A compass for sustainable development

A response to the Nuffield Council on Bioethics Consultation from the Institute of Biology, the Association of Applied Biology, the British Crop Protection Council, the British Ecological Society, the British Electrophoresis Society, the British Grassland Society, and the Institute of Horticulture     

铁路服务的可持续发展:哪部分市场是给法国货运铁路的?

历史上的趋势用铁路进行运输的质量是无容置疑的,甚至于其竞争的对手也都承认:铁路节省空间的占用,还节省是因为耗能少,因为普遍使用电能因此少污染,很少产生温室效应的气体.     

Influence of weather and air pollution on the occurrence of idiopathic pulmonary embolism in the region of Sousse (Tunisia)

Environmental Science and Pollution Research - Pulmonary embolism (PE) is the most serious manifestation of thromboembolic conditions. Its incidence varies considerably between countries,...     

Pedogenesis and nickel biogeochemistry in a typical Albanian ultramafic toposequence

This study aimed at relating the variability of Ni biogeochemistry along the ultramafic toposequence to pedogenesis and soil mineralogy. Hypereutric Cambisols dominate upslope; Cambic Vertisols and Fluvic Cambisols occur downslope. The soil mineralogy showed abundance of primary serpentine all over the sequence. It is predominant upslope but secondary smectites dominate in the Vertisols. Free Fe-oxides are abundant in all soils but slightly more abundant in the upslope soils. Whereas serpentines hold Ni in a similar and restricted range in every soil (approx. 0.3 %), Ni contents in smectites may vary a lot and Mg-rich and Al-poor smectites in the Vertisol could hold up to 4.9 % Ni. Ni was probably adsorbed onto amorphous Fe-oxides and was also exchangeable in secondary smectites. High availability of Ni in soils was confirmed by DTPA extractions. However, it varied significantly along the toposequence, being higher in upslope soils, where Ni-bearing amorphous Fe-oxides were abundant and total organic carbon higher and sensibly lower downslope on the Vertisols: Ni_DTPA varied from 285 mg kg^?1 in the surface of soil I (upslope) to 95.9 mg kg^?1 in the surface of Fluvic Cambisols. Concentration of Ni in Alyssum murale shoots varied from 0.7 % (Hypereutric Cambisols) to 1.4 % (Hypereutric Vertisol). Amazingly, Ni uptake by A. murale was not correlated to Ni_DTPA, suggesting the existence of specific edaphic conditions that affect the ecophysiology of A. murale upslope.     

Heavy metal and polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons in Ebrié lagoon sediments, Côte d’Ivoire

Surface sediments throughout Ebrié lagoon, Côte d’Ivoire were collected in 2001 and analyzed for their heavy metal and polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAH) contaminant content. Geochemical maps of heavy metals (Cd, Cu, Zn, Fe, and Mn) in the surface sediment were produced based on geographical information system (GIS) technology. Heavy metals and PAH were detected at high concentration and provide evidence for several anthropogenic inputs to the lagoon. A significant spatial relationship was found for Fe, Zn, and Cu in the sediment using a GIS-based analysis, suggesting that these metal contaminants in the sediments of the Biétri bay had common sources.     

