Targeted Sustainable Development: 15 Years of Government and Community Intervention on the St. Lawrence River

From 1988 to 2003, the St. Lawrence Action Plan, a Canada – Quebec cooperation agreement on the St. Lawrence River, helped to mobilize a still-growing number of stakeholders in the conservation and protection of this great river and generated tangible results in a number of areas of intervention. The successes enjoyed in the area of industrial, agricultural and urban clean-up, in protecting plant and animal species and their habitats, and in acquiring new knowledge on the state and trends of the ecosystem reflect the sustained efforts of government and non-government partners over the course of those 15 years. The committed involvement of local communities provides assurance of the sustainable development of this vast ecosystem.The Canadian Crown reserves the right to retain a non-exclusive, royalty free licence in and to any copyright.     

Monitoring Biofilm Thickness Using A Non-Destructive, On-Line, Electrical Capacitance Technique

Abstact The present study was designed to evaluate indirect, non-invasive, on-line measurement of biofilm thickness using an electrical capacitance technique. Several assays were carried out and the results showed that, at a frequency of 1 kHz, electrical capacitance could be used to measure biofilm thickness indirectly (with a correlation coefficient of 0.9495). The reproducibility revealed by the assays was also highly satisfactory.However, in contrast to what was expected, there was an inverse relationship between electrical capacitance and biofilm thickness, i.e. electrical capacitance diminished with the increase in the biofilm thickness.The tests were also carried out at different frequencies (1 kHz, 10 kHz and 100 kHz)     

Kinetics and thermodynamic studies of Methyl Orange removal by polyvinylidene fluoride-PEDOT mats

We report the preparation of poly(3,4-ethylene dioxythiophene) (PEDOT)-modified polyvinylidene fluoride electrospun fibers and their use as a novel adsorbent material for the removal of the anionic dye Methyl Orange (MO) from aqueous media. This novel adsorbent material can be used to selectively remove MO on a wide pH range (3.0–10.0), with a maximum capacity of 143.8 mg/g at pH 3.0. When used in a recirculating filtration system, the maximum absorption capacity was reached in a shorter time (20 min) than that observed for batch mode experiments (360 min). Based on the analyses of the kinetics and adsorption isotherm data, one can conclude that the predominant mechanism of interaction between the membrane and the dissolved dye molecules is electrostatic. Besides, considering the estimated values for the Gibbs energy, and entropy and enthalpy changes, it was established that the adsorption process is spontaneous and occurs in an endothermic manner. The good mechanical and environmental stability of these membranes allowed their use in at least 20 consecutive adsorption/desorption cycles, without significant loss of their characteristics. We suggest that the physical-chemical characteristics of PEDOT make these hybrid mats a promising adsorbent material for use in water remediation protocols and effluent treatment systems.     

Effect of temperature and organic nutrients on the biodegradation of linear alkylbenzene sulfonate (LAS) during the composting of anaerobically digested sludge from a wastewater treatment plant

Limits on the application of biosolids (anaerobically processed sludges from wastewater treatment plants) as fertilizers for the amendment of soil are becoming greater because of the accumulation of recalcitrant substances, making necessary the use of techniques that bring the concentration of xenobiotics to lower concentrations than those permitted. In general, the biosolids composting process is sufficient to reduce the usual concentration of linear alkylbenzene sulfonates (LAS) to low levels. In this work, an assessment is made on the effect of temperature in the capacity of enriched bacterial populations to biodegrade LAS, together with the influence that the available nutrients may have in the biodegradation of these compounds. The results show that the microbial metabolism of LAS was not observed in the thermophilic range. The optimum temperature for the biodegradation of LAS appears to be around 40 degrees C, this is, the lowest assayed here, and at this temperature the differences in the biodegradation of LAS among the nutritionally supplemented cultures are small.     

