Giardia is a protozoan parasite of primary concern for the drinking water industry. High contact times are required for Giardia inactivation by chlorination, while ozonation may be effective at much lower Ct products. In this study, we have assessed the occurrence of Giardia cysts in raw water, and in chlorinated or ozonated water from a drinking water treatment plant (DWTP) in Brazil, over a 16-month period. Moreover, we analyzed the effects of primary disinfection on cysts, and calculated the infection risk caused by the occurrence of Giardia cysts in raw water, chlorinated or ozonated water. Furthermore, we assessed the correlation of Giardia cysts with indicator bacteria in raw water. Data referring to concentration of Giardia cysts in raw water showed adherence to a gamma distribution at a significance level α = 0.05. The detection frequency and the mean concentration of Giardia cysts were higher in raw water (86.6%, 26 cysts∙L⁻¹), than in chlorinated (46.1%, 15.7 cysts·L⁻¹) or ozonated water (43.5%, 11.1 cysts·L⁻¹). Overall, Giardia non-viable cysts were detected more frequently in ozonated water (80%) than in chlorinated water (68.2%) or raw water (37.7%). Ozonation and chlorination resulted, respectively, in ≈27.5- and ≈13- fold reduction of Giardia infection risk, when compared to the risk calculated for raw water. Total coliform and Escherichia coli proved to be suitable surrogates to predict the occurrence of Giardia cysts in raw surface water, however, the indicator bacteria may not be suitable surrogates to predict the disinfection of Giardia cysts, as no correlation was found between indicator bacteria and Giardia cysts in treated water. To our knowledge, this is the first study reporting the efficacy of chlorine and ozone at Ct products actually applied at a full-scale drinking water treatment plant against Giardia cysts naturally occurring in the source water, i.e. real situation. Ozonation has proven more efficient than chlorination against Giardia cysts in surface water. Escherichia coli proved to be suitable surrogate to predict Giardia cysts in raw surface water.

We investigated physiological responses including calcification, photosynthesis and alterations to polar metabolites, in the scleractinian coral Stylophora pistillata exposed to different concentrations of polyethylene microplastics. Results showed that at high plastic concentrations (50 particles/mL nominal concentration) the photosynthetic efficiency of photosystem II in the coral symbiont was affected after 4 weeks of exposure. Both moderate and high (5 and 50 particles/mL nominal) concentrations of microplastics caused subtle but significant alterations to metabolite profiles of coral, as determined by Nuclear Magnetic Resonance (NMR) spectroscopy. Specifically, exposed corals were found to have increased levels of phosphorylated sugars and pyrimidine nucleobases that make up nucleotides, scyllo-inositol and a region containing overlapping proline and glutamate signals, compared to control animals. Together with the photo-physiological stress response observed and previously published literature, these findings support the hypothesis that microplastics disrupt host-symbiont signaling and that corals respond to this interference by increasing signaling and chemical support to the symbiotic zooxanthellae algae. These findings are also consistent with increased mucus production in corals exposed to microplastics described in previous studies. Considering the importance of coral reefs to marine ecosystems and their sensitivity to anthropogenic stressors, more research is needed to elucidate coral response mechanisms to microplastics under realistic exposure conditions.

Recently, the frequent occurrence of haze with aerosol pollution in China has attracted worldwide attention. Air pollutant emissions in conjunction with changing meteorological conditions create environment pollution in China. Aerosol pollution is spatially centralized in four regions of China, including the North China Plain, Yangtze River Delta, Pearl River Delta, and Sichuan Basin. In this observational study, a new center of aerosol pollution was identified in the Twain-Hu Basin (THB), covering the Hubei and Hunan provinces in central China. Based on the analysis of 19 years of satellite remote sensing data from the Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer (MODIS), the THB experiences high aerosol optical depth (AOD) values exceeding 0.9. The fine mode fraction (FMF) values below 0.3 were also detected over the aerosol polluted THB region, where aerosol pollution was dominated by the mixed aerosol type. This reflects the role of intense human activities and the unique aerosol processes involved in the regional aerosol pollution over central China. The interannual AOD variations for THB present an increasing trend (mostly >0.02 yr⁻¹) between 2000 and 2011 and a significant descending trend (mostly < -0.06 yr⁻¹) between 2011 and 2018. This inverse trends in AOD with an overall increasing trend in FMF characterizes the past 19 years. This highlights the contribution of the increase in submicron particles and meteorological effects to the regional aerosol concentrations during recent years when considering the reduced anthropogenic aerosol emissions in the THB.

