Although trans-Alpine highway traffic exhaust is one of the major sources of air pollution along the highway valleys of the Alpine regions, little is known about its contribution to residential exposure and impact on respiratory health. In this paper, source-specific contributions to particulate matter with an aerodynamic diameter < 10 μm (PM) and their spatio-temporal distribution were determined for later use in a pediatric asthma panel study in an Alpine village. PM sources were identified by positive matrix factorization using chemical trace elements, elemental, and organic carbon from daily PM filters collected between November 2007 and June 2009 at seven locations within the village. Of the nine sources identified, four were directly road traffic-related: traffic exhaust, road dust, tire and brake wear, and road salt contributing 16 %, 8 %, 1 %, and 2 % to annual PM concentrations, respectively. They showed a clear dependence with distance to highway. Additional contributions were identified from secondary particles (27 %), biomass burning (18 %), railway (11 %), and mineral dust including a local construction site (13 %). Comparing these source contributions with known source-specific biomarkers (e.g., levoglucosan, nitro-polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons) showed high agreement with biomass burning, moderate with secondary particles (in winter), and lowest agreement with traffic exhaust.

Bioremediation of mixed metal–organic soil pollution constitutes a difficult task in different ecosystems all around the world. The aims of this work are to determine the capacity of two spent mushroom substrates (Agaricus bisporus and Pleurotus ostreatus) to immobilize Cd and Pb, to assess the effect of these metals on laccase activity, and to determine the potential of spent A. bisporus substrate to biodegrade four polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAH): fluorene, phenanthrene, anthracene, and pyrene, when those toxic heavy metals Cd and Pb are present. According to adsorption isotherms, spent P. ostreatus and A. bisporus substrates showed a high Pb and Cd adsorption capacity. Pb and Cd interactions with crude laccase enzyme extracts from spent P. ostreatus and A. bisporus substrates showed Cd and Pb enzyme inhibition; however, laccase activity of A. bisporus presented lower inhibition. Spent A. bisporus substrate polluted with PAH and Cd or Pb was able to biodegrade PAH, although both metals decrease the biodegradation rate. Spent A. bisporus substrate contained a microbiological consortium able to oxidize PAH with high ionization potential. Cd and Pb were immobilized during the bioremediation process by spent A. bisporus substrate. Consequently, spent A. bisporus substrate was adequate as a multi-polluted soil bioremediator.

Different batches of valued mussel shell and waste mussel shell ash are characterised. Shell ash has pH > 12 and high electrical conductivities (between 16.01 and 27.27 dS m⁻¹), while calcined shell shows pH values up to 10.7 and electrical conductivities between 1.19 and 3.55 dS m⁻¹. X-ray fluorescence, nitric acid digestion and water extractions show higher concentrations in shell ash for most parameters. Calcite is the dominant crystalline compound in this ash (95.6 %), followed by aragonite. Adsorption/desorption trials were performed for mussel shell ash and for a waste mixture including shell ash, sewage sludge and wood ash, showing the following percentage adsorptions: Hg(II) >94 %, As(V) >96 % and Cr(VI) between 11 and 30 % for shell ash; Hg(II) >98 %, As(V) >88 % and Cr(VI) between 30 and 88 % for the waste mixture. Hg and As desorption was <5 % for both shell ash and the waste mixture, while Cr desorption was between 92 and 45 % for shell ash, and between 19 and 0 % for the mixture. In view of that, mussel shell ash and the mixture including shell ash, sewage sludge and wood ash could be useful for Hg(II) and As(V) removal.