分子印迹技术在环境科学领域中的应用

分子印迹技术（MIT）是一门新兴的边缘科学技术,它的产生与发展为环境科学打开了又一视角。介绍了MIT的产生与发展及基本原理,综述了MIT在环境科学领域中的应用,主要包括MIT在固相萃取、膜分离、色谱分析、传感器及分子印迹聚合物作为催化剂在环境修复中的应用。     

贵州喀斯特山区不同种植年限花椒根际土壤细菌群落结构特征研究

以贵州花江峡谷花椒(Zanthoxylum bungeamun)林为研究对象,采用16S rRNA高通量测序技术,分析种植5、10、20、30 a花椒根际土壤细菌群落结构和多样性特征,探讨不同种植年限花椒土壤理化因子对根际细菌群落分布的影响,为喀斯特石漠化地区花椒农业可持续发展提供有效的理论依据.结果表明,随着花椒种植...     

蒽降解菌与铜绿假单胞菌融合子的特性研究

将蒽降解菌An815和绿色荧光蛋白标记铜绿假单胞菌(Pseudomonas aeruginosa/EGFP)P原生质体融合,得到了既能高效降解蒽,又能产生生物表面活性剂的融合子F。研究了它的形态特征、生理生化特性、产表面活性剂的能力、对蒽的降解性能及生长繁殖情况。结果表明,融合子菌落和菌体形态,产脓青素,荧光色素的特性类似于铜绿假单胞菌亲本,但其大多生理生化特性酷似An815亲本而不同于铜绿假单胞菌亲本;融合子有较好产表面活性剂的能力,72 h内将表面张力由70.2 mN/m降至36.5mN/m;在蒽的反应体系中,32h内融合子和亲本An815对蒽的降解转化率分别为86.7%,59.4%,融合子对蒽的降解速率比An815提高了27.3%;在蒽的反应体系中融合子和亲本生长曲线相似。     

好氧颗粒污泥在生物强化除磷中的应用

结合近年来好氧颗粒污泥的最新研究成果,分析了好氧颗粒污泥的物理、化学、生物学、结构特征,并从生物除磷、反硝化除磷和沉淀作用三方面对好氧颗粒污泥除磷现象进行探讨。旨在为好氧颗粒污泥在生物强化除磷中的实际应用提供理论知识。     

高浊度污水快速净化新技术

介绍了一种快速净化高浊度污水的新技术,该技术根据化学强化一级处理(chemically enhanced primary treatment,CEPT)技术、闪速混合(flash mixing)技术、旋流和点涡流絮凝技术、悬浮泥层过滤技术和过滤水力学原理等理论,采用物理化学法去除污水中的有机污染物和其他有害杂质,其有着流程简单可靠、投资和运行费用低、占地少、净化效果好的优势.     

BR-319: Brazil’s Manaus-Porto Velho Highway and the Potential Impact of Linking the Arc of Deforestation to Central Amazonia

Brazil’s BR-319 Highway linked Manaus, in the state of Amazonas, to Porto Velho, Rondônia, until it became impassable in 1988. Now it is proposed for reconstruction and paving, which would facilitate migration from the “Arc of Deforestation” in the southern part of the Amazon region to new frontiers farther north. The purpose of the highway, which is to facilitate transport to São Paulo of products from factories in the Manaus Free Trade Zone, would be better served by sending the containers by ship to the port of Santos. The lack of a land connection to Manaus currently represents a significant barrier to migration to central and northern Amazonia. Discourse regarding the highway systematically overestimates the highway’s benefits and underestimates its impacts. A variety of changes would be needed prior to paving the highway if these potential impacts are to be attenuated. These include zoning, reserve creation, and increased governance in various forms, including deforestation licensing and control programs. More fundamental changes are also needed, especially the abandonment of the long-standing tradition in Brazil of granting squatters’ rights to those who invade public land. Organizing Amazonian occupation in such a way that road construction and improvement cease to lead to explosive and uncontrolled deforestation should be a prerequisite for approval of the BR-319 and other road projects for which major impacts are expected. These projects could provide the impetus that is needed to achieve the transition away from appropriation of public land by both small squatters and by grileiros (large-scale illegal claimants). A delay in reconstructing the highway is advisable until appropriate changes can be effected.