PCDD/Fs and PCBs in ambient air in a highly industrialized city in Northern Italy

Ambient air samples were collected in five locations around a polychlorobiphenyl (PCB) production plant in a highly industrialized city in the north of Italy, for the analysis of polychlorinated dibenzo-p-dioxins (PCDDs) and polychlorinated dibenzofurans (PCDFs) and PCBs.PCDD/F atmospheric concentrations were lower than those generally detected in urban areas, while PCB concentrations were higher than in urban and industrialized areas in other countries, especially in the locations closest to the plant. To identify source emissions responsible for air pollution we used principal component analysis (PCA) to compare the “fingerprint” of the air in Brescia with some source-related experimental and published data. This analysis showed that the PCDD/F fingerprints were more similar to steel plant emission data, while none of the PCB air patterns were comparable to emission profiles, indicating that different sources are responsible for the concentration of these two pollutants. The highest PCB concentrations detected in the areas closest to the chemical plant are indicative of its impact on the surrounding environment.     

Level, sources and toxicity of polychlorinated biphenyls in the Italian diet

We used the duplicate portion method to measure the daily dietary intake of total and congener-specific polychlorinated biphenyls (PCB) and to assess their potential toxicity in a group of 20 subjects consuming a typical Italian diet. The mean +/- SD intake of total PCB, measured by GC-MS, was 3.72 +/- 1.51 micrograms/person/day, comparable to values reported in similar studies world-wide, with individual intakes varying within one order of magnitude, from 0.97 to 10.59 micrograms/person/day. The di-ortho congeners 153, 18 and 138 were the PCB found in the highest concentrations (respectively 13.8%, 11.4% and 10.9% of the total) while the non-ortho coplanar congeners (77, 126 and 169) amounted to 0.5% of the total. The corresponding levels of toxicity (TCDD-like TEQ values ascribable to PCB) ranged from 4.6 up to 119 pg/person/day of TCDD-equivalents in 18 subjects, i.e. presumed no-risk levels, but with peaks of 2109 and 4553 pg/person/day in two subjects with significant intakes of the congener 126. Principal components analysis and redundancy analysis showed dairy products, meat and fish were the principal sources of PCB, and vegetables those with the highest toxicity index in the Italian diet.     

From the environmental debt to the environmental loan: trends and future challenges for intergenerational discounting

It is well known that the incorporation of the intergenerational equity objective has turned the traditional Cost–Benefit Analysis (CBA) approach into an obsolete tool for the evaluation of certain types of projects, particularly those exhibiting many environmental externalities and those whose effects extend throughout a long period of time. Two main changes are taking place in CBA in order to adapt this methodology to the sustainable development paradigm: (a) the development of new tools for the economic valuation of environmental externalities that were traditionally left out of the analysis; and (b) an in-depth revision of the theoretical foundations underlying the traditional approaches to discounting, since the repercussions of decisions that are presently being debated will extend to a distant future (in some cases for centuries), whereas in the classical CBA, we deal with few decades at best. This paper aims at investigating the discounting operation in CBA, trying to summarize the main approaches available in the literature, with specific reference to the tools which allow future generations to be included in the analysis. In order to support the theoretical explanation, a real case study is analysed concerning the evaluation of a waste incinerator that has been constructed in the Province of Turin (Italy).     

Identification of a small supernumerary marker chromosome,r(2)(p10q11.2), and the problem of determining prognosis

The identification of small supernumerary marker chromosomes (SMCs) and the elucidation of their clinical significance remain two of the problems in classical human cytogenetics. We observed a small supernumerary ring in amniotic fluid cell cultures and identified its origin as r(2)(p10q11.2) and its extent by means of fluorescent in situ hybridisation (FISH). Uniparental disomy (UPD) was excluded by microsatellite analysis using polymorphic markers localised in the same region. On the basis of normal ultrasonographic checks, the patient decided to continue the pregnancy. A normal female was delivered at term and subsequent neonatal follow-ups confirmed the normal phenotype and development. In the present case, genetic counselling was not helpful because of the absence of reference cases. Detailed characterisation made it possible to correlate the normal baby phenotype with the trisomic 2p10-2q11.2 genomic region. Further molecular cytogenetic investigations of SMCs classified by DNA content and pregnancy outcome data should improve genetic counselling and risk evaluation. Copyright © 2001 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

2,2',4,4'-四溴联苯醚的好氧微生物降解

从北京高碑店污水处理厂活性污泥中筛选出1株能好氧降解2,2’,4,4’-四溴联苯醚(BDE-47)的细菌,并对其降解特性及有关蛋白质进行分析,目的是了解好氧条件下BDE-47的微生物降解机制.BDE-47降解菌通过平板划线法获得,其16S rDNA与不动杆菌(Acintobacter sp.)的相似度最大,为90%.采用250 mL锥形瓶研究了所得菌对BDE-47的降解情况,在BDE-47初试浓度为146μg.L-1的条件下,经过63 d的培养,所得菌降解了45.44%的BDE-47,降解产物主要为4-OH-联苯醚,菌量增加了7倍左右.分别以BDE-47和酵母提取物为碳源培养所得菌2周,然后各自提取蛋白质,通过蛋白质双向电泳及质谱检测,发现了与BDE-47降解有关的一些特异蛋白质.本研究表明,在好氧条件下,细菌可以BDE-47为碳源生长,其过程涉及多种蛋白质的作用.     

