Export quality,economic growth,and renewable-nonrenewable energy use: non-linear evidence through regime shifts

Environmental Science and Pollution Research - Since export has a key role in economic growth in terms of national production quantity, export quality can be considered another important factor...     

Turmeric (Curcuma longa L.) tends to reduce the toxic effects of nickel (II) chloride in Allium cepa L. roots

Environmental Science and Pollution Research - The immense protection potential of plant-derived products against heavy metal toxicity has become a considerable field of research. The goal of the...     

Cancer and occupational exposure to pesticides: a bibliometric study of the past 10 years

Environmental Science and Pollution Research - Occupational exposure to pesticides has been identified as a major trigger of the development of cancer. Pesticides can cause intoxication in the...     

Insights into the Viscoelastic Peculiarities of Cyanobacterial Extracellular Polymeric Substance (EPS)

Journal of Polymers and the Environment - Extracellular polymeric substances (EPSs) can be defined as renewable, high molecular weight polymeric materials produced by bacteria and microorganisms....     

Adsorption of Malachite Green from Aqueous Solution Using Hydroxyethyl Starch Hydrogel Improved by Graphene Oxide

Journal of Polymers and the Environment - This study is the first report of the preparation of hydroxyethyl starch (HES) hydrogels rapidly crosslinked with divinyl sulfone in a single step and...     

Spatial Distribution of Soil Attributes in the Concórdia River Watershed in Southern Brazil

Using geographic information system, soil sampling, and statistical analysis to map anthropogenic effects on soil     

Radiocaesium accumulation in stemwood: integrated approach at the scale of forest stands for contaminated Scots pine in Belarus

Twenty years after the Chernobyl accident, root uptake from the surface layers of contaminated forest soils plays a major role in radiocaesium ((137)Cs) transfer to the trees and accumulation in perennial compartments, including stemwood. Trustworthy long-term predictions (modelling) of stemwood contamination with (137)Cs should accordingly be based on a reliable picture of this source-sink relationship. Considering the complexity of the processes involved in (137)Cs cycling in forest stands, elementary ratios like transfer factors (TF) were shown to be not very relevant for that purpose. At the tree level, alternatives like the wood immobilisation potential (WIP) have therefore been proposed in order to quantify the current net (137)Cs accumulation in stemwood. Our objective was here to compare WIP values determined for a series of contaminated forest stands in Belarus with the corresponding pools of (137)Cs available in the soil for root uptake. The comparison reveals that both indices are quite proportional, whatever the forest ecosystem features. This corroborates the relevancy of WIP as an indicator of the current (137)Cs root uptake by the trees, which could accordingly help to improve the existing models of (137)Cs cycling and the long-term management of contaminated forest ecosystems.     

Effect of textile auxiliaries on the biodegradation of dyehouse effluent in activated sludge

The textile industry is confronted with serious environmental problems associated with its immense wastewater discharge, substantial pollution load, extremely high salinity, and alkaline, heavily coloured effluent. Particular sources of recalcitrance and toxicity in dyehouse effluent are two frequently used textile auxiliaries; i.e. dye carriers and biocidal finishing agents. The present experimental work reports the observation of scientific and practical significance related with the effect of two commercially important textile dye carriers and two biocidal finishing agents on biological activated sludge treatment at a textile preparation, dyeing and finishing plant in Istanbul. Respirometric measurements of the dyehouse effluent spiked with the selected textile chemicals were carried out for the assessment of the "readily biodegradable COD fraction" of the wastewater. The respirometric data obtained to visualize the effect of the selected textile auxiliaries on biomass activity was evaluated by an adopted activated sludge model. Results have indicated that the tested biocides did not exert any significant inhibitory effect on the treatment performance of the activated sludge reactor at the concentrations usually encountered in the final, total dyehouse effluent. The situation with the dye carriers was inherently different; one dye carrier appeared to be highly toxic and caused serious inhibition of the microbial respirometric activity, whereas the other dye carrier, also known as the more ecological alternative, i.e. the "Eco-Carrier", appeared to be biodegradable. Finally, the respirometric profile obtained for the Eco-Carrier was described by a simplified respirometric model.     

Lead and cadmium biosorption by extracellular polymeric substances (EPS) extracted from activated sludges: pH-sorption edge tests and mathematical equilibrium modelling

The sorption of Cd and Pb by extracellular polymeric substances (EPS) extracted from activated sludges originated from wastewater treatment plants (WWTPs) or Lab-scale bioreactors was investigated as a function of pH. The study was carried out using a polarographic method in the SMDE (stripping mercury dropping electrode) mode which is suited to determine labile metals in solution containing soluble ligands such as EPS. The results obtained provide evidence of the presence of a pH-sorption/desorption edge for Cd and Pb by EPS. The use of Kurbatov’s model gives information on the mechanisms involved through the determination of “relative complexation constants” (operationally defined) and the number of protons exchanged. The use of this model demonstrates that proton exchange with metals is not the only mechanism involved in metal biosorption by EPS. Other mechanisms such as cation exchange with Ca or Mg, global electric field surrounding the ligand or micro-precipitation of metals could be involved in metal sorption by EPS. The position of the pH-sorption edge curves and the “relative complexation constants” show that Pb displays a greater affinity for EPS than Cd. The studied EPS have large differences regarding binding strength of Cd and Pb. These differences are not correlated with the organic parameters measured to characterize the EPS, however the mineral fraction of the EPS could be involved to a large extent in the sorption of metal.     

Some properties of new nesting areas of sea turtles in north-eastern Mediterranean situated on the extension of the Samandag Beach, Turkey

One of the most endangered species in tropical seas, Chelonia mydas (green turtles) prefer undisturbed sand beaches to lay their eggs. While Caretta caretta lays their eggs all over the Mediterranean beaches of Turkey, C. mydas nesting locations are limited with north-eastern site (Alata, Kazanli, Akyatan and Samandag) of the country and some beaches in Cyprus. Until 2003, no nesting place of both species between Akyatan and Samandag was recorded. From north to south, the beaches examined in 2003 summer are Arsuz, Konacik, Kale, Tr-H-3, Tr-H-2, and Tr-H-1 in addition to well-known and studied nesting beaches of sea turtle species in Hatay Province: Cevlik, Seyhhizir and Meydan. Since the Hatay Provincial Coast between Cevlik and Arsuz is hilly and no stabilized road is available, these small beaches were not known to have both C. mydas and C. caretta nests. Some physical and chemical sand properties, the number of nests belong to both species and selected nest specifications were investigated in this study. Kale Beach was found to be the most important nesting place in this less populated area. Based on results, Kale, Tr-H-3 and Tr-H-1 beaches were recorded to have high hatchling success.