Incineration treatment of arsenic-contaminated soil

An incineration test program was conducted at the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency's Incineration Research Facility to evaluate the potential of incineration as a treatment option for contaminated soils at the Baird and McGuire Superfund site in Holbrook, Massachusetts. The purpose of these tests was to evaluate the incinerability of these soils in terms of the fate of arsenic and lead and the destruction of organic contaminants during the incineration process. The test program consisted of a series of bench-scale experiments with a muffle furnace and a series of incineration tests in a pilot-scale rotary kiln incinerator system. The study reported in this paper was funded by the Environmental Protection Agency under Contract 68–C9–0038 to Acurex Corporation. It has been subjected to the Agency's review and has been approved for publication. Mention of trade names or commercial products does not constitute endorsement or recommendation for use.     

Adenovirus and Norovirus Contaminants in Commercially Distributed Shellfish

Shellfish complying with European Regulations based on quantification of fecal bacterial indicators (FIB) are introduced into markets; however, information on viruses, more stable than FIB, is not available in the literature. To assess the presence of noroviruses (NoVs) GI and GII and human adenoviruses (HAdV) in domestic and imported mussels and clams (n = 151) their presence was analyzed during winter seasons (2004–2008) in north-west Spanish markets through a routine surveillance system. All samples tested negative for NoV GI and 13 % were positive for NoV GII. The role of HAdV as viral indicator was evaluated in 20 negative and 10 positive NoV GII samples showing an estimated sensitivity and specificity of HAdV to predict the presence of NoV GII of 100 and 74 % (cut-off 0.5). The levels of HAdV and NoVs and the efficiency of decontamination in shellfish depuration plants (SDP) were evaluated analyzing pre- and post-depurated mussels collected in May–June 2010 from three different SDP. There were no statistically significant differences in the prevalence and quantification of HAdV between pre- and post-depurated shellfish and between seawater entering and leaving the depuration systems. Moreover, infectious HAdV were detected in depurated mussels. These results confirm previous studies showing that current controls and depuration treatments limiting the number of FIB do not guarantee the absence of viruses in shellfish.     

Total organic halogen (TOX) in human urine: A halogen-specific method for human exposure studies

Disinfection by-products(DBPs) are a complex mixture of compounds unintentionally formed as a result of disinfection processes used to treat drinking water. Effects of long-term exposure to DBPs are mostly unknown and were the subject of recent epidemiological studies. However,most bioanalytical methods focus on a select few DBPs. In this study, a new comprehensive bioanalytical method has been developed that can quantify mixtures of organic halogenated compounds, including DBPs, in human urine as total organic chlorine(TOCl), total organic bromine(TOBr), and total organic iodine(TOI). The optimized method consists of urine dilution, adsorption to activated carbon, pyrolysis of activated carbon, absorption of gases in an aqueous solution, and halide analysis with ion chromatography and inductively coupled plasma-mass spectrometry. Spike recoveries for TOCl, TOBr, and TOI measurements ranged between 78% and 99%. Average TOCl, TOBr, and TOI concentrations in five urine samples from volunteers who consumed tap water were 1850, 82, and 21.0 μg/L as X~-, respectively.Volunteers who consumed spring water(control) had TOCl, TOBr, and TOI average concentrations in urine of 1090, 88, and 10.3 μg/L as X~-, respectively. TOCl and TOI in the urine samples from tap water consumers were higher than the control. However, TOBr was slightly lower in tap water urine samples compared to mineral water urine samples, indicating other sources of environmental exposure other than drinking water. A larger sample population that consumes tap water from different cities and mineral water is needed to determine TOCl, TOBr, and TOI exposure from drinking water.     

Sublethal toxicity of the Prestige oil spill on yellow-legged gulls

The Prestige oil spill in November 2002 is considered the biggest large-scale catastrophe of its type in Europe, thousands of seabirds dying in the subsequent months. Here, the total concentration of 16 polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (TPAH) was measured in the blood cell fraction of adult and chick yellow-legged gulls (Larus michahellis) from unoiled and oiled coastal areas in North Western Spain. In addition, hematocrit, plasma metabolites, electrolytes and enzymes, as well as body mass were determined in the same individuals. Our results strongly suggest the presence of health damages of sublethal nature in adult gulls breeding in oiled colonies 17 months after the Prestige oil spill. This is supported by the following evidences: (1) gulls sampled in unoiled and oiled colonies differed in blood TPAH levels, (2) gulls sampled in unoiled and oiled colonies differed in several blood parameters indicative of physiological disorders, and (3) TPAH in blood was significantly related to several of these parameters. Differences in the level of asparatate aminotransferase (AST), gamma-glutamyl transferase (GGT), total protein, glucose and inorganic phosphorus suggest damages on some vital organs (i.e. liver and kidney) in adult birds from oiled areas. Meanwhile, chicks presented weaker effects than adults, showing only between-area differences in hematocrit. Since TPAH levels in blood did not differ between both age-groups, the stronger effects on adults should be due to their longer exposure to these pollutants and/or to severe exposure in the months following the spill. The presence of PAHs in chicks indicates that these pollutants were incorporated into the food chain because nestlings would have been only exposed to contaminated organisms in the diet (e.g. fishes and crustaceans). Our findings support the view that PAHs may deeply alter the physiology of seabirds, and emphasize the necessity of quantifying the circulating levels of these compounds in order to evaluate the sublethal effects associated to large oil spills.     

