Altered feeding preference of beech weevil Rhynchaenus fagi L. for beech foliage under ambient air pollution

The effect of ambient air pollution with increased ozone concentrations on the feeding behaviour of the beech weevil Rhynchaenus fagi L. was studied. In a dual choice feeding test the beech weevil preferred leaf disks from beech saplings exposed to ambient air against those from filtered air in 65.5% of all cases.     

Defining the Diurnal Pattern of Snowmelt Using a Beta Distribution Function

Snow is an important component of the hydrologic cycle for many regions worldwide. In addition to vital water resources, snowmelt can be important for forest ecosystem dynamics and flood risk. However, standard design events in the United States lack a design snowmelt event, including only precipitation events, though snowmelt has been shown to be larger than rainfall. In this article, we present a method using hourly snow water equivalent data to develop and test a function for representing the diurnal pattern of snowmelt. A two‐parameter beta distribution function is modified for the purposes of this study and found to fit the pattern of snowmelt well with a root mean squared error of 0.008. Soil moisture sensors were additionally utilized to assess the timing of the snowmelt water outflow from the base of the snowpack that supports the shape of the function, but suggests that the timing of losses recorded on snow pillows lag as much as 3 h. Further testing of the function showed the shape of the function to be accurate. The methods developed and tested in this paper can be applied for design purposes comparing snowmelt and rainfall events or to improve hydrological models investigating processes such as streamflow or groundwater recharge.     

Building Greater Transparency in Supply Chains to Advance Sustainability

As company supply chains grow larger, more dispersed, and more complex, companies and their stakeholders are increasingly interested in knowing more about these supply chains and requesting greater transparency regarding them. This article examines several aspects that can assist companies in building greater transparency in supply chains, including supply chain mapping, traceability, third‐party certification, and goal setting, as well as reporting on their progress toward achieving these efforts. In addition, this article provides summaries of how several companies are building greater transparency in their supply chains, efforts that also help companies better manage the environmental impacts from their supply chains.     

Evaluation of Existing and Modified Wetland Equations in the SWAT Model

The ability to accurately simulate flow and nutrient removal in treatment wetlands within an agricultural, watershed‐scale model is needed to develop effective plans for meeting nutrient reduction goals associated with protection of drinking water supplies and reduction of the Gulf of Mexico hypoxic zone. The objectives of this study were to incorporate new equations for wetland hydrology and nutrient removal in Soil and Water Assessment Tool (SWAT), compare model performance using original and improved equations, and evaluate the ramifications of errors in watershed and tile drain simulation on prediction of NO₃‐N dynamics in wetlands. The modified equations produced Nash‐Sutcliffe Efficiency values of 0.88 to 0.99 for daily NO₃‐N load predictions, and percent bias values generally less than 6%. However, statistical improvement over the original equations was marginal and both old and new equations provided accurate simulations. The new equations reduce the model's dependence on detailed monitoring data and hydrologic calibration. Additionally, the modified equations increase SWAT's versatility by incorporating a weir equation and an irreducible nutrient concentration and temperature coefficient. Model improvements enhance the utility of SWAT for simulating flow and nutrients in wetlands and other impoundments, although performance is limited by the accuracy of inflow and NO₃‐N predictions from the contributing watershed. Editor's note : This paper is part of the featured series on SWAT Applications for Emerging Hydrologic and Water Quality Challenges. See the February 2017 issue for the introduction and background to the series.     

How Good? Ethical Criteria for a ‘Good Life’ for Farm Animals

The Farm Animal Welfare Council’s concept of a Good Life gives an idea of an animal’s quality of life that is over and above that of a mere life worth living. The concept needs explanation and clarification, in order to be meaningful, particularly for consumers who purchase farm animal produce. The concept could allow assurance schemes to apply the label to assessments of both the potential of each method of production, conceptualised in ways expected to enhance consumers’ engagement such as ‘naturalness’ and ‘freedom’; and the concept of a life worth living as a safeguard threshold below which no animal’s actual welfare should fall, based on each animal’s overall affective states. This may provide a framework for development of the Good Life concept, within scientific and sociological fields, in order to allow reliable and influential use by assessors, consumers and retailers.     

Towards an international standard: The ISO/DIS 18504 standard on sustainable remediation

Sustainable remediation is the elimination and/or control of unacceptable risks in a safe and timely manner while optimizing the environmental, social, and economic value of the work. Forthcoming International Organization for Standardization (ISO) Standard on Sustainable Remediation will allow countries without the capacity to develop their own guidance to benefit from work done over the past decade by various groups around the world. The ISO standard has progressed through the committee draft (ISO/CD 18504) and draft international standard (ISO/DIS 18504) stages. The risk‐based approach to managing the legacy of historically contaminated soil and groundwater has been incorporated into policy, legislation, and practice around the world. It helps determine the need for remediation and the end point of such remediation. Remediation begins with an options appraisal that short lists strategies that could deliver the required reduction in risk. A remediation strategy comprises one or more remediation technologies that will deliver the safe and timely elimination and/or control of unacceptable risks. The ISO standard will help assessors identify the most sustainable among the shortlisted, valid alternative remediation strategies. Practitioners presenting case studies claiming to constitute sustainable remediation should now report how they have aligned their work with the new standard. Indicators are used to compare alternative remediation strategies. The simplest metric that allows a characteristic to act as an indicator should be chosen. Weightings indicators can become a contested exercise and should only be undertaken where there is a clear desire for it by stakeholders and a clear need for it in identifying a preferred strategy. The simplest means of ranking alternative remediation strategies should be adopted.     

Histopathological effects of chronic aqueous exposure to bis(tri-n-butyltin)oxide (TBTO) to environmentally relevant concentrations reveal thymus atrophy in European flounder (Platichthys flesus)

Although the use of tributyltin in antifouling paints has been banned, this compound is still a serious pollutant of the marine environment. This paper describes a unique study in which European flounder (Platichthys flesus) were chronically (8 months) exposed to bis(tri-n-butyltin)oxide (TBTO) in the water under controlled laboratory conditions. Residue levels in selected tissues (liver, muscle) and general health status indices were measured and the effects on several organs (gills, liver, mesonephros, ovary/testis, spleen, and gastrointestinal tract) were examined histopathologically. Additionally, morphometric analysis of the thymus was performed. The major finding is that exposure of flounder to 5 μg TBTO/l over a period of 8 months, resulting in body burdens comparable to high field levels, induced significant reduction of thymus volume, possibly affecting immunocompetence of the animals. Chronic exposure of European flounder to tributyltin is therefore likely to affect the general health status of this species in heavily polluted aquatic environments.