Acute toxicity of Pb to the water flea; (Daphnia sp) and Copepod, (Cyclop sp) both important component of zooplankton diet of fish was determined by static assay. A positive relationship between percentage mortality and exposure concentration was found in all tests. Mean 24-h LC50, 48-h LC50 and 96-h LC50 values were 2.51 ± 0.0.04 mg l⁻¹, 1.88 ± 0.06 mg l⁻¹ and 1.65 ± 0.19 mg l⁻¹ for Daphnia spp and 3.11 ± 0.03 mg l⁻¹, 2.97 ± 0.05 mg l⁻¹ and 2.61 ± 0.09 mg l⁻¹ for Cyclop spp, respectively. For all tested species did the LC50 values decrease with time; the decrease was more marked for Daphnia spp. Observed symptoms include spiral movement followed by change of body colour to white and rapid disintegration of the skin. The Daphnia spp. appear to be more sensitive to Pb poison than Cyclop spp. The results showed that concentrations of Lead (Pb) in excess of 0.19 mg l⁻¹ and 0.30 mg l⁻¹ can be potentially harmful to Daphnia magna and Cyclop spp respectively.

Selection of a phytoextraction plant with high Cd accumulation potential based on compatibility with mechanized cultivation practice and local environmental conditions may provide more benefits than selection based mainly on high Cd tolerance plants. In this hydroponics study, the potential of Cd accumulation by three plant species; arum (Colocasia antiquorum), radish (Raphanus sativus L.) and water spinach (Ipomoea aquatica) were investigated. Arum (Colocasia antiquorum L.) plants were grown for 60 days in a nutrient solution with 0, 10 or 50 μM Cd, while radish and water spinach plants grew only 12 days in 0, 1.5, 2.5, 5 or 10 μM Cd. Growth of radish and water spinach plants decreased under all Cd treatments (1.5 to 10 μM), while arum growth decreased only at 50 μM Cd. At 10 μM Cd treatment, the growth of arum was similar to the control treatment indicating higher tolerance of arum for Cd than radish and water spinach. Cadmium concentrations in different plant parts of all plant species increased significantly with Cd application in the nutrient solution. Arum and water spinach retained greater proportions of Cd in their roots, while in radish, Cd concentration in leaves was higher than in other plant parts. Cadmium concentrations in arum increased from 158 to 1,060 in the dead leaves, 37 to 280 in the normal leaves, 108 to 715 in the stems, 42 to 290 in the bulbs and 1,195 to 3,840 mg kg⁻¹ in the roots, when the Cd level in the solution was raised from 10 μM Cd to 50 μM Cd. Arum accumulated (dry weight x concentration) 25 mg plant⁻¹ at 10 μM, while the corresponding values for radish and water spinach were 0.23 and 0.44 mg plant⁻¹, respectively. With no growth retardation at Cd concentrations as high as 166 mg kg⁻¹ measured in entire plant (including root) of arum at 10 μM Cd in the nutrient solution, arum could be a potential Cd accumulator plant species and could be used for phytoremediation.

Although the area of urban river sediment quality has received increasing attention over the last 10 years, the presence of contaminated sediments in urban rivers and the potential risk to public health it poses has yet to be rigorously addressed within the urban river restoration context. This is an issue of particular concern at the current time, as the opening-up of urban rivers is being strongly promoted by many legislative and non-legislative bodies as a multi-benefit approach to tackling a range of urban challenges; from decreasing the risk of flooding to increasing the quality-of-life in urbanised areas. This paper brings together these two contrasting concepts; urban rivers as pollutant sinks and sources (presentation of data on urban river sediment quality) and urban rivers as sites of flood alleviation, amenity, recreation and wildlife value (review of the drivers and initiatives behind the increasing implementation of urban river rehabilitation schemes). In light of this combined assessment, the urgent need for a risk assessment of restored urban river sites to establish whether the presence of contaminated sediments poses a risk to public health is strongly recommended. Should such a risk be demonstrated, a tiered approach to supporting the identification and pro-active management of these risks is proposed as a way to inform and enable, rather than to prevent, the safe and appropriate use of the increasing number of urban river restoration schemes being implemented.

The contamination of 27 urban topsoils has been assessed around two lead and zinc smelters (Metaleurop Nord and Umicore) in the North of France. Eighteen trace elements have been analysed (Ag, As, Bi, Cd, Co, Cr, Cu, Hg, In, Ni, Pb, Sb, Se, Sn, Tl, Th, U and Zn). The investigation included the study of the vertical distribution of Cd, Pb and Zn as indicators of pollution. It was shown that Cd, In, Pb, Sb and Zn were major pollutants followed in lesser quantities by Ag, Bi, Cu and Hg. In addition, As, Ni, Se, Sn and Tl were present at levels slightly higher than regional agricultural values. The other elements (Co, Cr, Th and U) were at endogenous levels. The observations have highlighted the strong heterogeneity of the physico-chemical parameters of urban soils and the existence of heavy contamination of the under layers by Cd, Pb and Zn. A potential transfer of metals from the topsoil to the deeper layers and especially Cd and Zn, is not excluded. Indeed the soil rework is not the only factor explaining contamination level of the deeper layers of the studied soils. The comparison of the studied element concentrations in urban soils with nearby local agricultural values shows that the dust emission originating from the Metaleurop and Umicore smelters were not the only source of contamination. Thus a large contamination of the studied urban soils by Sb and In could be explained by domestic combustion of coal for heating.

