The impact of nitrogen deposition on acid grasslands in the Atlantic region of Europe

A survey of 153 acid grasslands from the Atlantic biogeographic region of Europe indicates that chronic nitrogen deposition is changing plant species composition and soil and plant-tissue chemistry. Across the deposition gradient (2-44 kg N ha⁻¹ yr⁻¹) grass richness as a proportion of total species richness increased whereas forb richness decreased. Soil C:N ratio increased, but soil extractable nitrate and ammonium concentrations did not show any relationship with nitrogen deposition. The above-ground tissue nitrogen contents of three plant species were examined: Agrostis capillaris (grass), Galium saxatile (forb) and Rhytidiadelphus squarrosus (bryophyte). The tissue nitrogen content of neither vascular plant species showed any relationship with nitrogen deposition, but there was a weak positive relationship between R. squarrosus nitrogen content and nitrogen deposition. None of the species showed strong relationships between above-ground tissue N:P or C:N and nitrogen deposition, indicating that they are not good indicators of deposition rate.     

Soil nitrogen transformations under elevated atmospheric CO₂ and O₃ during the soybean growing season

We investigated the influence of elevated CO₂ and O₃ on soil N cycling within the soybean growing season and across soil environments (i.e., rhizosphere and bulk soil) at the Soybean Free Air Concentration Enrichment (SoyFACE) experiment in Illinois, USA. Elevated O₃ decreased soil mineral N likely through a reduction in plant material input and increased denitrification, which was evidenced by the greater abundance of the denitrifier gene nosZ. Elevated CO₂ did not alter the parameters evaluated and both elevated CO₂ and O₃ showed no interactive effects on nitrifier and denitrifier abundance, nor on total and mineral N concentrations. These results indicate that elevated CO₂ may have limited effects on N transformations in soybean agroecosystems. However, elevated O₃ can lead to a decrease in soil N availability in both bulk and rhizosphere soils, and this likely also affects ecosystem productivity by reducing the mineralization rates of plant-derived residues.     

Pressurized liquid extraction of six tetracyclines from agricultural soils

Veterinary antibiotics used in agriculture can be introduced into the environment through land application of animal manure, accumulating in soils and groundwaters and posing a significant risk to human health and animal well-being. As the analysis of tetracyclines in soil is challenging due to their strong interaction with soil minerals and organic carbon, the objective of this study was to develop a reliable and reproducible method for quantitative analysis of chlortetracycline and oxytetracycline, and their respective metabolites in soils. A method based on pressurized liquid extraction (PLE) with in-cell clean-up was developed for the extraction of chlortetracycline and oxytetracycline and four likely metabolites from a set of four soils. Optimized conditions included a cell size of 22?mL, soil loading of 5?g, pH of 8.0, methanol:water ratio of 3:1, 50?°C, and two cycles. Soil extracts were analysed by high-performance liquid chromatography (HPLC) coupled with ion trap mass spectrometry (MS). Recoveries of seven tetracyclines from soil ranged from 41% to 110%. The limits of detection for tetracyclines were 0.08–0.3 µg g^?1 soil, and intra- and inter-day variation ranged from 0.12–0.34%. The proposed PLE method is suitable for quantification of tetracyclines in agricultural soils at typical concentrations expected in contaminated environments.     

中国污染场地修复的研究进展、问题与展望

随着城市化和产业转移进程的加快,我国城镇工业企业搬迁或遗留的污染场地数量与日俱增,亟须开展污染场地治理与修复工作,以保障人居环境安全、国民健康和社会稳定.综述了我国污染场地及其产生、状态和风险,污染场地管理、修复技术及工程实践进展,污染场地管理和修复的主要问题,场地污染防治与修复政策、技术和融资机制需求,旨在推进污染场...     

场地含水层氯代烃污染物自然衰减机制与纳米铁修复技术的研究进展

综述了国际上典型工业场地有机溶剂污染物在地下水中的自然衰减机制及修复技术的研究现状和发展趋势.场地地下水修复技术从抽出-处理发展到治理污染源区和污染羽的纳米铁技术,涌现出-大批较为成熟的联合化学与微生物修复技术,其中潜力较大的有治理污染羽的渗透反应墙、原位化学氧化、原位化学还原、微生物强化降解及基于监测的自然衰减等.文...     

