through the analytical lenses of ‘suitability of C&I to sub-national contexts’ and ‘adaptability of administrations to C&I’. The analysis of suitability and adaptability made it possible to identify and compare challenges in, and successful experiences with, the implementation of C&I, which were then used to formulate recommendations aimed at encouraging implementation and promoting academic and policy debate. The study reveals that C&I were implemented to a moderate extent. This level of implementation was determined most of all by the suitability of C&I to the Italian sub-national contexts, and less by the adaptability of administrations. Recommendations to foster implementation of and dialogue on C&I include the need for Italian sub-national administrations to transpose the Pan-European C&I into sub-national sets tailored to local circumstances by, for example, modifying existing C&I or integrating these into new customized indicator sets.