PESTICIDES AND PESTICIDE DEGRADATION PRODUCTS IN STORMWATER RUNOFF: SACRAMENTO RWER BASIN,CALIFORNIA1

ABSTRACT: Pesticides in stormwater runoff, within the Sacramento River Basin, California, were assessed during a storm that occurred in January 1994. Two organophosphate insecticides (diazinon and methidathion), two carbamate pesticides (molinate and carbofuran), and one triazine herbicide (simazine) were detected. Organophosphate pesticide concentrations increased with the rising stage of the hydrographs; peak concentrations were measured near peak discharge. Diazinon oxon, a toxic degradation product of diazinon, made up approximately 1 to 3 percent of the diazinon load. The Feather River was the principal source of organophosphate pesticides to the Sacramento River during this storm. The concentrations of molinate and carbofuran, pesticides applied to rice fields during May and June, were relatively constant during and after the storm. Their presence in surface water was attributed to the flooding and subsequent drainage, as a management practice to degrade rice stubble prior to the next planting. A photo-degradation product of molinate, 4-keto molinate, was in all samples where molinate was detected and made up approximately 50 percent of the total molinate load. Simazine, a herbicide used in orchards and to control weeds along the roadways, was detected in the storm runoff, but it was not possible to differentiate the two sources of that pesticide to the Sacramento River.     

Lessons after Bhopal: CSB a catalyst for change

The Bhopal tragedy was a defining moment in the history of the chemical industry. On December 3, 1984, a runaway reaction within a methyl isocyanate storage tank at the Union Carbide India Limited pesticide plant released a toxic gas cloud that killed thousands and injured hundreds of thousands. After Bhopal, industrial chemical plants became a major public concern. Both the public and the chemical industry realized the necessity of improving chemical process safety.

Bhopal served as a wake-up call. To prevent the same event from occurring in the United States, many legislative and industrial changes were invoked—one of which was formation of the U.S. Chemical Safety and Hazard Investigation Board (CSB). The ultimate goal of CSB is to use the lessons learned and recommendations from its investigations to achieve positive change within the chemical industry—preventing incidents and saving lives.

Although it seems clear that the lessons learned at Bhopal have improved chemical plant safety, CSB investigations indicate that the systemic problems identified at Bhopal remain the underlying causes of many incidents. These include:

• Lack of awareness of reactive hazards.

• Lack of management of change.

• Inadequate plant design and maintenance.

• Ineffective employee training.

• Ineffective emergency preparedness and community notification.

• Lack of root cause incident investigations and communication of lessons learned.

The aim of this paper is to present common themes from recent cases investigated by CSB and to discuss how these issues might be best addressed in the future.

This paper has not been independently approved by the Board and is published for general informational purposes only. Any material in the paper that did not originate in a Board-approved report is solely the responsibility of the authors and does not represent an official finding, conclusion, or position of the Board.     

Ammonia large scale atmospheric dispersion experiments in industrial configurations

A programme of large-scale experiments for atmospheric dispersion was carried out by INERIS over a period extending from December 1996 to April 1997. The objectives of the test campaign were to measure anhydrous ammonia concentrations in a range of few meters to 2 km from the release, in order to generate data to be used to improve 2-phase discharge and dispersion modelling.

The discharges were released from a 6-tonne storage tank of pressurised liquid ammonia and through a discharge device with an outlet diameter of 2 in. Fifteen trials were carried out with various release configurations corresponding to industrial situations (impinging jets on the ground and on a wall at various distances, release through a flange without seal…). The quantity of ammonia discharged from the liquid phase varied according to the tests, from 1.4 to 3.5 tons for durations between 7 and 14 min and, therefore, at flow rates between 2 and 4.5 kg/s. Approximately 200 sensors were settled downwind to measure ammonia concentrations and temperature in the plume. These tests showed that for discharges with identical flow rates the distances corresponding to the same concentration vary a lot according to the configurations. These distances tend to be reduced by the presence of obstacles or retention dikes that collected liquid ammonia. In the paper, the main experimental results are presented. In order to enable the comparisons with numerical predictions, more detailed information are given in [Bouet R. (1999). Ammoniac—Essais de dispersion atmosphérique à grande échelle. INERIS rapport, ref INERIS-DRA-RBo-1999-20410 (available at http://www.ineris.fr/recherches/recherches.htm).     