UV–Vis LED-assisted photo-Fenton process for mineralization of losartan and hydrochlorothiazide: optimization using desirability function

Environmental Science and Pollution Research - This study presents the results obtained for the optimization of the mineralization of losartan (LOS) and hydrochlorothiazide (HCTZ) using the...     

Inertization of hazardous dredging spoils

Vitrification and production of ceramics materials starting from sediment excavated from Venice lagoon is described. This sediment is classified as toxic waste because contains several heavy metal ions and organic pollutants and was successfully vitrified at 1200-1350 degrees C. Twenty weight percentage of glass cullet, coming from a community glass recycling program, was added to the raw materials, previously calcined at 900 degrees C, as a way of adjusting the variations of composition of the individual sediment batches. Chemical durability (leaching) tests showed that the optimized glass compositions are inert, and thus not only volume reduction but also inertization of the waste was obtained by this process. Moreover, the economics of the entire process was analysed. The valorization of the waste was accomplished by the subsequent processing of the glass derived from the inertization. Glass ceramic materials were produced by viscous phase sintering of pressed glass powders which crystallized during the densification process. Sintered glass ceramic products had good mechanical characteristics (HV = 7.5 GPa, bending strength 150 +/- 8 MPa), making them suitable for applications in the building industry.     

Seasonal variations of heavy metals in central Greenland snow deposited from 1991 to 1995

To better assess the seasonality in the fallout of heavy metals to central Greenland, a continuous series of 68 snow samples has been collected at a remote site in the Summit area from a 2.7 m pit using ultraclean sampling procedures. This covers a continuous four year time period from spring 1991 to spring 1995. Co, Cu, Zn, Mo, Rh, Pd, Ag, Cd, Sb, Pt, Pb, Bi and U were determined using ultrasensitive inductively coupled plasma sector field mass spectrometry under clean room conditions. In addition we also determined Al by graphite furnace atomic absorption spectrometry and Na+, Ca2+, SO4(2-), MSA and oxalate by ion chromatography, species that will assist in the interpretation of the trace metal data. The data show pronounced inter- and intra-annual variations, with large differences in the amplitude of these variations for the element studied, with few clear seasonality patterns. Generally, high concentrations are observed in the spring snow layers, while much lower concentrations are typical of summer snow layers. Significant correlations are observed between Co, Cu, Zn, Ag and Sb, while Pt, Pd and Rh show no correlation with the other metals. Crustal enrichment factors show that while the crustal dust contribution is probably important for some metals for part of the year (spring), anthropogenic inputs are as important in many instances. Pronounced intra-annual variations are observed for some metals, in particular Pt. The variations observed for this metal parallel fairly closely changes in Russian Pt production, which points to emissions from smelters in the Russian Arctic as likely sources for Pt.     

Innocent until proven guilty? Stable coexistence of alien rainbow trout and native marble trout in a Slovenian stream

To understand the consequences of the invasion of the nonnative rainbow trout Oncorhynchus mykiss on the native marble trout Salmo marmoratus, we compared two distinct headwater sectors where marble trout occur in allopatry (MTa) or sympatry (MTs) with rainbow trout (RTs) in the Idrijca River (Slovenia). Using data from field surveys from 2002 to 2009, with biannual (June and September) sampling and tagging from June 2004 onwards, we analyzed body growth and survival probabilities of marble trout in each stream sector. Density of age-0 in September over the study period was greater for MTs than MTa and very similar between MTs and RTs, while density of trout ≥age-1 was similar for MTa and MTs and greater than density of RTs. Monthly apparent survival probabilities were slightly higher in MTa than in MTs, while RTs showed a lower survival than MTs. Mean weight of marble and rainbow trout aged 0+ in September was negatively related to cohort density for both marble and rainbow trout, but the relationship was not significantly different between MTs and MTa. No clear depression of body growth of sympatric marble trout between sampling intervals was observed. Despite a later emergence, mean weight of RTs cohorts at age 0+ in September was significantly higher than weight of both MTs and MTa. The establishment of a self-sustaining population of rainbow trout does not have a significant impact on body growth and survival probabilities of sympatric marble trout. The numerical dominance of rainbow trout in streams at lower altitudes seem to suggest that while the low summer flow pattern of Slovenian streams is favorable for rainbow trout invasion, the adaptation of marble trout to headwater environments may limit the invasion success of rainbow trout in headwaters.