Deciphering groundwater potential zones in hard rock terrain using geospatial technology

Remote sensing and geographical information system (GIS) has become one of the leading tools in the field of groundwater research, which helps in assessing, monitoring, and conserving groundwater resources. This paper mainly deals with the integrated approach of remote sensing and GIS to delineate groundwater potential zones in hard rock terrain. Digitized vector maps pertaining to chosen parameters, viz. geomorphology, geology, land use/land cover, lineament, relief, and drainage, were converted to raster data using 23 m × 23 m grid cell size. Moreover, curvature of the study area was also considered while manipulating the spatial data. The raster maps of these parameters were assigned to their respective theme weight and class weights. The individual theme weight was multiplied by its respective class weight and then all the raster thematic layers were aggregated in a linear combination equation in Arc Map GIS Raster Calculator module. Moreover, the weighted layers were statistically modeled to get the areal extent of groundwater prospects with respect to each thematic layer. The final result depicts the favorable prospective zones in the study area and can be helpful in better planning and management of groundwater resources especially in hard rock terrains.     

Greenbelt conservation as a component of ecosystem,ecological benefits and management services: evidence from Peshawar City,Pakistan

Environment, Development and Sustainability - Conservation of greenbelts is the most enduringly successful and popular basic need for today to protect green land, preserve ecological landscape and...     

Elevated blood lead levels and cytogenetic markers in buccal epithelial cells of painters in India

Background, aim, and scope  

Lead, a major contaminant, is highly used in paint manufacturing due to its anticorrosive properties. Recent reports indicated high lead content among Indian paints used for commercial purposes. Painters are continuously exposed to these lead containing paints during painting of both commercial as well as residential buildings. Lead is well-known for its genotoxicty in occupational workers; however, in Indian painters the genotoxic effects of lead have not been reported to date. Therefore we aimed to study the genotoxic end points in painters due to their long-term exposure to these high lead-containing Indian paints.     

Comparison of Growth Kinetics in Pseudomonas using Two Different Sets of Conditions

The aim of this study was to compare the growth kinetic responses to two different sets of conditions by investigating the growth kinetic response of Pseudomonas sp. which was isolated by an enrichment technique using a shaking water bath and a biosimulator. The viable count of the Pseudomonas sp. was initially determined on a small scale using sterile nutrient broth alone, plus broth supplemented with malathion (8.55 mg ml^–1) incubated in a shaking water bath. A biosimulator was used on a larger scale to compare the growth kinetics of the Pseudomonas sp. using sterile undiluted and diluted (1:10) nutrient broth. The viable count was measured by the standard plate count (SPC) technique for both the sets of conditions (shaking water bath; biosimulator) and reported as colony forming units (CFU ml^–1). In the shaking water bath experiments, the culture grew very well in the presence of 8.55 mg ml^–1 malathion, as indicated by good growth response in comparison to that of nutrient broth alone. Similar studies were also performed using the same culture in the biosimulator, using undiluted and diluted (1:10) nutrient broth, results of which revealed, that at each sampling hour the viable population density was greater in the presence of undiluted nutrient broth, than in the presence of diluted (1:10) nutrient broth. A critical evaluation of data presented indicated that the growth performance of Pseudomonas sp. was better in the biosimulator when compared to the shaking water bath. As the Pseudomonas sp. is highly aerobic, it performed better in the biosimulator, where a greater quantity of oxygen (DO 4.0 mg l^–1) was more readily available in comparison to the shaking water bath. The total quantity of nutrients available also affected the total viable population density. The study revealed that the wild isolate, when studied on a laboratory scale, could be effective in bioremediation of environmental pollution caused by pesticides.     