Silver and thallium historical trends in the Seine River basin

Records on pollution by metals of minor economic importance (e.g. silver and thallium) but which prove to be toxic are rarely documented in river sediment. This study used two sediment cores collected downstream of the Seine River to describe the temporal evolution of Ag and Tl concentrations in an urban catchment. Radionuclide analysis (i.e. Cs-137 and Pb-210) allowed dating sediment deposition within the cores (1933-2003). Ag concentration reached maximum values of 14.3-24.6 mg kg(-1) in the 1960s and 1970s, before gradually decreasing up to values which approximated 4 mg kg(-1) in 2003. In contrast, Tl concentrations remained roughly constant throughout the core (median value of 0.86 mg kg(-1)). Suspended solids was collected at upstream locations in the catchment to derive the background concentrations in Ag and Tl. Very high Ag concentrations were measured in the upstream Seine River sites (0.33-0.59 mg kg(-1)), compared to the values reported in the literature (0.055 mg kg(-1)). This suggests the presence of a widespread and ancient Ag pollution in the Seine River basin, as demonstrated by the very high Ag enrichment ratios recorded in the cores. Annual flux of particulate Ag in the Seine River was estimated at 1.7 t yr(-1) in 2003. In contrast, Tl concentrations remained in the same order of magnitude as the natural background signal (0.3-0.5 mg kg(-1)). This study suggests that the Seine River basin is free of Tl contamination. Future concerns should hence mostly rely on Ag contamination, in a context of increasing Ag uses and possible releases to the environment.     

Using multi-criteria decision analysis to assess the vulnerability of drinking water utilities

Outbreaks of microbiological waterborne disease have increased governmental concern regarding the importance of drinking water safety. Considering the multi-barrier approach to safe drinking water may improve management decisions to reduce contamination risks. However, the application of this approach must consider numerous and diverse kinds of information simultaneously. This makes it difficult for authorities to apply the approach to decision making. For this reason, multi-criteria decision analysis can be helpful in applying the multi-barrier approach to vulnerability assessment. The goal of this study is to propose an approach based on a multi-criteria analysis method in order to rank drinking water systems (DWUs) based on their vulnerability to microbiological contamination. This approach is illustrated with an application carried out on 28 DWUs supplied by groundwater in the Province of Québec, Canada. The multi-criteria analysis method chosen is measuring attractiveness by a categorical based evaluation technique methodology allowing the assessment of a microbiological vulnerability indicator (MVI) for each DWU. Results are presented on a scale ranking DWUs from less vulnerable to most vulnerable to contamination. MVI results are tested using a sensitivity analysis on barrier weights and they are also compared with historical data on contamination at the utilities. The investigation demonstrates that MVI provides a good representation of the vulnerability of DWUs to microbiological contamination.     

Impact of transgenic Bt maize residues on the mycotoxigenic plant pathogen Fusarium graminearum and the biocontrol agent Trichoderma atroviride

Transformation of maize with genes encoding for insecticidal crystal (Cry) proteins from Bacillus thuringiensis (Bt) could have an impact on the saprophytic survival of plant pathogens and their antagonists on crop residues. We assessed potential effects on the mycotoxin deoxynivalenol (DON)-producing wheat and maize pathogen Fusarium graminearum and on the biocontrol agent Trichoderma atroviride. Purified Cry1Ab protein caused no growth inhibition of these fungi on agar plates. Cry1Ab concentrations above levels common in Bt maize tissue stimulated the growth of F. graminearum. The fungi were also grown on gamma-radiation-sterilized leaf tissue of four Bt maize hybrids and their non transgenic isolines collected at maize maturity on a field trial in 2002 and 2003. Both fungi degraded the Cry1Ab protein in Bt maize tissue. Fungal biomass quantification with microsatellite-based polymerase chain reaction (PCR) assays revealed differential fungal growth on leaf tissue of different maize varieties but no consistent difference between corresponding Bt and non-Bt hybrids. Generally, year of maize tissue collection had a greater impact on biomass production than cultivar or Bt transformation. The mycotoxin DON levels observed in maize tissue experiments corresponded with patterns in F. graminearum biomass, indicating that Bt transformation has no impact on DON production. In addition to bioassays, maize leaf tissue was analyzed with a mass spectrometer-based electronic nose, generating fingerprints of volatile organic compounds. Chemical fingerprints of corresponding Bt and non-Bt leaf tissues differed only for those hybrid pairs that caused differential fungal biomass production in the bioassays. Our results suggest that Cry1Ab protein in maize residues has no direct effect on F. graminearum and T. atroviride but some corresponding Bt/non-Bt maize hybrids differ more in composition than Cry protein content alone, which can affect the saprophytic growth of fungi on crop residues.