Microbial responses to the use of NaClO in sediment treatment

• Chlorine addition enhanced the release of TOC, TN from the sediment. • Chlorine has a long-term negative effect on microbial richness. • Usually enzymes lose activity, and expression of genes was downregulated. • Carbon degradation and nitrification might be strongly inhibited. Chlorine is often used in algal removal and deodorization of landscape waters, and occasionally used as an emergency treatment of heavily polluted sediments. However, the ecological impact of this practice has not been fully studied and recognized. In this study, NaClO at 0.1 mmol/g based on dry weight sediment was evenly mixed into the polluted sediment, and then the sediment was incubated for 150 days to evaluate its microbial effect. Results showed that NaClO addition enhanced the release of TOC, TN, Cr and Cu from the sediment. The microbial richness in the examined sediment decreased continuously, and the Chao1 index declined from 4241 to 2731, in 150 days. The microbial community composition was also changed. The abundance of Proteobacteria and Bacteroidetes increased to 54.8% and 4.2% within 7 days compared to the control, and linear discriminant analysis (LDA) showed gram-negative bacteria and aerobic bacteria enriched after chlorination. The functional prediction with PICRUSt2 showed the functions of the microbial community underwent major adjustments, and the metabolic-related functions such as carbon metabolism, including pyruvate and methane metabolisms were significantly inhibited; besides, 15 out of 22 analyzed key enzymes involved in C cycling and 6 out of 12 key enzymes or genes involved in N cycling were strongly impacted, and the enzymes and genes involved in carbon degradation and denitrification showed remarkable downregulation. It can be concluded that chlorination posed a seriously adverse effect on microbial community structure and function. This study deepens the understanding of the ecological effects of applying chlorine for environmental remediation.     

Bioremediation of tributyltin contaminated sediment: degradation enhancement and improvement of bioavailability to promote treatment processes

Bioremediation of tributyltin (TBT) contaminated sediment was studied and degradation enhancement and improvement of bioavailability were also investigated. In TBT spiked sediment, the half-life of TBT in the control sample, representing natural attenuation, was 578 d indicating its persistence. In the stimulated sample (pH 7.5, aeration and incubated at 28 °C), the half-life was significantly reduced to 11 d. Further stimulation by nutrient addition (succinate, glycerol and l-arginine) or inoculation with Enterobacter cloacae (∼10⁷ viable cells g⁻¹ of sediment) resulted in half-life reduction to 9 and 10 d, respectively. In non-spiked sediment, the indigenous microorganisms were able to degrade aged TBT, but the extended period of contamination decreased the degradation efficiency. To improve bioavailability, addition of surfactant, adjustment of salinity and sonication were studied. The highest percentage solubilisation of TBT in water was obtained by adjusting salinity to 20 psu, which increased the solubility of TBT from 13% to 33%. Half-lives after bioavailability was improved were 5, 4 and 4 d for stimulation, stimulation w/nutrient addition and stimulation w/inoculation, respectively. However, natural attenuation in the control sample was not enhanced. The results show that providing suitable conditions is important in enhancing TBT biodegradation, and bioavailability improvement additionally increased the rate and degraded amount of TBT. Unfortunately, nutrient addition and inoculation of the degrader did not enhance the degradation appreciably.     

Impacts of atmospheric pollution on the plant communities of British acid grasslands

Air pollutants are recognised as important agents of ecosystem change but few studies consider the effects of multiple pollutants and their interactions. Here we use ordination, constrained cluster analysis and indicator value analyses to identify potential environmental controls on species composition, ecological groupings and indicator species in a gradient study of UK acid grasslands. The community composition of these grasslands is related to climate, grazing, ozone exposure and nitrogen deposition, with evidence for an interaction between the ecological impacts of base cation and nitrogen deposition. Ozone is a key agent in species compositional change but is not associated with a reduction in species richness or diversity indices, showing the subtly different drivers on these two aspects of ecosystem degradation. Our results demonstrate the effects of multiple interacting pollutants, which may collectively have a greater impact than any individual agent.     

Geochemical processes of mercury in Wujiangdu and Dongfeng reservoirs, Guizhou, China

The geochemical processes of mercury in Dongfeng (DF) and Wujiangdu (WJD) reservoirs, which were constructed in 1992 and 1979, respectively in Wujiang River, which is the upper branch of Yangtze River were investigated. One sampling site was chosen upriver of 1 km from the dam for each reservoir. Three sampling campaigns were conducted at these sampling sites in December 2003, April 2004 and July 2004, respectively. The distributions of different mercury species in the water column, sediment, and sediment pore water were studied. We found that the sediment is the net source of both inorganic and MeHg to the water column for both reservoirs. The MeHg diffusion fluxes in WJD reservoir at all sampling campaigns were significantly higher than those in DF reservoir. Our study demonstrated that the high primary productivity in the reservoir produced elevated organic matter content that would favor the methylmercury production in sediment.     