Ingestion of anthropogenic litter has been well documented in marine vertebrates, but comparatively little is known about marine invertebrates. We report macrolitter ingestion by the sandy anemone Bunodactis reynaudi at Muizenberg beach in False Bay, South Africa. Monthly surveys from May 2015 to August 2019 collected 491 ingested litter items (9.4 ± 14.9 items·month⁻¹, 39.8 ± 71.5 g·month⁻¹), of which >99% were plastic. The number of ingested items was correlated with the abundance of stranded items and ingestion peaked in autumn when seasonal rains washed more litter into the bay. Most ingested litter was clear (39%), white (16%) and black/purple (15%). Comparison with environmental litter showed selection for flexible plastics, particularly bags/packets and food packaging. Experimental feeding trials found that B. reynaudi selected for pieces of HDPE bag suspended in seawater for 2–20 days, suggesting that biofilms enhance the palatability of flexible plastics. Studies are needed to assess the possible impacts of plastic ingestion on B. reynaudi. While only a small proportion of the population currently ingest litter, ingestion might become more common if environmental litter loads increase. This might negatively affect the anemone’s ability to respond to other environmental changes such as increasing levels of heavy metal pollution.

In vitro bioassays have been used as a bioanalytical means of detecting dioxin-like compounds (DLCs) in environmental matrices and have been suggested as a tool for quantifying DLCs in sediments. The present study evaluated the relationship between bioanalytical results from the micro-7-ethoxyresorufin-O-deethylase (EROD) bioassay and chemical analytical results in 25 sediment samples collected from rivers across Germany. Sediments were collected, polychlorinated dibenzo-p-dioxins and dibenzofurans (PCDD/Fs) and dioxin-like polychlorinated biphenyls (DL-PCBs) were extracted from the sediments, biological toxicity equivalent quotients (BEQs) were determined by micro-EROD assay and toxicity equivalent quotients (TEQs) were calculated from chemical analysis. Correlations between BEQs and TEQs were evaluated, and linear regression modeling was performed, excluding 6 samples as validation data, to derive equations for predicting TEQs from BEQs. Validation data was tested to evaluate predictive capabilities of the models. Correlations were observed between BEQ and TEQ for PCDD/Fs (r=0.987), PCBs (r=0.623), measured sum of PCDD/F and PCBs (r = 0.975) and calculated sum of PCDD/F and PCBs (r = 0.971). The modeling equations provided low variances as evaluated by mean absolute error (MAE) (≤10.3 pg/g) and root mean square error (RMSE) (≤15.8 pg/g) indicating that expected TEQs could be reasonably well calculated from BEQs. Predicted TEQs from validation data fell within the 95% probability intervals of the test data and had low variances (MAE≤6.5 pg/g) and (RMSE≤10.7 pg/g). Our results indicate that the micro-EROD bioassay can be used as a screening tool for DLCs in sediment and has the capability to be used as an alternate method to chemical analysis for quantifying dioxin-like potential of sediments.

Advanced oxidation processes based on carbon catalysis is a promising strategy possessing great potential for environmental pollution degradation. Herein, nitrogen-doped biochar nanosheets (NCS-x) were synthesized using a nitrogen-rich biomass (Candida utilis) as sole precursor. The involvement of environmental-friendly molten salt (NaCl and KCl) in pyrolysis process not only facilitated the exfoliation of biochar, but also favored the retention of N element in biochar. When applying as catalyst for peroxymonosulfate activation, the as-obtained NCS-6 exhibited outstanding performance in catalytic degradation of bisphenol A (BPA). A 100% removal efficiency was observed in 6 min with fast reaction kinetic (k = 1.36 min⁻¹). Based on quenching test and in-situ electron paramagnetic resonance analysis, both radical pathway and non-radical pathway were suggested to be involved in BPA degradation, while singlet oxygen was identified as the dominant reactive oxygen species. Furthermore, the ecotoxicity evaluation using Chlorella vulgaris as ecological indicator indicated that BPA solution after degradation was less toxic than the original solution. It is expected that this green and facile strategy holds great promise for value-added conversion of nitrogen-rich biomass to highly efficient biochar nanosheets for environment remediation.

