Microbial transformation products of benzoxazolinone and benzoxazinone allelochemicals--a review

Cyclic hydroxamic acids and lactams are allelochemicals present in the common agricultural crops wheat, rye, and maize. The hydroxamic acids are mainly present in the plants as glucosides. Upon injury or insect attack or when exuded to the soil environment, the hydroxamic acids occur in their unstable agluconic form. In the first step in the transformation of hydroxamic acids, benzoxazolinones are formed spontaneously. It is necessary to elucidate the further microbial transformation of these compounds in the soil environment for a purposeful exploitation of the allelopathic properties of wheat, rye, and maize. In the present paper, the existing knowledge on microbial transformation products of benzoxazolin-2-one (BOA), 6-methoxy-benzoxazolin-2-one (MBOA), and 2-hydroxy-1,4-benzoxazin-3-one (HBOA) was reviewed. Three main groups of transformation products were identified: aminophenoxazinones, malonamic acids, and acetamides. Future research needs concerning the transformation of these chemicals in soil are discussed, when their properties for suppressing weeds and soil-borne diseases are going to be exploited.     

Gas-phase mercury reduction to measure total mercury in the flue gas of a coal-fired boiler

Gaseous elemental and total (elemental + oxidized) mercury (Hg) in the flue gas from a coal-fired boiler was measured by a modified ultraviolet (UV) spectrometer. Challenges to Hg measurement were the spectral interferences from other flue gas components and that UV measures only elemental Hg. To eliminate interference from flue gas components, a cartridge filled with gold-coated sand removed elemental Hg from a flue gas sample. The Hg-free flue gas was the reference gas, eliminating the spectral interferences. To measure total Hg by UV, oxidized Hg underwent a gas-phase, thermal-reduction in a quartz cell heated to 750 degrees C. Simultaneously, hydrogen was added to flash react with the oxygen present forming water vapor and preventing Hg re-oxidation as it exits the cell. Hg concentration results are in parts per billion by volume Hg at the flue gas oxygen concentration. The modified Hg analyzer and the Ontario Hydro method concurrently measured Hg at a field test site. Measurements were made at a 700-MW steam turbine plant with scrubber units and selective catalytic reduction. The flue gas sampled downstream of the selective catalytic reduction contained 2100 ppm SO2 and 75 ppm NOx. Total Hg measured by the Hg analyzer was within 20% of the Ontario Hydro results.     

Evaluation of the genotoxic and cytochrome P450 monooxygenase-inhibitory potential of Dicuran on procaryotic and eucaryotic test systems

The effect of the herbicide Dicuran 500 FL (formulated product) on the phenotypical and genotypical changes in procaryotic and eucaryotic organisms was investigated using short-term tests for detecting genotoxins. Since pesticides discharged in the water environment can modulate the mixed-function monooxygenases (MFO) detoxification system of water organisms, the in vivo and in vitro effects of Dicuran on hepatic cytochrome P450 (cyt P450) monooxygenase activities were also examined in juvenile carp (Cyprinus carpio L.). By measuring the activities of MFO in experimental carp exposed to Dicuran an attempt was made to establish whether Dicuran could be bioactivated by MFO into ultimate mutagens. Our results on the bacterial strains Salmonella typhimurium TA100 and TA98 show that Dicuran does not possess either mutagenic or premutagenic characteristics. The micronucleus test on the erythrocytes of experimental carp did not establish any clastogenic effect either. However, Dicuran significantly inhibited the MFO activity of 7-ethoxyresorufin-O-deethylase (EROD) and benzo[a]pyrene monooxygenase (BaPMO) in the liver of experimental carp in vitro, as well as in in vivo conditions. These findings demonstrate the potentially damaging effect of Dicuran on the xenobiotic metabolizing enzyme systems of fish, and suggest the applicability of described methods for the prediction of the ecotoxicological significance of the presence of pesticides in the water environment.     

Achieving forest carbon information with higher certainty: A five-part plan

International negotiations on the inclusion of land use activities into an emissions reduction system for the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change (UNFCCC) have been partially hindered by the technical challenges of measuring, reporting, and verifying greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions and the policy issues of leakage, additionality, and permanence. This paper outlines a five-part plan for estimating forest carbon stocks and emissions with the accuracy and certainty needed to support a policy for Reducing Emissions from Deforestation and forest Degradation, forest conservation, sustainable management of forests, and enhancement of forest carbon stocks (the REDD-plus framework considered at the UNFCCC COP-15) in developing countries. The plan is aimed at UNFCCC non-Annex 1 developing countries, but the principles outlined are also applicable to developed (Annex 1) countries. The parts of the plan are: (1) Expand the number of national forest carbon Measuring, Reporting, and Verification (MRV) systems with a priority on tropical developing countries; (2) Implement continuous global forest carbon assessments through the network of national systems; (3) Achieve commitments from national space agencies for the necessary satellite data; (4) Establish agreed-on standards and independent verification processes to ensure robust reporting; and (5) Enhance coordination among international and multilateral organizations.     

