Migration Pathways and Remediation of Urban Runoff for PAH Control

The migration pathways for polyaromatic hydrocarbons (PAH) and the associated active attenuating mechanisms within the urban environment are examined. The interest in developing an improved understanding of PAH migration/attenuation is focused toward quantification of the cost-effectiveness of urban runoff control strategies for mitigation of PAH inputs to receiving water bodies.A case study application to the City of Sault Ste Marie demonstrates that snow removal from sub-basins with the largest deposition rates, and relatively small wet and/or dry stormwater management ponds, are the most cost-effective remediation strategies.     

Environmental aftermath of the radiation accident at Tomsk-7

An analysis is presented of the environmental effects of the most serious radiation accident recorded after Chernobyl, which occurred in the formerly secret town of Tomsk-7 in Siberia, Russia, on 6, April 1993. Fortunately, it appears not to have become a major industrial crisis or disaster. The causes of the accident are described. It is argued that a mixture of both objective and subjective prerequisites, including specific human, organizational, and technological factors, were responsible for the explosion or directly facilitated it. The Tomsk-7 accident's ecological, medical, social, and psychological consequences are discussed.     

Level of environmental threat posed by horticultural trade in Cactaceae

Ornamental horticulture has been identified as an important threat to plant biodiversity and is a major pathway for plant invasions worldwide. In this context, the family Cactaceae is particularly challenging because it is considered the fifth most threatened large taxonomic group in the world; several species are among the most widespread and damaging invasive species; and Cactaceae is one of the most popular horticultural plant groups. Based on the Convention on International Trade in Endangered Species of Wild Flora and Fauna and the 11 largest online auction sites selling cacti, we documented the international cactus trade. To provide an in‐depth look at the dynamics of the industry, we surveyed the businesses involved in the cactus trade in South Africa (a hotspot of cactus trade and invasions). We purchased seeds of every available species and used DNA barcoding to identify species to the genus level. Although <20% of this trade involved threatened species and <3% involved known invasive species, many species were identified by a common name. However, only 0.02% of the globally traded cacti were collected from wild populations. Despite a large commercial network, all South African imports (of which 15% and 1.5% were of species listed as threatened and invasive, respectively) came from the same source. With DNA barcoding, we identified 24% of the species to genus level. Based on our results, we believe that if trade restrictions are placed on the small proportion of cacti that are invasive and there is no major increase in harvesting of native populations, then the commercial trade in cactus poses a negligible environmental threat. However, there are currently no effective methods for easily identifying which cacti are traded, and both the illicit harvesting of cacti from the wild and the informal trade in invasive taxa pose on‐going conservation challenges.     

不同国家基于健康风险的土壤环境基准比较研究与启示

20世纪90年代以来,许多发达国家颁布了基于健康风险的土壤环境标准及基准背景技术文件,为发展中国家启动标准制订和开展基准研究提供了重要的方法学参考.然而,由于各国在环境立法框架、基准推导过程、环境气候特征、土壤类型、人群生活方式与习惯等方面的不同,导致其基准名称、基准功能、保护受体以及基准取值等存在较大的差异.本文在综述基于健康风险的土壤环境基准科学内涵与基本特征的基础上,对不同国家场地土壤环境基准的名称、功能及基准值的差异进行了比较研究,从土地利用类型划分、暴露情景和暴露途径设定、致癌物可接受风险水平选择以及人体暴露参数确定等4个方面,对不同国家制定场地土壤环境基准的关键技术和影响因素进行了总结分析,探讨了借鉴国外经验考虑区域差异制定我国土壤环境基准的对策与方略,并指出了当前我国制定场地土壤环境基准和标准面临的困难和挑战.     

噻吩磺隆降解菌Staphylococcus sp.的分离及其降解特性与途径

采用富集培养技术从磺酰脲类除草剂污染土壤中筛选得到1株降解噻吩磺隆的细菌,命名为ZWS13.经形态特征和16S rRNA基因序列分析,初步鉴定为葡萄球菌属(Staphylococcus sp.).采用HPLC研究了初始底物浓度、温度、接种量、pH等因素对菌株ZWS13降解噻吩磺隆的影响.结果表明,菌株ZWS13对噻吩磺隆的降解具有较广的底物浓度范围,在7 d内对初始浓度5.0~100.0 mg·L~(-1)噻吩磺隆的降解率达到60%以上;菌株ZWS13降解噻吩磺隆的较适pH为8.0,较适温度为40℃,较适接种量为1%;其中,菌株培养温度为40℃时,菌株在10 d内对50.0mg·L~(-1)噻吩磺隆的降解率达到99%以上.降解谱测定结果表明,菌株对烟嘧磺隆、吡嘧磺隆和甲磺隆亦具有良好的降解效果.采用HPLC-MS分析确定了菌株对噻吩磺隆的5个降解产物,推测菌株对噻吩磺隆的降解途径主要为磺酰脲桥C—N键的断裂、脱甲基作用或脱酯作用的甲基丢失及三嗪环的开裂.研究表明,菌株ZWS13能够有效地降解噻吩磺隆,具有生物修复噻吩磺隆污染的潜力.     

