Cytogenetics in the sacoglossan Oxynoe olivacea (Mollusca: Opisthobranchia): karyotype, chromosome banding and fluorescent in situ hybridization

Developing embryos and sexually mature follicles of the male portion of ovotestis proved to be a suitable material as a source of cleaving cells for advanced cytological investigations on the sacoglossan species Oxynoe olivacea Rafinesque, 1819 (Mollusca: Opisthobranchia). O. olivacea has a diploid chromosomal number of 30 made up of 15 pairs of which six are metacentric/submetacentric (M/SM), four subtelocentric (ST) and five on the borderline between SM and ST. Correspondingly, 15 bivalents occur in spermatocytes at Metaphase I. Constitutive heterochromatin is scarce and restricted to small C-bands seen in five pachytene bivalents. The use of combined silver staining and fluorescent in situ hybridization (FISH) with a Paracentrotus lividus (Echinodermata) 4.3 kilobase (kb) rDNA probe (prR14) consisting of sequences from the 3′ end of 18S rDNA to the 3′ end of 26S rDNA, revealed that nucleolus organizer regions (NORs) are situated terminally on one arm of a small metacentric pair. The telomeric (TTAGGG) _n sequence did not hybridize with termini of O. olivacea chromosomes. Received: 14 December 1999 / Accepted: 10 July 2000     

Characterization of odor released during handling of swine slurry: Part I. Relationship between odorants and perceived odor concentrations

Odor emission from livestock production systems is a major nuisance in many rural areas. This study aimed at determining the major airborne chemical compounds responsible for the unpleasant odor perceived in swine facilities during slurry handling, and at proposing predictive models of odor concentration (OC) based on the concentrations of specific odorants in the air. A multivariate data analysis strategy involving principal components analysis and multiple linear regressions was implemented to analyze the relationships between concentration of 35 gases (measured by GC/MS or gas detection tubes), and the overall OC perceived by sensory analysis. The study compiled data on the concentration of odor and odorants, measured in the headspace of 24 unstored and stored slurry samples collected from three different types of production units on 8 commercial swine farms. Among all the measured constituents, OC was found to have the highest correlation with the sulfur containing compounds (i.e. hydrogen sulfide, dimethylsulfide, dimethyldisulfide, dimethyltrisulfide). The concentration of hydrogen sulfide accounted for 68% of the variation in OC above the stirred slurry samples. The highest concentrations of volatile organic compounds were observed for phenols and indoles, which made a significant contribution to the overall OC when the slurry was fresh. The contribution of ammonia to the OC was only significant in the absence of hydrogen sulfide. The precision of predictive models of OC based on the concentration of specific odorants in the air was satisfactory (R² between 0.66 and 0.89). Hence, this study suggests that monitoring of specific odor compounds released from agitated swine slurry can be used to predict the concentration of odor perceived close to the source (e.g. at storage units), allowing the assessment of odor nuisance potentials.     

Increasing conservation management action by involving local people in natural resource monitoring

There is a need for a better understanding of the status of the environment. At the same time, concerns have been raised regarding alienation of the local populace from environmental decisions. One proposed solution is participatory environmental monitoring. When evaluating the usefulness of environmental monitoring, the focus may be on accuracy, as is usually done by scientists, or on efficiency in terms of conservation impact. To test whether investment in participatory biodiversity monitoring makes economic sense for obtaining data for management decisions, we compared the cost efficiency of participatory and conventional biodiversity monitoring methods in Philippine parks. We found that, from a government perspective, investment in monitoring that combines scientific with participatory methods is strikingly more effective than a similar level of investment in conventional scientific methods alone in generating conservation management interventions. Moreover, the local populace seemed to benefit from more secure de facto user rights over land and other resources. Participatory biodiversity monitoring not only represents a cost-effective alternative when conventional monitoring is impossible, but it is also an unexpectedly powerful complementary approach, capable of generating a much higher level of conservation management intervention, where conventional monitoring already takes place.     

Gaseous ammonia uptake in compost biofilters as related to compost water content

Sewage sludge and yard waste compost were used as biofilter materials and tested with respect to their capacity for removing ammonia from air at different water contents. Ammonia removal was measured in biofilters containing compost wetted to different moisture contents ranging from air dry to field capacity (maximum water holding capacity). Filters were operated for 15 days and subsequently analyzed for NH3/NH4+, NO2-, and NO3-. The measured nitrogen species concentration profiles inside the filters were used to calculate ammonia removal rates. The results showed that ammonia removal is strongly dependent on the water content in the filter material. At gravimetric water contents below 0.25 g H2O g solids(-1) for the yard waste compost and 0.5 g H2O g solids(-1) ammonia removal rates were very low but increased rapidly above these values. The sewage sludge compost filters yielded more than twice the ammonia removal rate observed for yard waste compost likely because of a high initial concentration of nitrifying bacteria originating from the wastewater treatment process and a high airwater interphase surface area that facilitates effective ammonia dissolution and transport to the biofilm.     