Assessment of ambient ozone effects on vegetation using snap bean as a bioindicator species

Tropospheric ozone is an air pollutant that is toxic to plants, causing visible injury to foliage and a reduction in growth and yield. The use of plant bioindicators is one approach to assess the ozone impacts in diverse geographical areas. The objective of this study was to evaluate snap bean (Phaseolus vulgaris L.) as a potential bioindicator species. Three snap bean genotypes known to exhibit a range of ozone sensitivity were grown in pots under charcoal-filtered (CF) or nonfiltered (NF) treatments in open-top chambers, or under ambient air (AA) conditions. Treatment effects on biomass were not significant at 56 days after planting (DAP), but midseason foliar injury increased in the NF and AA treatments relative to CF controls. An increase in ozone from 25 to 30 nL L(-1) in CF controls to approximately 50 nL L(-1) in the NF and AA treatments was found to suppress final pod dry weight per plant by 40 to 60% in the most sensitive genotype S156. The same treatments suppressed final pod dry weight by 20 to 30% in a moderately sensitive genotype Oregon-91, and by 10% or less in a tolerant genotype R123. An S156 to R123 yield ratio of approximately one was observed under CF conditions. The S156 to R123 yield ratio declined to 0.6 to 0.7 in the NF treatment and declined further to 0.4 to 0.5 in the AA treatment, suggesting that ozone impact was underestimated in the open-top chambers. The results suggest that a snap bean bioindicator system has the potential to detect ambient ozone effects at present-day ozone concentrations.     

Suicide by crashing into a heavy vehicle: Focus on professional drivers using in-depth crash data

Objective: Road traffic suicides typically involve a passenger car driver crashing his or her vehicle into a heavy vehicle, because death is almost certain due to the large mass difference between these vehicles. For the same reason, heavy-vehicle drivers typically suffer minor injuries, if any, and have thus received little attention in the research literature. In this study, we focused on heavy-vehicle drivers who were involved as the second party in road suicides in Finland.

Methods: We analyzed 138 road suicides (2011–2016) involving a passenger car crashing into a heavy vehicle. We used in-depth road crash investigation data from the Finnish Crash Data Institute.

Results: The results showed that all but 2 crashes were head-on collisions. Almost 30% of truck drivers were injured, but only a few suffered serious injuries. More than a quarter reported sick leave following their crash. Injury insurance compensation to heavy-vehicle drivers was just above €9,000 on average. Material damage to heavy vehicles was significant, with average insurance compensation paid being €70,500. Three out of 4 truck drivers reported that drivers committing suicide acted abruptly and left them little opportunity for preventive action.

Conclusions: Suicides by crashing into heavy vehicles can have an impact on drivers’ well-being; however, it is difficult to see how heavy-vehicle drivers could avoid a suicide attempt involving their vehicle.     

Synthesis of branched,nano channeled,ultrafine and nano carbon tubes from PET wastes using the arc discharge method

Upcycling polymer wastes into useful, and valuable carbon based materials, is a challenging process. We report a novel catalyst-free and solvent-free technique for the formation of nano channeled ultrafine carbon tubes (NCUFCTs) and multiwalled carbon nanotubes (MWCNTs) from polyethylene terephthalate (PET) wastes, using rotating cathode arc discharge technique. The soot obtain from the anode contains ultrafine and nano-sized solid carbon spheres (SCS) with a mean diameter of 221 nm and 100 nm, respectively, formed at the lower temperature region of the anode where the temperature is approximately 1700 °C. The carbon spheres are converted into long “Y” type branched and non-branched NCUFCTs and MWCNTs at higher temperature regions where the temperature is approximately 2600 °C, with mean diameters of 364 nm and 95 nm, respectively. Soot deposited on the cathode is composed of MWCNTs with a mean diameter of 20 nm and other nanoparticles. The tubular structures present in the anode are longer, bent and often coiled with lesser graphitization compared to the nanotubes in the soot on the cathode.     

