Gaseous emissions from weaned pigs raised on different floor systems

Gaseous emissions from agriculture contribute to a number of environmental effects. Carbon dioxide (CO₂), methane (CH₄) and nitrous oxide (N₂O) are greenhouse gases taking part to the global problem of climate change. Ammonia (NH₃) emissions are responsible of soil acidification and eutrophication and contribute also to indirect emissions of N₂O. This work evaluated the influence of the type of floor on the emissions of these gases in the raising of weaned pigs. Two trials were carried out. In the first trial, the animals were kept either on fully slatted floor or on straw-based deep litter and, in the second one, either on fully slatted floor or on sawdust-based deep litter. For each trial and on each type of floor, 2 successive batches of weaned pigs were raised without changing the litter or emptying the slurry pit between the 2 batches. The rooms were automatically ventilated to maintain a constant ambient temperature.The performance of the animals was not significantly different according to the floor type. In trial 1, the nitrogen contents of the straw deep litter (including the substrate) and slurry were respectively 276 and 389 g pig⁻¹. In trial 2, the sawdust deep litter and slurry nitrogen contents were respectively 122 and 318 g pig⁻¹.Raising pigs on straw deep litter produced proportionately around 100% more NH₃ than raising pigs on slatted floor (0.61 g NH₃-N d⁻¹ pig⁻¹ vs. 0.31 g NH₃-N d⁻¹ pig⁻¹; P < 0.05). Differences in CO₂, H₂O and CH₄ emissions were not significant between systems. Raising pigs on sawdust deep litter produced also proportionately more NH₃ (+52%; 0.55 g NH₃-N d⁻¹ pig⁻¹ vs. 0.36 g NH₃-N d⁻¹ pig⁻¹; P < 0.01) but also more CO₂ (+25%; 427 g d⁻¹ pig⁻¹ vs. 341 g d⁻¹ pig⁻¹; P < 0.001) and H₂O (+65%; 981 g d⁻¹ pig⁻¹ vs. 593 g d⁻¹ pig⁻¹; P < 0.001) and less CH₄ (−40%; 0.52 g d⁻¹ pig⁻¹ vs. 0.86 g d⁻¹ pig⁻¹; P < 0.001) than raising pigs on slatted floor. Practically no N₂O emission was observed from rooms with slatted floor while the N₂O emissions were 0.03 and 0.32 g N₂O-N d⁻¹ pig⁻¹ for the straw and sawdust deep litter respectively. The warming potential of the greenhouse gases (N₂O + CH₄), were about 22, 34 and 168 g CO₂ equivalents per day and per pig on fully slatted floor, straw or sawdust deep litter respectively.In conclusion, pollutant gas emissions from rearing of weaned pig seem lower with fully slatted plastic floor system than with deep litter systems.     

A Global Analysis of Protected Area Management Effectiveness

We compiled details of over 8000 assessments of protected area management effectiveness across the world and developed a method for analyzing results across diverse assessment methodologies and indicators. Data was compiled and analyzed for over 4000 of these sites. Management of these protected areas varied from weak to effective, with about 40% showing major deficiencies. About 14% of the surveyed areas showed significant deficiencies across many management effectiveness indicators and hence lacked basic requirements to operate effectively. Strongest management factors recorded on average related to establishment of protected areas (legal establishment, design, legislation and boundary marking) and to effectiveness of governance; while the weakest aspects of management included community benefit programs, resourcing (funding reliability and adequacy, staff numbers and facility and equipment maintenance) and management effectiveness evaluation. Estimations of management outcomes, including both environmental values conservation and impact on communities, were positive. We conclude that in spite of inadequate funding and management process, there are indications that protected areas are contributing to biodiversity conservation and community well-being.     

Integrating Environmental and Socio-Economic Indicators of a Linked Catchment–Coastal System Using Variable Environmental Intensity