Land disposal of treated human and animal effluent through pumice sand soils is a common practice around Rotorua, in the central North Island of New Zealand. There is increasing concern about the possibility of contamination of shallow pumice sand aquifers associated with this practice. In this study, we investigated the transport and attenuation of F-RNA bacteriophages and Escherichia coli in saturated pumice sand aquifer media using a field tracing experiment, and laboratory batch and column studies. The influence of dissolved organic carbon on microbial transport was also investigated by conditioning the 18 cm-long column with ultrafiltered sewage. The CXTFIT curve-fitting program was used to model the experimental data and to determine transport and attenuation parameters. Batch studies showed more than 90% adsorption of both microbial indicators onto pumice sand. High mass removal of microbial indicators was shown in the field (>99% for phage MS2 and E. coli at 2 m down gradient of the injection well; not detected at 6 m) and in the 'clean sand' column (65% for phage MS2 and 90% or E. coli). These results suggest that uncontaminated pumice is an effective sorbent capable of retaining microbial contaminants due to high surface area and porosity. However, in the column, with additional dissolved organic carbon, phages showed a progressive reduction in mass removal and retardation between experiments (93%, 75%, and 63% removal; retardation factor: 3.5, 2.5 and 1.2). This suggests that the organic matter competed with phages for the sorption sites, thus promoting phage transport. As a result, viral transport rates may be significantly greater in contaminated compared with uncontaminated pumice sand aquifers.

Nitrates in concentrated brines can be electrochemically reduced in the cathodic chamber of a split-cell electrochemical reactor with formation of ammonium (and small amounts of nitrite). Fortunately, ammonium may be electrochemically oxidized to nitrogen gas in the anodic reaction chamber if a coupled sequential process is used. The presence of chloride in the brine waste is an important consideration in oxidative electrochemical processes, however, because it cycles through oxidized and reduced states at the electrode surfaces and in the bulk solution. Electrochemical oxidation converts chloride ions to “active chlorine” species with additional oxidizing capability (chlorine, hypochlorous acid and hypochlorite - essentially bleach), as well as to chlorates, depending on the reaction conditions. The production of these active species improves treatment performance in the ammonium oxidation phase since oxidation is no longer limited to the electrode surface. However, the process must be engineered to minimize loss of process efficiency due to parasitic side reactions (chloramines and chlorate). In this study, two-stage batch electrolysis was conducted using a three-electrode (copper anode, platinum-coated titanium cathode, silver/silver chloride reference) electrochemical cell, with the anodic and cathodic chambers separated by a Nafion 117 membrane. Treatment of nitrate and ammonium was tested with and without the presence of chloride in the waste. No significant difference was observed in cathodic nitrate reduction with chloride present or absent. However, the presence of chloride in the solution favored overall soluble nitrogen elimination upon oxidation. Increasing applied current increased production of undesirable byproducts (especially chlorate).

Chemical ultraviolet (UV)-filters are used in sunscreens to protect the skin from harmful UV radiation which may otherwise cause sunburns and skin cancer. Commonly used chemical UV-filters are known to cause endocrine disrupting effects in both aquatic and terrestrial animals as well as in human skin cells. Here, source mapping and substance flow analysis were applied to find the sources of six UV-filters (oxybenzone, avobenzone, 4-methylbenzylidene camphor, octyl methoxycinnamate, octyl dimethyl PABA and homosalate) and to identify the most dominant flows of these substances in Denmark. Urban water, composed of wastewater and surface waters, was found to be the primary recipient of UV-filters, whereby wastewater received an estimated 8.5-65 tonnes and surface waters received 7.1-51 tonnes in 2005. In wastewater treatment plants, their sorption onto sludge is perceived to be an important process and presence in effluents can be expected due to a lack of biodegradability. In addition, the use of UV-filters is expected to continue to increase significantly. Not all filters (e.g., octyl dimethyl PABA and homosalate) are used in Denmark. For example, 4-MBC is mainly associated with self-tanning liquids and private import of sunscreens.

A critical load data base was developed for Europe and Northern Asia using the latest data bases on soils, vegetation, climate and forest growth. Critical loads for acidity and nutrient nitrogen for terrestrial ecosystems were computed with the Simple Mass Balance model. The resulting critical loads are in accordance with critical loads from previous global empirical studies, but have a much higher spatial resolution. Critical loads of acidity are sensitive to both the chemical criterion and the critical limit chosen. Therefore a sensitivity analysis of critical loads was performed by employing different chemical criteria. A critical limit based on an acid neutralizing capacity (ANC) of zero resulted in critical loads that protect ecosystems against toxic concentrations of aluminium and unfavourable Al/Bc ratios, suggesting that ANC could be an alternative to the commonly used Al/Bc ratio. Critical loads of nutrient nitrogen are sensitive to the specified critical nitrate concentration, especially in areas with a high precipitation surplus. If limits of 3¿6 mg N l¿1 are used for Western Europe instead of the widely used 0.2 mg N l¿1, critical loads double on average. In low precipitation areas, the increase is less than 50%. The strong dependence on precipitation surplus is a consequence of the simple modelling approach. Future models should explore other nitrogen parameters (such as nitrogen availability) instead of leaching as the factor influencing vegetation changes in terrestrial ecosystems.

In Europe more than 2,500 lysimeters operated by research institutes and industry (Lanthaler 2005). Originally lysimeters were built for investigations of soil water and solutes, nutrient leaching and pesticide degradation (see e.g. Winton and Weber 1996). Currently lysimeters additionally used as a tool for investigations on biological processes, and structural changes of plants, including root distribution, and enzyme activities etc. (see e.g. Dizer et al. 2002; Schloter et al. 2005).