Biochar has been proven as a soil amendment to improve soil environment. However, mechanistic understanding of biochar on soil physical properties and microbial community remains unclear. In this study, a wood biochar (WB), was incorporated into a highly weathered tropical soil, and after 1 year the in situ changes in soil properties and microbial community were evaluated. A field trial was conducted for application of compost, wood biochar, and polyacrylamide. Microstructure and morphological features of the soils were characterized through 3D X-ray microscopy and polarized microscopy. Soil microbial communities were identified through next-generation sequencing (NGS). After incubation, the number of pores and connection throats between the pores of biochar treated soil increased by 3.8 and 7.2 times, respectively, compared to the control. According to NGS results, most sequences belonged to Anaerolinea thermolimosa, Caldithrix palaeochoryensis, Chthoniobacter flavus, and Cohnella soli. Canonical correlation analysis (CCA) further demonstrated that the microbial community structure was determined by inorganic N (IN), available P (AP), pH, soil organic C (SOC), porosity, bulk density (BD), and aggregate stability. The treatments with co-application of biochar and compost facilitated the dominance of Cal. palaeochoryensis, Cht. flavus, and Coh. soli, all of which promoted organic matter decomposition and ammonia oxidation in the soil. The apparent increases in IN, AP, porosity, and SOC caused by the addition of biochar and compost may be the proponents of changes in soil microbial communities. The co-application of compost and biochar may be a suitable strategy for real world biochar incorporation in highly weathered soil.

The study aimed to understand beach litter status at some of the world-famous beaches of Goa, West India, to comprehend the impact of the Covid-19 lockdown. We characterize litter in six categories (Nylon+Rubber, Plastics, Footwear, Glass, Metal, and Thermocol) for eight sampled beaches in the north and south Goa. All beaches show increased glass and decreased plastics (significant litter) during the lockdown period compared to the unlock period that marked the high tourist inflow. Beaches were classified and graded with colour codes using litter density exhibit light blue-green colour coding during the lockdown or unlock period, suggests clean maintenance. The Miramar beach located in the heart of the capital city showed relatively more litter density (yellow code) due to the combination of local people and tourist inflow. Morjim, Palolem, Velsao were littered the least during both periods.

Environmental issues have continued to spur discussions, debates, public outrages, and awareness campaigns, inciting interest in emerging technologies such as Artificial Intelligence. Its usage is spread across many environmental industries, including wildlife protection, natural resource conservation, clean energy, agriculture, energy management, pollution control, and waste management. In 2017, at the United Nations Artificial Intelligence Summit in Geneva, the UN acknowledged that AI could be an enabler in the sustainable development process towards peace, prosperity, and dignified life for humankind and proposed to refocus on the application of AI in assisting global efforts on sustainable development to eradicate poverty, hunger and to protect the environment as well as to conserve natural resources. It is vital to address environmental sustainability concerns; however, with the advent of AI, most common environmental issues are now solvable by prioritizing human interests. Sustainability encompasses the interrelated areas of the environment, society, and economy. According to the United Nations’ “Our Common Future,” also known as the “Brundtland Report,” it is defined as “development that satisfies current needs without compromising the ability of future generations to meet their own needs.” Unfortunately, the Earth is currently facing serious consequences from global warming and climate change, and immediate action is required to encourage the use of environmentally friendly and sustainable products to address these issues. Environmental degradation and climate change are numerous environmental concerns requiring novel and intelligent artificial intelligence solutions. The literature on AI and environmental sustainability encompasses various domains. Notably, AI is being used to address the bulk of regional and global environmental concerns, including energy, water, biodiversity, and transportation, even though many of these sectors have permeated and evolved. However, there is a need to combine current literature on the application of AI, particularly in relation to environmental sustainability in areas such as energy, water, biodiversity, and transportation. There is a significant lack of research on how AI can promote environmental sustainability. This research aims to explore how AI can be applied to address environmental issues in various sectors to achieve the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs).

The African Ministers’ Council on Water (AMCOW) Secretariat committed to design and implement an African Water Quality Program (AWaQ) in its Strategic Operational Plan (2020-2024) considering the guiding frameworks it uses such as the Africa Water Vision 2025, United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), and the African Union Agenda 2063: The Africa We Want. AMCOW reached out to the International Water Management Institute (IWMI) to support the development of such a program. AWaQ builds on the rich experiences and lessons learned from past and ongoing regional and subregional water quality initiatives across Africa by different players, including African Union institutions, and the wider members of the World Water Quality Alliance (WWQA), as well as the AMCOW African Water and Sanitation Sector Monitoring and Reporting System (WASSMO). The five phases of developing an African Water Quality Program (AWaQ) are explained in the following papers: 1. State of Water Quality Monitoring and Pollution Control in Africa (phase 1-2) 2. Innovations in Water Quality Monitoring and Management in Africa (phase 3-4) 3. A Framework for an African Water Quality Program (AWaQ) (phase 5) 4. Country Water Quality Profiles This paper is the first from the above list and is a baseline assessment of the status of water quality monitoring and pollution control in Africa, including the capacities available across countries in the region. This assessment considers various past and ongoing initiatives related to water quality monitoring and management, capacity development, and water pollution control and impact mitigation. Key findings of this paper highlight the following: 1. There is an encouraging availability of national water testing laboratory facilities across African countries. Nonetheless, there are weaknesses that require attention to ensure effectiveness and sustainability. 2. Regular and ongoing training is needed to keep up with laboratory testing methodologies. However, we observed a low trend in regular training, which does not augur well for keeping abreast of the best practices in water quality monitoring. In the context of emerging pollutants, training needs to be more regular than is currently experienced. 3. Water quality monitoring and management capacities are patchy. Capacities related to staff training, laboratory infrastructure and monitoring program activities need strengthening. 4. Pollution control mechanisms are facing challenges. Regulatory mechanisms and wastewater treatment technologies—the most widely deployed pollution control solutions—may benefit from more concerted investment, and the political will and financing to boost their effectiveness.