微波消解-原子吸收光度法测定土壤中铜锌铅镉镍铬

用微波消解－原子吸收光度法测定土壤中铜，锌，铅，镉，镍和铬。通过硝酸－氢氟酸－过氧化氢体系消解液对土壤样品消解，选择出微波最佳消解条件。对硝酸－盐酸－过氧化氢体系消解液和硝酸－氢氟酸－过氧化氢体系消解液进行消解对比试验，发现前者不能将土壤样品完全消解，后者能将样品消解完全，但需将消解液中剩余的酸赶尽，否则测定结果将明显偏低。微波消解土壤与传统电热消解相比，操作简便快速，可提高工作效率。     

The importance of ammonium mobility in nitrogen-impacted unfertilized grasslands: A critical reassessment

The physico-chemical absorption characteristics of ammonium-N for 10 soils from 5 profiles in York, UK, show its high potential mobility in N deposition-impacted, unfertilized, permanent grassland soils. Substantial proportions of ammonium-N inputs were retained in the solution phase, indicating that ammonium translocation plays an important role in the N cycling in, and losses from, such soils. This conclusion was further supported by measuring the ammonium-N leaching from intact plant/soil microcosms. The ammonium-N absorption characteristics apparently varied with soil pH, depth and soil texture. It was concluded for the most acid soils especially that ammonium-N leached from litter horizons could be seriously limiting the capacity of underlying soils to retain ammonium. Contrary to common opinion, more attention therefore needs to be paid to ammonium leaching and its potential role in biogeochemical N cycling in semi-natural soil systems subject to atmospheric pollution.     

Isolation and characterization of mesotrione-degrading Bacillus sp. from soil

Dissipation kinetics of mesotrione, a new triketone herbicide, sprayed on soil from Limagne (Puy-de-Dôme, France) showed that the soil microflora were able to biotransform it.Bacteria from this soil were cultured in mineral salt solution supplemented with mesotrione as sole source of carbon for the isolation of mesotrione-degrading bacteria. The bacterial community structure of the enrichment cultures was analyzed by temporal temperature gradient gel electrophoresis (TTGE). The TTGE fingerprints revealed that mesotrione had an impact on bacterial community structure only at its highest concentrations and showed mesotrione-sensitive and mesotrione-adapted strains. Two adapted strains, identified as Bacillus sp. and Arthrobacter sp., were isolated by colony hybridization methods.Biodegradation assays showed that only the Bacillus sp. strain was able to completely and rapidly biotransform mesotrione. Among several metabolites formed, 2-amino-4-methylsulfonylbenzoic acid (AMBA) accumulated in the medium. Although sulcotrione has a chemical structure closely resembling that of mesotrione, the isolates were unable to degrade it.     

Reducing plant uptake of PAHs by cationic surfactant-enhanced soil retention

Reducing the transfer of contaminants from soils to plants is a promising approach to produce safe agricultural products grown on contaminated soils. In this study, 0-400 mg/kg cetyltrimethylammonium bromide (CTMAB) and dodecylpyridinium bromide (DDPB) were separately utilized to enhance the sorption of PAHs onto soils, thereby reducing the transfer of PAHs from soil to soil solution and subsequently to plants. Concentrations of phenanthrene and pyrene in vegetables grown in contaminated soils treated with the cationic surfactants were lower than those grown in the surfactant-free control. The maximum reductions of phenanthrene and pyrene were 66% and 51% for chrysanthemum (Chrysanthemum coronarium L.), 62% and 71% for cabbage (Brassica campestris L.), and 34% and 53% for lettuce (Lactuca sativa L.), respectively. Considering the impacts of cationic surfactants on plant growth and soil microbial activity, CTMAB was more appropriate to employ, and the most effective dose was 100-200 mg/kg.     

Long-term pollution by chlordecone of tropical volcanic soils in the French West Indies: A simple leaching model accounts for current residue

Chlordecone was applied between 1972 and 1993 in banana fields of the French West Indies. This resulted in long-term pollution of soils and contamination of waters, aquatic biota, and crops. To assess pollution level and duration according to soil type, WISORCH, a leaching model based on first-order desorption kinetics, was developed and run. Its input parameters are soil organic carbon content (SOC) and SOC/water partitioning coefficient (K_oc). It accounts for current chlordecone soil contents and drainage water concentrations. The model was valid for andosol, which indicates that neither physico-chemical nor microbial degradation occurred. Dilution by previous deep tillages makes soil scrapping unrealistic. Lixiviation appeared the main way to reduce pollution. Besides the SOC and rainfall increases, K_oc increased from nitisol to ferralsol and then andosol while lixiviation efficiency decreased. Consequently, pollution is bound to last for several decades for nitisol, centuries for ferralsol, and half a millennium for andosol.