Electric arc furnace (EAF) dust and slag, materials which contain high metals in their composition, were improperly disposed in an industrial steel mill site between 1963 and 1999. Previous environmental investigations identified anomalous concentrations of metals in local groundwater but failed to relate these abnormalities to the disposed material or to natural geochemical processes. Aiming to identify the origin of such abnormalities, exploratory and spatial data analysis (EDA-SDA) method was applied on a hydrogeochemical data set obtained through 5 sampling campaigns in 32 groundwater monitoring wells installed upstream and downstream of the area impacted by the steel mill activities. Boxplot class-based and Eh vs. pH maps of physicochemical log-transformed data identified that wells located under the influence of EAF slag deposits in topographic hollows had lower Eh potential and increased electrical conductivity and pH, when compared to wells in the topographical nose of the surveyed area. Metal distribution maps showed that Al, Ca, K, Mg, Na, and Sr were consistently higher in topographic hollows while concentrations of Co, Cu, Cr, and Li were higher near the former steel-making plant, located in the topographical nose. Ba, Fe, Mn, and Zn, important indicators of EAF slag and dust, were observed in both topographic settings. Variable clustering was able to capture the relations among metals and thus validate the log-normalized data structure to be used into wells clustering. Clustering through the mclust algorithm carried out for two and three clusters allowed the distinction among localities that received an input of metals from dust or slag and those not influenced by either residue. This paper demonstrates that EDA-SDA is an effective method to identify areas under the influence of contamination from industrial activities from areas not affected by anthropogenic contamination.

Saline stress is one of the most important abiotic factors limiting the growth and development of plants and associated microorganisms. While the impact of salinity on associations of arbuscular fungi is relatively well understood, knowledge of the ectomycorrhizal (EM) fungi of trees growing on saline land is limited. The main objective of this study was to determine the density and diversity of EM fungi associated with three tree species, Salix alba, Salix caprea and Betula pendula, growing in saline soil during two seasons, autumn and spring. The site was located in central Poland, and the increased salinity of the soil was of anthropogenic origin from soda production. The degree of EM colonisation of fine root tips varied between 9 and 34 % and depended on the tree species of interest (S. caprea < S. alba < B. pendula) and season (spring < autumn). Moreover, the ectomycorrhizal colonisation of B. pendula was positively correlated with pH and CaCO₃, while for S. caprea and S. alba, colonisation was associated with most of the other soil parameters investigated; e.g. salinity, Cₒᵣgand N. Analysis of EM fungi revealed four to five different morphotypes per each season: Tomentella sp. Sa-A, Hebeloma collariatum Sc-A, Geopora sp. Sc-A, Helotiales sp. Bp-A in the autumn and Tomentella sp. Sa-S, Tomentella sp. Sc-S and three morphotypes from the families Thelephoraceae and Pyronemataceae in the spring. In conclusion, the density of EM is related to the level of salinity (ECₑ), season and tree species. Tomentella spp., Hebeloma sp., Geopora sp. and Helotiales sp. are groups of species highly adapted to saline conditions.

Natural contamination has become a challenging problem in drinking water production due to metal contamination of groundwater throughout the world, and arsenic and chromium are well-known toxic elements. In this study, iron oxide-coated sand (IOCS) and granular ferric hydroxide (GFH) were used to study the effects of fulvic acid (FA) on the adsorptive removal of Cr(VI) and As(V) from synthetic groundwater. IOCS and GFH were characterized by SEM/EDS, and experiments were performed at different pH levels (6, 7, and 8). The surface of IOCS and GFH showed a high content of Fe and O (75 and 60 % of the atomic composition, respectively), suggesting that they can highly effectively adsorb Cr(VI) and As(V). Adsorption tests with the simultaneous presence of As(V) and FA, on the one hand, and Cr(VI) with FA, on the other hand, revealed that the role of FA on chromate and arsenate adsorption was insignificant at almost all pH values investigated with both adsorbents. A small influence as a result of FA was only observed for the removal of As(V) by IOCS at pH 6 with a decrease of 13 and 23 % when 2 and 5 mg/l were added to the synthetic water, respectively. It was also found that organic matter (OM) was leached from the IOCS during batch adsorption experiments. The use of FEEM revealed that humic-like, fulvic-like, and protein-like organic matter fractions are present on the IOCS surface.

Polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) and heavy metals are the two most important groups of pollutants associated with rail transport. Both have a serious negative impact on the natural environment, including human health and degradation of sensitive ecosystems. In our study, apart from qualitative and quantitative analysis of the main PAHs and heavy metals associated with rail, we tried to assess composition of specific compounds related to functional areas of railway infrastructure and to distinguish potential chemical markers which can be used for identification of pollution. Moreover, we evaluated the applicability of plants overgrowing railway infrastructure as bioindicators of rail-associated pollution. Though we confirmed that high amounts of PAHs and heavy metals in soil are characteristic for intensively used railway infrastructure, we found no typical pollution profiles for the differently used areas (i.e. platforms, sidings, cleaning bays). The major source of these contaminants is petroleum products used in conservation of railway infrastructure and rolling stock. As far as the use of plants overgrowing railway infrastructure as bioindicators of rail-associated pollution is concerned, it is rather limited, due to frequent application of herbicides for security and track stability reasons.

Rhamnolipid is a biosurfactant produced by several Pseudomonas species, and can wet hydrophobic soils by lowering the cohesive and/or adhesive surface tension. Because of its biodegradability, rhamnolipid is believed to have minimal adverse impact on the soil and groundwater after usage. Applications of rhamnolipid to improve irrigation in agricultural soils thus have obvious advantages over other chemical wetting agents, especially under drought conditions. Due to global warming, soil amendment with biochar has been commonly practiced in agricultural soils to increase the soil water-holding capacity. As such, rhamnolipid transport in biochar-amended agricultural soils needs to be characterized. In this research, we found that rhamnolipid transport in biochar-amended agricultural soils was hindered by retardation (equilibrium adsorption) and deposition (kinetic adsorption), which was well represented by the advection-dispersion equation based on a local equilibrium assumption. A linear equilibrium adsorption was assumed in the advection-dispersion equation simulation, which was proved to be acceptable by studying the breakthrough curves. Both rhamnolipid equilibrium adsorption and kinetic adsorption increased with the increase of the biochar content in the agricultural soil.

The present and past mining activity left several abandoned tailings and dams in the Panasqueira tin–tungsten mining area. Seasonal water samples and stream sediments were collected during two different periods (rainy and dry seasons) and analyzed for a wide range of major and trace elements, in order to define the present hydrochemical situation. Rain waters interact with the altered sulfides stored in the tailings which generate runoff waters with high metal concentrations. The waste material derived from the exploitation enhanced acidification and metal-releasing processes, due to the increase in the specific surface, which favors the oxidation of sulfide minerals. Acid drainage and high metal(loid)s (Cd, Fe, Mn, Zn, Cu, As) concentrations in solution were observed in waters leaching the Panasqueira tailing deposits. In dry season, generally the acidic waters, enriched in metals, evaporate progressively depositing sulfate efflorescences characteristic of acidic environments. The elements distribution in precipitated minerals helps in the interpretation of aqueous geochemical data. Aqueous concentrations may be attenuated by goethite, gibbsite, and/or ferrihydrite precipitation in the oxidation zone through adsorption processes. The use of these waters for human consumption and for irrigation represents a threat to humans as they have a potential carcinogenic risk, especially due to the As concentrations. The acid water precipitation is present on the stream sediments, with concentrations exceeding the toxicity limits. Stream sediments are good receptors of metals and metalloids transported by waters. The enrichment factor values, of heavy metal(loid)s from Casinhas stream and Zêzere river sediments, are extremely high in Ag, As, Cd, and Cu revealing enrichments for these potential toxic elements. Igₑₒvalues shows that samples are strongly to very strongly polluted for Ag, As, Bi, Cd, and Cu. According to the consensus-based SQGs, 80 % of the samples were classified at the level of great concern and adverse biological effects are to be expected frequently in this area.