This study aimed to compare the contamination levels of various organohalogenated compounds in two migratory fish species in the Vilaine River in western France. Organochlorinated pesticides, polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs), dioxins (polychlorinated dibenzo-p-dioxins/dibenzofurans (PCDDs/Fs)), and polybrominated diphenyl ethers (PBDEs) were analyzed in two diadromous species from the Vilaine estuary, the grey mullet (Liza ramada)—an amphihaline species, and the allis shad (Alosa alosa)—an anadromous species. Fish were collected in spring 2004 and spring 2005, upstream and downstream of the Arzal Dam. PCB contamination varied from 27 to 200 ng g⁻¹ dry weight (d.w.). PCDDs/Fs, expressed in toxicity equivalent quantity (TEQ) varied from 0.4 to 2.8 pg g⁻¹ d.w. Dioxins and dioxin-like PCBs expressed in total TEQ varied from 1.4 to 18.8 pg g⁻¹ d.w. PBDE47 was present at around 2–10 ng g⁻¹ d.w. and concentrations of the insecticide dichlorodiphenyltrichloroethane breakdown product p,p′-dichlorodiphenylchloroethylene varied from 1 to 14 ng g⁻¹ d.w. For both species, specimens collected upstream were more contaminated. The grey mullet specimens were less contaminated than the allis shad when taken downstream of the dam but were more contaminated upstream. The allis shads presented intermediate contaminant concentrations with a less pronounced difference between upstream and downstream specimens. However, it is thought that shads do not feed when they spawn in the upstream parts of rivers, which should modify the contaminant concentrations. However, measurements in upstream shad samples show an unexpected increase of the contamination, which remains unexplained.

Quantitative image analysis techniques have gained an undeniable role in several fields of research during the last decade. In the field of biological wastewater treatment (WWT) processes, several computer applications have been developed for monitoring microbial entities, either as individual cells or in different types of aggregates. New descriptors have been defined that are more reliable, objective, and useful than the subjective and time-consuming parameters classically used to monitor biological WWT processes. Examples of this application include the objective prediction of filamentous bulking, known to be one of the most problematic phenomena occurring in activated sludge technology. It also demonstrated its usefulness in classifying protozoa and metazoa populations. In high-rate anaerobic processes, based on granular sludge, aggregation times and fragmentation phenomena could be detected during critical events, e.g., toxic and organic overloads. Currently, the major efforts and needs are in the development of quantitative image analysis techniques focusing on its application coupled with stained samples, either by classical or fluorescent-based techniques. The use of quantitative morphological parameters in process control and online applications is also being investigated. This work reviews the major advances of quantitative image analysis applied to biological WWT processes.

The main objectives of this study were to (a) study the interaction between N and P cycles in mining-affected aquatic systems and (b) to quantify release rates of sedimentary soluble reactive phosphorus (SRP) that may be related to this interaction. Sediment cores and water from Lake Bruträsket (Boliden, northern Sweden) were collected and a time series of water sampling and flow measurements was conducted in the Brubäcken stream connected to the lake. Factors affecting SRP release were studied in a sediment incubation experiment and water column experiments. Field and laboratory measurements indicated that pH and dissolved oxygen are two important factors for SRP release. At the end of the low-oxygen incubation, an SRP concentration of 56 μg L(-1) resulted in a sedimentary flux of 1.1 mg SRP m(-2) day(-1). This is ∼10 times higher than the flux of 0.12 mg SRP m(-2) day(-1) obtained from depth integration of vertical SRP profiles measured in the lake, and ∼100 times higher than the external flux of 0.014 mg SRP m(-2) d(-1) into the lake (based on catchment area). Field measurements indicated that oxidation of organic matter and mining-related chemicals (ammonium and thiosulphates) may result in increased internal SRP flux from the sediment. Increased P loading in the lake as a result of low-oxygen conditions could change water column total nitrogen/total phosphorus ratios from 27 to 17, consequently changing the lake from being P-limited to be co-limited by N and P. The obtained findings point to possible interaction between the cycles of nitrogen (oxygen consumption) and P (flux from sediment) that may be important for nutrient regulation in mine water recipients.

