Mercury concentrations in tidal marsh sparrows and their use as bioindicators in Delaware Bay, USA

National parks are used worldwide as a means to protect the ecological integrity of unique ecosystems. Dilek National Park in western Turkey is a protected habitat for several endangered and severely threatened species. Thirty-seven water and 59 sediment samples were collected and analyzed for pesticides at two different sampling depths. The park is contaminated with 16 different organochlorine pesticides, with more pesticides detected in sediments than in water. The most prevalent pesticides in the 30–60-cm depth were DDT (69.5% of the samples), heptachlor (62.3%), a-endosulfan (55% of samples), and endrin (37%). Lindane isomers were present, but at <30% of the sediment samples. These pesticides could be a long-term contamination source that enters the food web used by the very species the park is trying to protect.     

Effects of phytoextraction on heavy metal concentrations and pH of pore-water of biosolids determined using an in situ sampling technique

Heavy metal concentrations and pH of pore-water in contaminated substrates are important factors in controlling metal uptake by plants. We investigated the effects of phytoextraction on these properties in the solution phase of biosolids and diluted biosolids in a 12-month phytoextraction column experiment. Phytoextraction using Salix and Populus spp. temporarily decreased pore-water pH of the substrates over the experimental period followed by a return to initial pH conditions. Salix × reichardtii and Populus balsamifera effectively extracted Ni, Zn and Cd and actively mobilized these metals from the solid to the solution phase. S. × reichardtii had the stronger effect on mobilization of metals due to its larger root system. Phytoextraction did not affect Cu in the solution phase of the biosolids. Heavy metals were leached down to lower depths of the columns during the phytoextraction process.     

Effects of field storage method on <Emphasis Type="Italic">E. coli</Emphasis> concentrations measured in storm water runoff

Storm water runoff is increasingly assessed for fecal indicator organisms (e.g., Escherichia coli, E. coli) and its impact on contact recreation. Concurrently, use of autosamplers along with logistic, economic, technical, and personnel barriers is challenging conventional protocols for sample holding times and storage conditions in the field. A common holding time limit for E. coli is 8 h with a 10 °C storage temperature, but several research studies support longer hold time thresholds. The use of autosamplers to collect E. coli water samples has received little field research attention; thus, this study was implemented to compare refrigerated and unrefrigerated autosamplers and evaluate potential E. coli concentration differences due to field storage temperature (storms with holding times ≤24 h) and due to field storage time and temperature (storms >24 h). Data from 85 runoff events on four diverse watersheds showed that field storage times and temperatures had minor effects on mean and median E. coli concentrations. Graphs and error values did, however, indicate a weak tendency for higher concentrations in the refrigerated samplers, but it is unknown to what extent differing die-off and/or regrowth rates, heterogeneity in concentrations within samples, and laboratory analysis uncertainty contributed to the results. The minimal differences in measured E. coli concentrations cast doubt on the need for utilizing the rigid conventional protocols for field holding time and storage temperature. This is not to say that proper quality assurance and quality control is not important but to emphasize the need to consider the balance between data quality and practical constraints related to logistics, funding, travel time, and autosampler use in storm water studies.     

Development and use of a floristic quality index for coastal Louisiana marshes

The Floristic Quality Index (FQI) has been used as a tool for assessing the integrity of plant communities and for assessing restoration projects in many regions of the USA. Here, we develop a modified FQI (FQI_mod) for coastal Louisiana wetlands and verify it using 12 years of monitoring data from a coastal restoration project. Plant species that occur in coastal Louisiana were assigned a coefficient of conservatism (CC) score by a local group with expertise in Louisiana coastal vegetation. Species percent cover and both native and non-native species were included in the FQI_mod which was scaled from 0–100. The FQI_mod scores from the long-term monitoring project demonstrated the utility of this index for assessing wetland condition over time, including its sensitivity to a hurricane. Ultimately, the FQI developed for coastal Louisiana will be used in conjunction with other wetland indices (e.g., hydrology and soils) to assess wetland condition coastwide and these indices will aid managers in coastal restoration and management decisions.     

Environmental occurrences, behavior, fate, and ecological effects of nanomaterials: an introduction to the special series

The release of engineered nanomaterials (ENMs) into the biosphere will increase as industries find new and useful ways to utilize these materials. Scientists and engineers are beginning to assess the material properties that determine the fate, transport, and effects of ENMs; however, the potential impacts of released ENMs on organisms, ecosystems, and human health remain largely unknown. This special collection of four review papers and four technical papers identifies many key and emerging knowledge gaps regarding the interactions between nanomaterials and ecosystems. These critical knowledge gaps include the form, route, and mass of nanomaterials entering the environment; the transformations and ultimate fate of nanomaterials in the environment; the transport, distribution, and bioavailability of nanomaterials in environmental media; and the organismal responses to nanomaterial exposure and effects of nanomaterial inputs, on ecological communities and biogeochemical processes at relevant environmental concentrations and forms. This introductory section summarizes the state of knowledge and emerging areas of research needs identified within the special collection. Despite recent progress in understanding the transport, transformations, and fate of ENMs in model environments and organisms, there remains a large need for fundamental information regarding releases, distribution, transformations and persistence, and bioavailability of nanomaterials. Moreover, fate, transport, bioaccumulation, and ecological impacts research is needed using environmentally relevant concentrations and forms of ENMs in real field materials and with a broader range of organisms.     