Burden of skin lesions of arsenicosis at higher exposure through groundwater of taluka Gambat district Khairpur, Pakistan: a cross-sectional survey

Prior surveys conducted have found higher proportion of arsenic-contaminated wells in villages along river Indus in Pakistan. This study aims to determine the prevalence of arsenicosis skin lesions among population exposed to higher exposure in taluka Gambat district Khairpur in Sindh. The cross-sectional survey was conducted from August 2008 to January 2009 among 610 households. A total of 707 water sources (hand pumps/wells) were tested from the villages of union councils of Agra and Jado Wahan for arsenic levels with Quick rapid arsenic field test kits. A total of 110 households exposed to arsenic levels >50 ppb were identified. Case screening for arsenic skin lesions was performed for 610 individuals residing in these 110 high-risk households. Information regarding household and socio-demographic characteristics, height and weight measurements and arsenic exposure assessment were collected. Physical examinations by trained physicians were carried out to diagnose the arsenic skin lesions. After data cleaning, 534 individuals from all age groups were included in the final analysis which had complete exposure and outcome information. Overall prevalence of arsenicosis skin lesions was 13.5 % (72 cases). Of the 534 individuals, 490 (91.8 %) were exposed to arsenic levels of ≥100 ppb in drinking water (8.2 % to >50–99 ppb, 58.6 % to 100–299 ppb, 14.6 % to 300–399 ppb and 18 % to ≥400 ppb). Prevalence rate (per 100 population) of arsenicosis was highest at arsenic levels of 100–199 ppb (15.2 cases) followed by ≥400 ppb (13.5 cases) and 300–399 (12.8 cases). Prevalence rate was higher among females (15.2) compared to males (11.3). Our study reports arsenicosis burden due to exposure to higher arsenic levels in drinking water in Pakistan. Exposure to very high levels of arsenic in drinking water calls for urgent action along river Indus. Prevalence of skin lesions increases with increasing arsenic levels in drinking groundwater. Provision of arsenic-free drinking water is essential to avoid current and future burden of arsenicosis in Pakistan.     

Influencing factors of carbon emissions and their trends in China and India: a machine learning method

China and India are the largest coal consumers and the most populated countries in the world. With industrial and population growth, the need for energy has increased, which has inevitably led to an increase in carbon dioxide (CO₂) emissions because both countries depend on fossil fuel consumption. This paper investigates the impact of energy consumption, financial development (FD), gross domestic product (GDP), population, and renewable energy on CO₂ emissions. The study applies the long short-term memory (LSTM) method, a novel machine learning (ML) approach, to examine which influencing driver has the greatest and smallest impact on CO₂ emissions; correspondingly, this study builds a model for CO₂ emission reduction. Data collected between 1990 and 2014 were analyzed, and the results indicated that energy consumption had the greatest effect and renewable energy had the smallest impact on CO₂ emissions in both countries. Subsequently, we increased the renewable energy coefficient by one and decreased the energy consumption coefficient by one while keeping all other factors constant, and the results predicted with the LSTM model confirmed the significant reduction in CO₂ emissions. Finally, this study forecasted a CO₂ emission trend, with a slowdown predicted in China by 2022; however, CO₂ emission’s reduction is not possible in India until 2023. These results suggest that shifting from nonrenewable to renewable sources and lowering coal consumption can reduce CO₂ emissions without harming economic development.

     

Comparative low lethal effects of three insecticides on demographical traits and enzyme activity of the Spodoptera exigua (Hübner)

Environmental Science and Pollution Research - Many species of devastating insect pests have acquired a high degree of resistance to insecticides in the field during the last few decades....     

Cerium dioxide and composites for the removal of toxic metal ions

The presence of contaminants in potable water is a cause of worldwide concern. In particular, the presence of metals such as arsenic, lead, cadmium, mercury, chromium can affect human health. There is thus a need for advanced techniques of water decontamination. Adsorbents based on cerium dioxide (CeO₂), also named ‘ceria,’ have been used to remove contaminants such as arsenic, fluoride, lead and cadmium. Ceria and composites display high surface area, controlled porosity and morphology, and abundance of functional groups. They have already found usage in many applications including optical, semiconductor and catalysis. Exploiting their attractive features for water treatment would unravel their potential. We review the potential of ceria and its composites for the removal of toxic metal ions from aqueous medium. The article discusses toxic contaminants in water and their impact on human health; the synthesis and adsorptive behavior of ceria-based materials including the role of morphology and surface area on the adsorption capacity, best fit adsorption isotherms, kinetic models, possible mechanisms, regeneration of adsorbents; and future perspectives of using metal oxides such as ceria. The focus of the report is the generation of cost-effective oxides of rare-earth metal, cerium, in their standalone and composite forms for contaminant removal.     

Correction to: Role of casting and curing conditions on the strength and drying shrinkage of greener concrete

Environmental Science and Pollution Research -