Can we develop land use policy that balances the conflicting views of stakeholders in a catchment while moving toward long term sustainability? Adaptive management provides a strategy for this whereby measures of catchment performance are compared against performance goals in order to progressively improve policy. However, the feedback loop of adaptive management is often slow and irreversible impacts may result before policy has been adapted. In contrast, integrated modelling of future land use policy provides rapid feedback and potentially improves the chance of avoiding unwanted collapse events. Replacing measures of catchment performance with modelled catchment performance has usually required the dynamic linking of many models, both biophysical and socio-economic—and this requires much effort in software development. As an alternative, we propose the use of variable environmental intensity (defined as the ratio of environmental impact over economic output) in a loose coupling of models to provide a sufficient level of integration while avoiding significant effort required for software development. This model construct was applied to the Motueka Catchment of New Zealand where several biophysical (riverine water quantity, sediment, E. coli faecal bacteria, trout numbers, nitrogen transport, marine productivity) models, a socio-economic (gross output, gross margin, job numbers) model, and an agent-based model were linked. An extreme set of land use scenarios (historic, present, and intensive) were applied to this modelling framework. Results suggest that the catchment is presently in a near optimal land use configuration that is unlikely to benefit from further intensification. This would quickly put stress on water quantity (at low flow) and water quality (E. coli). To date, this model evaluation is based on a theoretical test that explores the logical implications of intensification at an unlikely extreme in order to assess the implications of likely growth trajectories from present use. While this has largely been a desktop exercise, it would also be possible to use this framework to model and explore the biophysical and economic impacts of individual or collective catchment visions. We are currently investigating the use of the model in this type of application.     

Construction and Economics of a Pilot/Full-Scale Biological Trickling Filter Reactor for the Removal of Volatile Organic Compounds from Polluted Air

ABSTRACT

The design and the construction of an actual 8.7-m³ pilot/ full-scale biotrickling filter for waste air treatment is described and compared with a previous conceptual scale-up of a laboratory reactor. The reactor construction costs are detailed and show that about one-half of the total reactor costs ($97,000 out of $178,000) was for personnel and engineering time, whereas ~20% was for monitoring and control equipment. A detailed treatment cost analysis demonstrated that, for an empty bed contact time of 90 sec, the overall treatment costs (including capital charges) were as low as $8.7/1000 m³ _air in the case where a nonchlorinated volatile organic compound (VOC) was treated, and $14/ 1000 m³ _air for chlorinated compounds such as CH₂Cl₂. Comparison of these costs with conventional air pollution control techniques demonstrates excellent perspectives for more field applications of biotrickling filters. As the specific costs of building and operating biotrickling filter reactors decrease with increasing size of the reactor, the cost benefit of biotrickling filtration is expected to increase for full technical-scale bioreactors.     

Converging hazard assessment of gold nanoparticles to aquatic organisms

The gold nanoparticles (Au-NPs) are being increasingly used because of their huge diversity of applications, and consequently, elevated levels in the environment are expected. However, due to their physico-chemical properties and functionalization a high variety of Au-NPs can be found, and complete toxicological information for each type of Au-NPs still lacks, and even, the toxicological information for the same species is sometimes contradictory. Therefore, hazard assessment should be done case by case. Hence, the objective of this study was to obtain ecotoxicological information of the same Au-NPs in aquatic organisms and to find a rationale for Au-NPs toxicity. For such a purpose, bare and hyaluronic acid capped Au-NPs (12.5 nm) along with Au-NPs bulk material were tested on freshwater algae, Daphnia and zebrafish. Results showed that while gold nanoparticles were found to be harmless to the tested organisms, the soluble gold showed to be toxic to algae and Daphnia, with an LC₅₀ between 1 and 2 mg L⁻¹. Comparing our results with those gathered in the literature, it appears that a common hazard assessment of Au-NPs on the studied organisms can be elucidated.     

Intestinal absorption of the acetamiprid neonicotinoid by Caco-2 cells: Transepithelial transport,cellular uptake and efflux

The human intestinal absorption of acetamiprid (AAP) using the Caco-2 cell line reveals that AAP flux was active in a bidirectional mode with an apparent permeability coefficient of 26^.10^?6 cm·s^?1 at 37°C. Apical uptake was concentration-dependent and unsaturated for AAP concentrations up to 200 μ M. AAP cell preloading demonstrated the involvement of active transport mechanisms. Arrhenius plot analysis revealed an unusual profile with two apparent activation energies suggesting two transport processes. Uptake Vi studies indicated the involvement of a sodium-dependent transporter, the presence of a common transporter of AAP and nicotine and the involvement of Ti-sensitive ATP-dependent efflux transporters. Apical efflux investigations showed the involvement of inward active transporter(s). Whereas vincristine had no effect on intracellular accumulation, taxol and daunorubicin treatments unexpectedly led to 10% and 23% reductions respectively, suggesting that the latter shared a common inward transporter with AAP. All these results suggest full and express AAP absorption in vivo with transport involving both inward and outward, passive and active mechanisms. Thus, AAP or its metabolites could be representative of a risk for human health after its ingestion in food.     