Mapping Patterns of Human Use and Potential Resource Conflicts on Public Lands

Focusing on a 2.2 million hectare area surrounding the Lolo National Forest in western Montana, USA, we illustrate a GIS method for predicting patterns of human use on public lands and highlighting potential for impacts on fish and wildlife species. Data inputs include human population count (derived from the 1990 Census), roads and trails, and the predicted distributions of bull trout (Salvelinus confluentus) and 41 terrestrial vertebrates of special concern. Because results highlight areas where conflicts between humans and resources may occur, they are of potential use to land managers. This approach can be applied wherever data are available, and inputs can be varied according to the topics of interest.     

Digestion of waste bananas to generate energy in Australia

This paper presents results from laboratory studies to measure the methane yield and rate of digestion of reject bananas. These parameters were determined in experiments that took into account the likely configuration of a full-scale plant in the banana growing region of north Queensland. The digestion was conducted in a 200-l reactor using fed-batch operation, relying entirely on the natural microbial consortia on the reject bananas to avoid reliance on external inocula such as sludge, an undesirable material around food packaging facilities. An enrichment culture was first established in a highly buffered 200-l batch digestion unit. The fed-batch digester was then started by exchanging leachate with the mature batch reactor. Under loading conditions of 0.6 kg VS m(-3)d(-1) over 70 days where the average working volume was 160 l, the digester produced 398+/-20 l CH4 kg VS(-1). Increasing the loading rate to 1.6 kg VS m(-3)d(-1) resulted in a reduced methane yield of 210 l CH4 kg VS(-1) over 23 days of operation, with a concomitant accumulation of banana waste in the digester. The leachate at the end of digestion contained over 4000 mg l(-1)K, 200 mg l(-1) N and 75 mg l(-1), levels that exceed acceptable limits for general agricultural irrigation.     

Fluorescence imaging applied to tracer distributions in variably saturated fractured clayey till

The study of mechanisms controlling preferential flow and transport in variably saturated fractured clayey till is often hindered by insufficient spatial resolution or unknown measuring volume. With the objective to study these mechanisms while circumventing the obstacles, tracer experiments with two fluorescent tracers Acid Yellow 7 (AY7) and Sulforhodamine B (SB) were performed at three different rain events for a fall and a summer season. Irrigated areas were excavated down to depths of 2.8 m and the movement of both tracers in the exposed profiles was delineated simultaneously by high spatial resolution apparent concentration maps (pixel approximately 1 mm(2)) obtained with an imaging device. The device consists of a light source and a CCD camera, both equipped with tracer-specific-filters for fluorescent light. The fluorescence images were corrected for nonuniform lighting, changing surface roughness, and varying optical properties of the soil profile. The resulting two-dimensional apparent concentration distribution profiles of the tracers showed that: (i) relative low water content in the upper 10 cm of the irrigated till in summer had a pronounced retardation effect on the AY7-migration and no effect on the SB-migration; (ii) the dead-end biopores were not activated in the fall season; (iii) only 3D fracture-plans connected to hydraulically active 1D-biopores contributed to the leaching; (iv) the tracer migration primary followed macropores during both seasons, though AY7 also followed a topsoil piston transport in summer; (v) the highest tracer pixel apparent concentrations were often found in macropores and most pronounced in the summer season; and (vi) 3D-dilution in fractures seems to play a dominating role in AY7-migration in the fall season.     

Analysis of constraints and potentials for wastewater management in the coastal city of Manado, North Sulawesi, Indonesia

Manado is the largest and most densely populated coastal city in North Sulawesi Province, Indonesia. The city is facing problems of wastewater discharged from various sources. These problems are driven by high population pressure, increasing economic activity, and low household income, in combination with inadequate organizational structure of government institutions for addressing the wastewater problems as well as for law enforcement. There have been no community initiatives to prevent or mitigate wastewater problems. Therefore, a wastewater management plan is urgently needed to prevent and mitigate pollution caused by discharged wastewater. In this paper we analyze the current situation with respect to environmental state, sources and treatment of wastewater, socio-economic and institutional capacities as well as community awareness. Constraints and potentials are discussed to give recommendations for an integrated wastewater management plan for the city of Manado.