For many years, atmospheric mercury has been perceived as a global pollutant. Transport of mercury compounds in the atmosphere and its deposition on the earth’s surface is an important issue that requires knowledge regarding the circulation of the various forms of this metal between environmental components. There are many numerical models that can be used to study and image this phenomenon. These models are based on data concerning mercury emission sources, concentrations of this contaminant on modelling areas and meteorological data to assess air mass inflow on a regional and global scale. A method to assess mercury deposition fluxes on a local scale based only on stream intensity analysis of mercury is proposed in this study. Mercury deposition fluxes (bulk) that were assessed by the MDC method at the Zloty Potok station (regional background station for the Silesian Agglomeration) varied from 22.8 μg · m⁻² · year⁻¹ (an 8-month period in 2013) to 54.2 μg · m⁻² · year⁻¹ in 2012. Developing procedures to estimate the mercury deposition coefficient (MDC) is useful in areas where only meteorological parameters and mercury concentrations in the atmospheric air are measured. The obtained deposition coefficient values enable quantification of a selected pollutant concentration and its potential impact resulting from deposition.

Activated carbon is investigated as adsorptive barrier for organic micropollutants (OMP) within the Berlin water cycle. In a pilot plant using granular activated carbon (GAC) as upper layer in dual-media filtration, OMP concentrations in treated wastewater could be reduced without any negative impact on filtration efficiency. OMP breakthroughs occurred after shorter runtimes than estimated according to isotherm experiments with powdered activated carbon (PAC). Batch adsorption tests comparing the used GAC to new GAC showed that the capacity of the used GAC was not exhausted, indicating that besides direct site competition, pore blocking is also responsible for the poor GAC performance. A pilot plant application of PAC of the same type as GAC showed significantly higher OMP removals at lower dosages, taking advantage of immobilization of PAC particles in the filters. Both PAC and GAC applications can be integrated into tertiary wastewater treatment without significant constructional changes.

The aim of this paper is to analyze current and expected air quality in Israel and to identify the main responsible sources. To this end, the current (2010) air quality regarding five main air pollutants, PM₁₀, PM₂.₅, NO₂, SO₂, and O₃, was analyzed and the pollutant emission inventories were determined. Next, the expected emission inventories for the target years (2015 and 2020) were estimated. Based on these results, dispersion models (AERMOD, CHIMERE, FARM, and TREFIC) were used to forecast the expected air quality for the target years. The findings indicate that current policy measures are not sufficient and additional policy measures are required, particularly in the transport, industry, energy, and households sectors.

Biochar has attracted recent research interest as a metal adsorbent. The heavy metal adsorption capacity of biochar can be controlled by the carbonization of biochar. The adsorption characteristics of heavy metals (Pb, Cu, and Cd) by peat moss-derived biochars produced under different carbonization conditions were investigated by a series of batch experiments. Biochars were produced by the pyrolysis of peat moss over a temperature range of 400–1000 °C for 30–90 min. Biochar produced at 800 °C for 90 min was the most efficient for the removal of Pb and Cu, when weight loss ratio was considered. The pseudo-second-order and Langmuir models adequately described kinetics and isotherms, respectively, of heavy metal adsorption on peat moss-derived biochar, indicating that heavy metal ions were chemically adsorbed on the adsorption sites as uniform monolayer. The peat moss-derived biochar showed the highest maximum adsorption capacity for Pb (81.3 mg/g), followed by Cd and Cu, which were 39.8 and 18.2 mg/g, respectively. This study shows that peat moss-derived biochar is an effective adsorbent to remediate heavy metal-contaminated water.