Efficacy of created and restored nesting sites for the conservation of colonial Laridae in the South of France

By rapidly modifying key habitat components, habitat restoration is at risk of producing attractive cues for animals without providing habitats of sufficient quality. As such, individual fitness components, such as reproduction, could be reduced and restored habitats could become ecological traps. This risk notably appears by using artificial constructions in restoration projects, yet few studies have evaluated their efficacy in a robust way. We investigated this by analyzing 154 islets that were created or restored to improve the conservation status of 7 colonial Laridae species in the South of France. From 2007 to 2016, we compared occupancy dynamics and breeding parameters of these species between the restored sites and 846 unmanaged nesting sites. We also explored species’ preference for different nesting site characteristics and their respective effect on breeding parameters. Restored nesting sites were 2–9 times as attractive as unmanaged sites for all species except the Black-headed Gull (Chroicocephalus ridibundus). Colonization probability was up to 100 times higher in sites already used by other species the previous year and increased with distance to the shore until >0.2 when distance was over 250 m. Abandonment probability was 29–70% lower when breeding was successful the previous year in all species except the Sandwich Tern (Thalasseus sandvicensis). Productivity and breeding success probability were 2 times higher on managed sites. Distance from the shore was an important attractive characteristic of artificial nesting sites in all species. Other nesting site characteristics had species-specific effects on colonization, abandonment, and breeding success. Our results indicate that managed nesting sites are successful conservation tools for colonial Laridae in the Mediterranean and do not act as ecological traps. Our study showed that testing the ecological trap hypothesis is a robust way to evaluate the success of restoration projects of breeding habitats.     

Geochemical distribution,bioavailability and potential toxicity of some trace metals in a complex micro-tidal estuary,Southwest India

The spatial and temporal variations of some trace metals in the surface sediments of Cochin Estuary were analyzed along with their geochemical associations to identify the possible sources, bioavailability and the health risks posed by them. The dominance of kaolinite and suggested that clay minerals distribution is influenced by sediment sorting. Total metal analysis revealed enrichment for Cd, Pb and Zn due to anthropogenic activities. The speciation analysis established that notwithstanding the large availability, carbonate as well as organic and sulfides bound fractions showed negligible associations with most of the metals. Hydrous Fe–Mn oxides appeared to play a major role in controlling the fate and transport of these metals in the sediments of Cochin Estuary. Lower contribution of the residual fractions for Cd (21%–26%), Pb (<60%) and Zn (24%–42%) indicated an obvious increase of other geochemical fractions. Risk assessment analysis revealed that regardless of total concentration, none of the analyzed metals were at safe levels in the estuary as appreciable percentages were found to be associated with mobile geochemical forms. The speciation study conspicuously established that the metals originating from non-geogenic sources are largely associated with the labile fractions and hence are more detrimental to the aquatic biota.     

Innovative design of an LDPE reactor bay against gas explosion using a risk-based approach coupled with high fidelity computer tools

High pressure tubular reactors for the production of Low Density Polyethylene (LDPE) are, for safety reasons, enclosed in a protective bay open towards the sky. They are becoming longer and larger due to production capacity increases. TECHNIP has historically designed these reactor bays based on Licensor information, which include more or less empirical correlations. Further capacity developments require the design of these concrete enclosures to be challenged. With this in mind, the present study shows the interest of implementing an innovative methodology based upon a risk-based approach to define new design criteria for the enclosure walls. The method, which combines both risk analysis with computational fluid dynamics modelling (3D CFD) and non-linear finite element analysis (NLFEA) tools, allows a clear determination of the design overpressure loads applied on walls and offers an optimisation of the concrete wall thickness. The CFD study also leads to a better understanding of the ventilation and efficiency of safety systems (gas detection, depressurisation) with possibility for improvement of the hazardous area classification rating.     

Derivation of synthetic fuel from waste plastic: investigation of engine operating characteristics on DI diesel engine

The utilization of plastic in day to day life is ever-increasing and has generated a large amount of plastic garbage that needs proper disposal to save the environment from harmful pollution. The plastic waste management becomes a pressing concern in the present scenario in developing countries like India. This research article evaluates the potential of synthetic fuel (SF) derived from waste plastics collected from the local shops. In this current investigation, the SF blends are tested in a direct injection diesel engine to analyze the performance and emission characteristics of the engine. Three different blends were made namely SF20, SF40, and SF60 on a volumetric basis and the tests were carried out. From the experimental results, it was found that brake thermal efficiency (BTE) of the fuel blends was reduced as compared with neat diesel operation regardless of loads whereas SF20 showed a similar trend as that of diesel operation. The analysis of the emission characteristics revealed that the SF20 blends reduced dangerous smoke and carbon monoxide emission as compared with other test fuels. From the overall results, SF20 showed superior performance and emission aspects as compared with other SF blends whereas the engine operated smoothly up to 60% of SF blending at all loading conditions.