海河干流、大沽排污河沉积物中有机氯农药的残留状况

调查了海河干流和大沽排污河沉积物中持久性有机氯杀虫剂(OCPs)的残留状况.在所选取的16个断面沉积物样品中均有大量HCHs、DDTs检出,表明海河和大沽排污河的DDT和HCH污染相当严重.海河沉积物中HCHs和DDTs总质量浓度分别为3.30～75.96、1.57～221.57 ng/g.大沽排污河沉积物中HCHs和DDTs的残留量分别为2.30～124.61、11.28～237.30ng/g.与国内外部分河流表层沉积物中HCHs、DDTs的含量相比,海河和大沽排污河沉积物中有机氯农药含量较高.最后根据两条河流沉积物中的OCPs的残留量,分析了其可能的污染源.     

Sulfamethoxazole sorption by sediment fractions in comparison to pyrene and bisphenol A

The environmental behavior of antibiotics has attracted great research attention. However, their sorption mechanisms in soils/sediments are still unknown. Comparison of the sorption properties between the widely-studied hydrophobic organic contaminants (HOCs) and antibiotics may provide valuable insight to antibiotic sorption mechanisms. Thus, in this study batch experiments for pyrene (PYR), bisphenol A (BPA), and sulfamethoxazole (SMX) sorption were conducted on a sediment sample and its separated fractions. Our results showed the high sorption of PYR on black carbon and organic matter. Although high sorption of SMX was observed for both separated organic fractions (humic acids) and inorganic mineral particles, the original sediment particles showed relatively low sorption. Competitive sorption between SMX and dissolved humic acid on mineral particles was observed in this study. This competitive interaction is a unique process for antibiotic sorption in soils/sediments compared with apolar HOCs and may be one of the important factors controlling the antibiotic sorption.     

乌鲁木齐市水上乐园沉积物中重金属污染调查

分析测定了水上乐园库底沉积物表层（煤灰层）、中层（粉土层）、底层（风化层）中Ｐｂ、Ｃｕ、Ｃｄ、Ｚｎ、Ｈｇ、Ａｓ６种元素含量，并对水上乐园沉积物中重金属污染状况进行评价。     

工程塑料环境因素与载荷应力耦合作用试验装置研究

目的 设计一种能够模拟工程塑料实际服役工作环境的试验装置,在多型自然环境中,构建兼具环境因素侵蚀与载荷应力耦合作用的试验条件。方法 研制工程塑料环境因素与载荷应力协同作用试验装置,采用包括拉伸加载、弯曲加载、控制系统等组件的模块化设计,实现0.01~16 Hz加载频率的拉伸及弯曲载荷,最大1 550 kg的拉伸载荷,最大375 kg的弯曲载荷。结果 将研制完成的试验装置置于多型自然环境下对试验施加恒定和交变载荷,以真实模拟工程塑料实际服役中的环境因素与载荷应力协同作用。结论 试验装置制造加工难度小,结构稳定可靠,可用于评价和研究工程塑料等系列类型材料的环境损伤性能演变。     

Impacts of freshwater wetlands on water quality: A landscape perspective

In this article, we suggest that a landscape approach might be useful in evaluating the effects of cumulative impacts on freshwater wetlands. The reason for using this approach is that most watersheds contain more than one wetland, and effects on water quality depend on the types of wetlands and their position in the landscape. Riparian areas that border uplands appear to be important sites for nitrogen processing and retention of large sediment particles. Fine particles associated with high concentrations of phosphorus are retained in downstream wetlands, where flow rates are slowed and where the surface water passes through plant litter. Riverine systems also may play an important role in processing nutrients, primarily during flooding events. Lacustrine wetlands appear to have the least impact on water quality, due to the small ratio of vegetated surface to open water. Examples are given of changes that occurred when the hydrology of a Maryland floodplain was altered.     

有机质分解对青海湖湖水溶解无机碳同位素（δ13CDIC）的影响及其指示意义——来自沉积物捕获器的研究

青海湖沉积物稳定碳同位素常常被用来指示古环境的变化,然而准确地解译其信号需要充分认识溶解无机碳同位素比值（δ¹³C_DIC）变化及其控制因素。本文利用沉积物捕获器连续一年收集的青海湖湖水及颗粒物,通过其中湖水的δ¹³C_DIC和细颗粒沉积物中碳酸盐稳定碳同位素（δ¹³C_carb）的同步分析,结合湖水δ¹³C_DIC的垂直分布和表层沉积物δ13Ccarb及有机碳同位素（δ¹³C_org）,探讨了有机质分解在δ¹³C_DIC和δ¹³C_carb中的调节作用。结果表明,从沉积物捕获器中获得的湖水δ¹³C_DIC的变化主要受控于与外界隔绝后（微）生物对有机质的分解作用,但这种（微）生物分解作用并不会影响到δ¹³C_carb比值。这些现象反映了（1）还原环境下（微）生物对有机质的分解作用对水体δ¹³C_DIC有重要影响和（2）青海湖自生碳酸盐主要从上层湖水沉淀,且形成后不再与周围水体发生交换作用。