Hexavalent chromium (Cr(VI)) has significantly threatened the environmental health because of its distinct toxicity. A novel magnetic core-shell structured NZVI@ZD composite was designed for simultaneous adsorption and reduction of Cr(VI). NZVI@ZD was synthesized by carbonization of the as-prepared core-shell structure NZVI@zeolitic imidazole framework-67 (ZIF-67). After carbonization, the original ZIF-67 shell shape was preserved well with marginal parts developing to graphitized carbon. Both cobalt (Co) and NZVI nanoparticles were finely dispersed in the porous ZIF-67 derivative (ZD). NZVI@ZD exhibited excellent removal performance for Cr(VI), owing to its high specific surface area and large pore size favorable for Cr(VI) adsorption and diffusion. The maximum adsorption capacity of NZVI@ZD for Cr(VI) was surprisingly as high as 226.5 mg g⁻¹, surpassing the pristine ZIF-67 (29.35 mg g⁻¹) and NZVI@ZIF-67 (36.53 mg g⁻¹). Zeta potential and X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS) spectra revealed that electrostatic attraction, reduction and precipitation might be involved in the Cr(VI) removal process by NZVI@ZD, resulting in the conversion of the adsorbed Cr(VI) to Cr(III) of lower toxicity and an eventual immobilization on the NZVI@ZD. The magnetic core-shell structured NZVI@ZD possessed superior adsorptive reactivity for Cr(VI) to most other traditional or newly reported materials, thus should be deemed highly efficient for Cr(VI)-contaminated wastewater treatment.

Quantitating the health effects of employment history in factories, especially polluting ones, is essential for understanding the benefits or losses of industrialization in rural areas. Using a traced subset of nationwide panel data from 2005 covering five provinces, 101 villages, and 2026 households (collected recently in 2016) and the econometric models, this study estimated the effect of factory employment history on workers' health. The results showed that: the absolute number of factory workers increased from 1998 to 2015, and the proportion of factory workers was 7.68% in 2015; the absolute number and the proportion of farmers decreased from 63.84% in 1998 to 29.06% in 2015. Given that all the respondents live in rural areas, the HlthPlace (the first place the individual went to for their last illness in 2015) was selected as the main dependent variable of interest, and Hlthexp (Healthcare expenditure per person at last illness in 2015) and self-reported health were used as auxiliary dependent variables. The findings revealed that, after controlling the characteristics of individual, household, hospital and area, a one year increase of factory employment history corresponded to a 0.035 level increase in the probability of people choosing high-level hospital (p < 0.01) and a 237.61 yuan increase in healthcare expenditure (p < 0.1). The results also showed the adverse effect of self-reported health on factory employment history (p < 0.01). In addition, the relationship between the farming history and health was evaluated, and the econometric results showed that compared with factory employment history, farming history had opposite impacts on health (p < 0.01). Finally, the robustness check showed that the empirical results were reliable and that the initial results were robust. Generally, this study revealed the effect of overall factory employment on health, which is a useful research supplement to the studies on the health effects of specific pollution exposure.

Lead bioavailability in contaminated soils varies considerably depending on Pb speciation and sources of contamination. However, little information is available on bioavailability of Pb associated with different fractions. In this study, the Tessier sequential extraction was used to fractionate Pb in 3 contaminated soils to exchangeable (F1), carbonate-bound (F2), Fe/Mn oxides-bound (F3), organic-bound (F4), and residual fractions (F5). In addition, soil residues after F1–F2 extraction (F₃₄₅), F1–F3 extraction (F₄₅), and F1–F4 extraction (F₅) were measured for Pb relative bioavailability (RBA) using a mouse kidney model. Based on the mouse model, Pb-RBA in the soils was 44–93%, which decreased to 43–89%, 28–75%, and 15–68% in the F₃₄₅, F₄₅, and F₅ fractions, respectively. Based on Pb-RBA in the soil residues, Pb-RBA in different fractions was calculated based on a mass balance. The data showed that Pb-RBA was the highest (∼100%) in the exchangeable and carbonate fraction, and the lowest (15–68%) in the residual fraction. In addition, Pb in the first three fractions (F1–F3) contributed most (83–89%) to bioavailable Pb in contaminated soils. Our study shed light on oral bioavailability of Pb in contaminated soils of different fractions based on sequential extraction and provide important information for soil remediation.