Review of corporate environmental indicators

This paper reviews a series of environmental indicators developed in the last years that were found suitable to be applied at corporate level for the evaluation of production processes and products. The indicators reviewed in this paper were classified into four main groups: 1) Indicators of Energy and Material Flows; 2) Indicators with a Territorial Dimension; 3) Indicators of Life-Cycle Assessment; 4) Indicators of Environmental Risk Assessment. Integrative and single index indicators such as the ecological footprint or carbon footprint were found as the most appealing for enterprises, although there is a need to advance in the field to combine the simplicity required at corporate level for tracking and reporting environmental data, and the scientific rigor and transparency necessary to make the scores reliable. Hence, for each of the indicators revised it was stated what they do and do not measure so that misleading information was not used for decision making at corporate level.     

Distribution and accumulation of major and trace elements in water,sediment, and fishes from protected areas of the Atlantic Rainforest

Environmental Science and Pollution Research - Environmental pollution affects the quality of the natural environment where major and trace elements have been commonly found to accumulate in biotic...     

Atrazine toxicity to Handroanthus heptaphyllus,a nontarget species from a Brazilian biome threatened by agriculture

The economic basis of the Brazilian midwest is agriculture, concentrating most of the grain production in the country. With the purpose of increasing yield, farmers have intensified land use and the use of atrazine among other pesticides, which can supposedly compromise human health and photosynthetic metabolism of plant species from Cerrado, such as Handroanthus heptaphyllus. The aim of this study was to determine experimentally the sensitivity level of H. heptaphyllus to atrazine, by measuring gas exchange, chlorophyll a fluorescence, chloroplastidic pigments, and membrane permeability. The experiment was conducted in a factorial scheme. Nine‐month‐old H. heptaphyllus plants were treated with six realistic doses of atrazine: 0, 25, 50, 100, 200, and 400 g a.i. ha^–1 (corresponding to 10, 20, 40, 80, and 100% of the commercial dose recommended for corn crops, respectively), with five replications. Evaluations were performed at 12, 36, 84, 180, and 276 h after treatment application. Photosynthesis, the effective quantum yield of photosystem II, and electron transport rate were gradually reduced by the action of atrazine. On the other hand, the nonphotochemical quenching increased gradually, which indicates that this mechanism was not sufficient to avoid oxidative stress and cellular damage in H. heptaphyllus treated plants. Based on these results, we concluded that the action of the herbicide in the photosynthetic reduction occurs by the electron transport rate limitation. Therefore, H. heptaphyllus trees are at risk in Cerrado areas next to agricultural lands.     

Manatee Mortality in Puerto Rico

Trichechus manatus ) in Puerto Rico is mortality due to human activities. We assessed 90 cases of manatee strandings in Puerto Rico based on historical data and a coordinated carcass salvage effort from 1990 through 1995. We determined patterns of mortality, including type of event, condition of carcasses, spatial and temporal distribution, gender, size/age class, and the cause of death. The spatial distribution of stranding events was not uniform, with the north, northeast, and south coasts having the highest numbers. Six clusters representing the highest incidence included the areas of Fajardo and Ceiba, Bahía de Jobos, Toa Baja, Guayanilla, Cabo Rojo, and Rio Grande to Luquillo. The number of reported cases has increased at an average rate of 9.6%/yr since 1990. The seasonality of stranding events showed a bimodal pattern, from February through April and in August and September. Most identified causes of death were due to human interaction, especially captures and watercraft collisions. Natural causes usually involved dependent calves. From 1990 through 1995, most deaths were attributed to watercraft collisions. A reduction in anthropogenic mortality of this endangered species can be accomplished only through education and a proactive management and conservation plan that includes law enforcement, mortality assessment, scientific research, rescue and rehabilitation, and inter- and intraagency cooperation.     

Waste foundry sand used to cover organic waste in landfills

Journal of Material Cycles and Waste Management - Waste foundry sand (WFS) is a waste generated during the molding of metal parts and primarily discarded in landfills, which generates environmental...     

Water demand of central pivot-irrigated areas in Bahia,Brazil: management of water resources applied to sustainable production

When performed without technical criteria, the rapid expansion of irrigated agricultural frontiers can result in overexploitation of water, causing worrying impacts on the balance of agroecosystems. This study proposes a model applied to the state of Bahia, to estimate the water demand of areas irrigated by a central pivot, in order to contribute to information that will subsidize the inspection and planning of water resources in the promotion of sustainable agriculture. The irrigated areas were identified and measured by photointerpretation using orbital images from the Landsat-8 satellite. With a historical series of data, the reference evapotranspiration was calculated and monthly water balance was elaborated. The data obtained were spatialized by kriging, and with punctual values of water deficit (mm), the water demand of the irrigated perimeter of the equipment was estimated. The results were described considering strategic planning units, proposed from municipalities, hydrographic basins and biomes. A total of 4075 pivots were quantified, covering an irrigated area of 265,896.30 ha and with an average annual consumption of 1,333,473,208.02 m³ of water. Areas of high demand were identified, especially in the western region of Bahia, which includes the hydrographic basin of the São Francisco River and the Cerrado biome, concentrating 80.85% and 75.47% of the state water demand for pivots, respectively. Considering possible points of water vulnerability and continuity of this expansion, the results provide the primary information needed to encourage the adoption of public policies aimed at the management of water resources. The study method proposes guidelines that condition the application in any region of interest in the world.

Graphical abstract