Integrated assessment of future CAP policies: land use changes,spatial patterns and targeting

The recent and upcoming reforms of the Common Agricultural Policies (CAPs) aim at strengthening the multifunctional role of agriculture, acknowledging the differences in economic, environmental and social potentials within European regions. This paper presents results from an integrated assessment of existing and future policies within the framework set up in the FP6 EU project MEA-Scope. Spatial explicit procedures allow for the MEA-Scope modelling tools to provide information related to regional, environmental and socio-economics settings. The impact of different policy scenarios on structural change, land abandonment and cropping pattern of typical farms has been assessed based on linked agent-based (ABM) and Linear Programming (LP) models at regional and farm scale for two study areas. For the German case study area Ostprignitz-Ruppin (OPR), the issue of policy targeting has been addressed by relating non-commodity outputs (NCOs) to soil quality and protection status. For the Italian case study area (Mugello), changes in landscape patterns in terms of increased fragmentation or homogeneity as affected by changes in agricultural intensity have been analysed using semivariance analysis. The spatial explicit approach highlighted the relevance of case study research in order to identifying response structures and explaining policy implementation patterns.     

Sustainability and education for sustainability: An analysis of publications from the last decade

This study analyzes the characteristics of publications on sustainability topics and education for sustainability in the Web of Science (WOS) database during the period ranging from 2005 to 2014. We identified the topics that are being studied within those subjects and other relevant topics. We also analyzed a special edition of the Journal of Cleaner Production on “Higher Education for Sustainable Development: Emerging areas,” published in January, 2014. Our approach was both qualitative and quantitative and aimed at qualifying and quantifying certain variables related to the scientific literature on the broad subject of sustainability. The number of published pieces in the WOS focusing on sustainability issues during the period from 2005 to 2014 was 5,924. In our analysis of the special edition of the Journal of Cleaner Production, we found and analyzed 17 abstracts and full papers. The main results of our survey highlight the education, educational research, environmental sciences, ecology, and engineering areas as including the greatest number of publications. Articles, as opposed to conference proceedings or reviews, accounted for 63% of the published documents, and the year 2013 showed the largest number of publications. Huisingh, Suciu, Katane, and Barth are the most published authors on these topics. Furthermore, management, environmental studies, ecology, and environmental sciences are the “hot topics” with the best search results, meaning articles of impact and high quality. Finally, it should be emphasized that publications on the subject of sustainability appear most often in the sciences.     

“New roads – new goals. Positions of feminist planning”. Frei.Räume no. 10, edited by the German FOPA (feminist organisation of (female) planners and architects) in 1998

This Translations contribution presents the 10th issue of the series Frei.Räume (in English: Free spaces), edited by the German Feminist Organisation of (female) Planners and Architects (FOPA) in 1998. The issue was titled “New roads – new goals. Positions of feminist planning” and reflected the contemporary discussions on the state of the art of feminism, gender and planning. While progress was recognized, many authors felt uncomfortable with the ways that feminist concerns had been implemented into planning, and they were looking for ways forward. Among the authors were the most important protagonists of the debates at the time. Looking at the issue today, it becomes clear that many concerns are as up to date as they were in the late 1990s, although circumstances have changed. The paper argues that it is worthwhile to pay attention to these feminist debates in order to develop future strategies for feminism in planning.     

Anaerobic digestion of agro-industrial waste enriched with bovine bone meal for improved biogas production and biofertilization

The increase in animal and agro-industrial production must be accompanied by the development of appropriate waste and by-product management strategies. Anaerobic digestion is a promising approach to recycle these wastes and reintegrate them into the economic production cycle of biogas and biofertilizer. In order to improve the performance of the anaerobic mesophilic digestion of abundant agro-industrial wastes constituted by potato peel (PP), and poultry waste (PW) and study the contribution of bovine bone meal (BB) as additive rich in phosphorus, which can help to neutralize the acidity of the substrate. The 10-point simplex-centroid design and the isoresponse surfaces strategy were used. This study demonstrated that in mesophilic bio-digestion, the using bovine bones in admixture with agroindustrial residue provided for the proper balance of chemical components required for proliferation of microbiological agent of bioconversion, which also resulted in an increase in biogas production capacity. The best formula was so composed by 66.67% bovine bone, 16.67% potatoes peel, and 16.67% poultry waste. The stability was achieved here after only 12 days. The digestate generated from it was fulfilled with the microbiological and chemical requirements for safety defined by the NF U44-551 standard. Germination test revealed that this optimal produced digestate, did not hinder growth, in fact, almost 85% of seed was germinated. Finally, fertilization experiments prove that this digestate can boost the growth of bell pepper (Capsicum annuum).