Point‐Nonpoint Trading – Can It Work?1

Ribaudo, Marc O. and Jessica Gottlieb, 2011. Point‐Nonpoint Trading – Can It Work? Journal of the American Water Resources Association (JAWRA) 47(1):5‐14. DOI: 10.1111/j.1752‐1688.2010.00454.x Abstract: Water quality trading between point and nonpoint sources is of great interest as an alternative to strict command and control regulations on point sources for achieving water quality goals. The expectation is that trading will reduce the costs of water quality protection, and may speed compliance. The United States Environmental Protection Agency has issued guidance to the States on developing point‐nonpoint trading programs, and United States Department of Agriculture is encouraging farmer participation. However, existing point‐nonpoint trading programs have resulted in very few trades. Supply side and demand side impediments seem to be preventing trades from occurring in most trading programs. These include uncertainty over the number of discharge allowances different management practices can produce, high transactions costs of identifying trading partners, baseline requirements that eliminate low‐cost credits, the reluctance of point sources to trade with unfamiliar agents, and the perception of some farmers that entering contracts with regulated point sources leads to greater scrutiny and potential future regulation. Many of these problems can be addressed through research and program design.     

Prioritization of Ecosystem Services Research: Tampa Bay Demonstration Project

The Tampa Bay Ecosystem Services Demonstration Project (TBESDP) is part of the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency’s Ecosystem Services Research Program. The principal objectives of TBESDP are to (1) quantify the ecosystem services of the Tampa Bay watershed, (2) determine the value of ecosystem services to society, (3) predict the supply of ecosystem services under future scenarios of population growth and climate change, and (4) apply this knowledge through models and tools that will support the best informed environmental decisions possible. The scope and complexity of this project required intensive effort to establish which services can be quantified by applying existing models, data, and scientific literature and which services will require supporting research. Research priorities were assessed by: (1) developing and refining conceptual models of major ecosystems in the Tampa Bay region, (2) gathering input from stakeholders about the relative importance and values of various ecosystem services, (3) preparing and reviewing a bibliometric analysis of the volume of scientific literature relevant to the ecosystems and services of interest, and (4) evaluating an integrated analysis of importance, value, and availability of scientific information. This analysis led us to focus on two research priorities, seagrass-habitat functions as support for fishery production, and wetlands as regulators of water quality.     

Metapopulation dynamics in the butterfly Hipparchia semele changed decades before occupancy declined in The Netherlands

The survival of many species in human-dominated, fragmented landscapes depends on metapopulation dynamics, i.e., on a dynamic equilibrium of extinctions and colonizations in patches of suitable habitat. To understand and predict distributional changes, knowledge of these dynamics can be essential, and for this, metapopulation studies are preferably based on long-time-series data from many sites. Alas, such data are very scarce. An alternative is to use opportunistic data (i.e., collected without applying standardized field methods), but these data suffer from large variations in field methods and search intensity between sites and years. Dynamic site-occupancy models offer a general approach to adjust for variable survey effort. These models extend classical metapopulation models to account for imperfect detection of species and yield estimates of the probabilities of occupancy, colonization, and survival of species at sites. By accounting for detection, they fully correct for among-year variability in search effort. As an illustration, we fitted a dynamic site-occupancy model to 60 years of presence-absence data (more precisely, detection-nondetection) of the heathland butterfly Hipparchia semele in The Netherlands. Detection records were obtained from a database containing volunteer-based data from 1950-2009, and nondetection records were deduced from database records of other butterfly species. Our model revealed that metapopulation dynamics of Hipparchia had changed decades before the species' distribution began to contract. Colonization probability had already started to decline from 1950 onward, but this was counterbalanced by an increase in the survival of existing populations, the result of which was a stable distribution. Only from 1990 onward was survival not sufficient to compensate for the further decrease of colonization, and occupancy started to decline. Hence, it appears that factors acting many decades ago triggered a change in the metapopulation dynamics of this species, which ultimately led to a severe decline in occupancy that only became apparent much later. Our study emphasizes the importance of knowledge of changes in survival and colonization of species in modern landscapes over a very long time scale. It also demonstrates the power of site-occupancy modeling to obtain important population dynamics information from databases containing opportunistic sighting records.