HCHs and DDTs were banned in 1983 in China; however, they are still remaining in various environmental media. Since endosulfan was introduced in China in 1994, it is widely used in agriculture. In this study, temporal and spatial uses of endosulfan, HCHs, and DDTs in Gansu province of China have been presented. It is estimated that the total usage is 701 tons for endosulfan between 1994 and 2007, 1,712 tons for HCHs between 1952 and 1983, and 462 tons for DDTs between 1951 and 1983, respectively. Endosulfan usage increased dramatically in 1998 due to its application on other crops except on cotton. The HCH and DDT usage displayed a rapid increase after 1972, reaching the peak in 1976 and in 1975, respectively; since then, they declined until being banned in 1983. The gridded usage inventories of these three kinds of organochlorine pesticides in Gansu province, with a 1/4° longitude by 1/6° latitude resolution, have been created by using different crops for endosulfan and the area of dry farmland for HCHs and DDTs as surrogate data. The most intensive use was in northwestern regions for endosulfan and southeastern regions for HCHs and DDTs in Gansu province.

α-Hexachlorocyclohexane (HCH), β-HCH, and γ-HCH (lindane) were recently included as new persistent organic pollutants (POPs) in the Stockholm Convention. Therefore, the chemicals need to be globally addressed, including the disposal of historic wastes. At most sites, the approximately 85 % of HCH waste isomers were dumped. At a former lindane factory in Hamburg and some other factories the HCH, waste was recycled producing residues with high polychlorinated dibenzo-p-dioxin and dibenzofuran (PCDD/PCDF) levels. The soil and ground water under the former pesticide factory was/is highly contaminated with HCH (260 tons), chlorobenzenes (550 tons), and PCDD/PCDF (6 kg toxic equivalents (TEQ)). This contamination did not result from disposal operations but from spillages and leakages during the 30 years of the factory's production history. A containment wall has been constructed around the production area to prevent the dispersal of the pollutants. The ground water is managed by a pump and treat system. Over the last 15 years, approximately 10–30 tons of this pollution reservoir has been pumped and incinerated. For the contaminated production buildings, specific assessment and demolition technologies have been applied. In addition to their HCH waste isomer deposition, former lindane/HCH productions need to be assessed for possible recycling practice of HCH and related PCDD/PCDF contamination of the production area and buildings. Since such recycling activities have taken place at several factories in different countries, the experience of assessment and management of the described production area and contaminated buildings could be valuable. Such assessment could be addressed within the frame of the Stockholm Convention.

The reuse of treated wastewater (TWW) for irrigation is a practical solution for overcoming water scarcity, especially in arid and semiarid regions of the world. However, there are several potential environmental and health-related risks associated with this practice. One such risk stems from the fact that TWW irrigation may increase antibiotic resistance (AR) levels in soil bacteria, potentially contributing to the global propagation of clinical AR. Wastewater treatment plant (WWTP) effluents have been recognized as significant environmental AR reservoirs due to selective pressure generated by antibiotics and other compounds that are frequently detected in effluents. This review summarizes a myriad of recent studies that have assessed the impact of anthropogenic practices on AR in environmental bacterial communities, with specific emphasis on elucidating the potential effects of TWW irrigation on AR in the soil microbiome. Based on the current state of the art, we conclude that contradictory to freshwater environments where WWTP effluent influx tends to expand antibiotic-resistant bacteria (ARB) and antibiotic-resistant genes levels, TWW irrigation does not seem to impact AR levels in the soil microbiome. Although this conclusion is a cause for cautious optimism regarding the future implementation of TWW irrigation, we conclude that further studies aimed at assessing the scope of horizontal gene transfer between effluent-associated ARB and soil bacteria need to be further conducted before ruling out the possible contribution of TWW irrigation to antibiotic-resistant reservoirs in irrigated soils.

A novel double templates–molecularly imprinted polymer (MIP) was prepared by precipitation polymerization using carbamazepine (CBZ) and clofibric acid (CA) as the double templates molecular and 2-vinylpyridine as functional monomer. The equilibrium data of MIP was well described by the Freundlich isotherm model. Two kinetic models were adopted to describe the experimental data, and the pseudo second-order model well-described adsorption of CBZ and CA on the MIP. Adsorption experimental results showed that the MIP had good selectivity and adsorption capacity for CBZ and CA in the presence of competitive compounds compared with non-imprinted polymer, commercial powdered activated carbon, and C18 adsorbents. The feasibility of removing CBZ and CA from water by the MIP was demonstrated using tap water, lake water, and river water.