Global Genetic Relationships Among Isolates of Golden Alga (Prymnesium parvum)1

Lutz-Carrillo, Dijar J., Gregory M. Southard, and Loraine T. Fries, 2010. Global Genetic Relationships Among Isolates of Golden Alga (Prymnesium parvum). Journal of the American Water Resources Association (JAWRA) 46(1):24-32. DOI: 10.1111/j.1752-1688.2009.00388.x Abstract: Prymnesium parvum is considered among the most harmful algal species in the world for finfish and other gill breathing organisms. Although it is globally distributed, with the exception of Antarctica, P. parvum is usually associated with coastal and brackish waters. Historically, P. parvum incidents were recorded in the eastern hemisphere; however, in 1985 it was detected in inland Texas waters. We used DNA sequence variation of the first internal transcribed spacer in the nuclear ribosomal operon (ITS1) among multiple samples of P. parvum from Texas and other locales to address the possible origins of P. parvum in Texas and the United States (U.S.). With the exception of a sample from Diversion Lake, other samples from Texas, South Carolina, and Wyoming exhibited limited genetic variation and were similar in sequence to a sample from Scotland. The Diversion Lake sample was similar in sequence to samples from Denmark and Norway, and the Maine sample was highly similar to samples from England. These results suggest multiple independent introductions of P. parvum to the U.S.     

Sources of Suspended-Sediment Flux in Streams of the Chesapeake Bay Watershed: A Regional Application of the SPARROW Model1

Brakebill, John W., Scott W. Ator, and Gregory E. Schwarz, 2010. Sources of Suspended-Sediment Flux in Streams of the Chesapeake Bay Watershed: A Regional Application of the SPARROW Model. Journal of the American Water Resources Association (JAWRA) 46(4): 757-776. DOI: 10.1111/j.1752-1688.2010.00450.x Abstract: We describe the sources and transport of fluvial suspended sediment in nontidal streams of the Chesapeake Bay watershed and vicinity. We applied SPAtially Referenced Regressions on Watershed attributes, which spatially correlates estimated mean annual flux of suspended sediment in nontidal streams with sources of suspended sediment and transport factors. According to our model, urban development generates on average the greatest amount of suspended sediment per unit area (3,928 Mg/km²/year), although agriculture is much more widespread and is the greatest overall source of suspended sediment (57 Mg/km²/year). Factors affecting sediment transport from uplands to streams include mean basin slope, reservoirs, physiography, and soil permeability. On average, 59% of upland suspended sediment generated is temporarily stored along large rivers draining the Coastal Plain or in reservoirs throughout the watershed. Applying erosion and sediment controls from agriculture and urban development in areas of the northern Piedmont close to the upper Bay, where the combined effects of watershed characteristics on sediment transport have the greatest influence may be most helpful in mitigating sedimentation in the bay and its tributaries. Stream restoration efforts addressing floodplain and bank stabilization and incision may be more effective in smaller, headwater streams outside of the Coastal Plain.     

Neuropsychiatric aspects of 22q11.2 deletion syndrome: considerations in the prenatal setting

Most major neuropsychiatric outcomes of concern to families are not detectable by prenatal ultrasound. The introduction of genome-wide chromosomal microarray analysis to prenatal clinical diagnostic testing has increased the detection of pathogenic 22q11.2 deletions, which cause the most common genomic disorder. The recent addition of this and other microdeletions to non-invasive prenatal screening methods using cell-free fetal DNA has further propelled interest in outcomes. Conditions associated with 22q11.2 deletions include intellect ranging from intellectual disability to average, schizophrenia and other treatable psychiatric conditions, epilepsy, and early-onset Parkinson's disease. However, there is currently no way to predict how severe the lifetime expression will be. Available evidence suggests no major role in these neuropsychiatric outcomes for the congenital cardiac or most other structural anomalies that may be detectable on ultrasound. This article provides an outline of the lifetime neuropsychiatric phenotype of 22q11.2 deletion syndrome that will be useful to clinicians involved in prenatal diagnosis and related genetic counselling. The focus is on information that will be most relevant to two common situations: detection of a 22q11.2 deletion in a fetus or newborn, and new diagnosis of 22q11.2 deletion syndrome in a parent without a previous molecular diagnosis. © 2016 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Supply chain collaboration to achieve toxics use reduction

The use of lead poses significant hazardous occupational exposure to workers in the electronics industry, and also causes environmental challenges at the end of product life. For the past decade, there has been a global effort in the electronics industry to initiate a move towards using lead-free materials for the production of printed circuit boards. However, there are technical and economic challenges, such as long term reliability and rework capability, that remain to hinder the universal implementation of lead-free materials. As a result, many electronics products are still currently manufactured and assembled using materials containing lead.The costs for investigating and evaluating the various lead-free electronics materials and manufacturing processes can be cost prohibitive for an individual company to undertake alone. Consequently, the New England Lead-free Electronics Consortium was formed as a collaborative effort of New England companies spanning the electronics supply chain to help move the industry towards lead-free electronics. The Consortium is a working collaboration of industry, government, and academia. For the past several years, the Consortium has conducted research and testing for using various lead-free materials for the manufacture of printed circuit boards. The Consortium has been successful in identifying lead-free materials and processes to address the challenges of assembly and rework. The Consortium is currently conducting research to address the long-term reliability challenge of lead-free electronics.