甲硫醇降解菌群筛选及其降解特性研究

从处理甲硫醚(DMS)和丙硫醇(PT)混合废气的生物滴滤塔中富集出一组能够有效降解甲硫醇(MT)的混合菌群,并对其特性进行了系列研究.结果表明,该混合菌群能有效降解MT,菌群较为适宜的生长和降解条件为30℃、p H=7.0,在该条件下能将初始浓度为20 mg·L~(-1)的MT在70 h内降解完全.添加酵母膏(YE)后,MT降解速率进一步提高,降解所需时间缩短10 h.利用高通量测序技术分析混合菌群的群落结构,发现其中优势菌属为Pseudomonas sp.、Thiobacillus sp.和Acinetobacter sp.,所占比例分别为33.78%、21.91%和17.01%.中间产物检测结果表明,混合菌群降解MT的过程中产生了甲醛、H_2S、二甲基二硫醚(DMDS)等物质,推断MT的降解途径可能有如下2条:(1)MT在MT氧化酶作用下形成甲醛和H2S,随后氧化为SO_4~(2-);(2)MT依次转化为DMDS、DMS、二甲基亚砜(DMSO)和二甲基砜(DMSO_2),最后经甲基磺酸(MSA)可生成SO_4~(2-).     

Microbial degradation of the benzonitrile herbicides dichlobenil, bromoxynil and ioxynil in soil and subsurface environments--insights into degradation pathways, persistent metabolites and involved degrader organisms

The benzonitriles dichlobenil, bromoxynil and ioxynil are important broad-spectrum or selective herbicides used in agriculture, orchards and public areas worldwide. The dichlobenil metabolite 2,6-dichlorobenzamide is the most frequently encountered groundwater contaminant in Denmark, which suggests that the environmental fate of these three structurally related benzonitrile herbicides should be addressed in detail. This review summarises the current knowledge on microbial degradation of dichlobenil, bromoxynil and ioxynil with particular focus on common features of degradation rates and pathways, accumulation of persistent metabolites and diversity of the involved degrader organisms.     

Physicochemical substance properties as indicators for unreliable exposure in microplate-based bioassays

In the last years many efforts were made to transform standardized algal test protocols into low-cost microplate assays. While advantages were pointed out frequently, limitations are not systematically addressed, thus hindering a widespread utilisation. In this study a group of organic substances with a wide distribution of volatility (log K_AW from −6.53 to −2.13) and lipophilicity (log K_OW from 1.26 to 4.92) was investigated with respect to the influence of these physicochemical properties on their algal toxicity in different assays. Therefore the EC₅₀ values were determined with a microplate assay based on ISO 8692 protocol and the results were compared with those of an established algal growth inhibition test conducted in air tight glass vessels. Using the ratio of the EC₅₀ values, a clear connection between biological response and volatility as well as lipophilicity of test substances could be detected. Chemicals with a log K_OW higher than 3 or a Henry coefficient log K_AW higher than −4 were identified as less effective in the microplate assay than in the comparative assay. The loss in nominal concentration due to physicochemical properties could be shown to contribute to this using HPLC analysis. Consequently, when using microplate assay’s one should be aware that lipophilic and volatile chemicals might be underestimated in their toxicity, which could be indicated from evaluating related physicochemical properties modelled from structural information prior to an experimental investigation.     

氯化消毒过程对抗生素的降解行为及其毒性效应的影响研究进展

抗生素的大量使用导致其通过各种途径进入到污水处理厂、地表水甚至饮用水源水中.在污水处理厂二级出水排放之前以及自来水的生产和供应过程中,都必须进行氯化消毒处理以杀灭病原微生物.在此过程中,抗生素一方面可能被氯化降解,另一方面也可能转化成毒性更高的降解产物.因此,了解抗生素在氯化消毒过程中的降解行为对于明确其生态和健康风险...     

Ecological risk of anthropogenic pollutants to reptiles: Evaluating assumptions of sensitivity and exposure

A large data gap for reptile ecotoxicology still persists; therefore, ecological risk assessments of reptiles usually incorporate the use of surrogate species. This necessitates that (1) the surrogate is at least as sensitive as the target taxon and/or (2) exposures to the surrogate are greater than that of the target taxon. We evaluated these assumptions for the use of birds as surrogates for reptiles. Based on a survey of the literature, birds were more sensitive than reptiles in less than 1/4 of the chemicals investigated. Dietary and dermal exposure modeling indicated that exposure to reptiles was relatively high, particularly when the dermal route was considered. We conclude that caution is warranted in the use of avian receptors as surrogates for reptiles in ecological risk assessment and emphasize the need to better understand the magnitude and mechanism of contaminant exposure in reptiles to improve exposure and risk estimation.