To facilitate the mapping of pollution fluxes under different flow conditions when a limited number of gauging stations are available, a method relying on geographic data was developed to estimate the mean daily stream discharge at each sampling station. It has been tested on a rural river watershed that is located in northeast France (Madon River). The stretch of 100 km is equipped with three gauging stations. Surface water samples were collected at 30 stations under different flow conditions. In a participatory research project, samples were also collected by school children at one of the stations (once a week during the school year over a 2-year period). Dissolved organic carbon and nitrogen species were measured for all samples. These data illustrate the variation in the pollution in the river that is associated with agricultural activities and discharges of untreated wastewater. This method was used to obtain localized points of nutrient discharge, to identify the zones that favor nutrient removal, and to propose remediation work.

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.

Detection, molecular characterization, and quantification of Norovirus (NoVs) in a semi-industrial pilot plant were performed in order to assess the efficiency of the secondary biological treatment using two different procedures: natural oxidation ponds and biodisks. A total of 102 wastewater samples were collected from two biological treatment processes in a semi-industrial pilot plant. NoVs GII and NoVs GI were detected and quantified in 65 % (n = 66) and in 1 % (n = 1) of the samples of wastewater from the plant, respectively. The average values of viral content (genome copies/μl) obtained in the effluent of the two lines of treatment showed a substantial reduction in the prevalence and in the viral content of NoVs GII detected from one basin to another of the five watersheds of the oxidation ponds and at the expiration of the biodisk line. The predominant genogroup of NoVs was NoVs GII (65 %), followed by NoVs GI (1 %). The predominant genotype of NoVs GII was GGII.12 (n = 11), followed by GGII.b (n = 1), GGII.1 (n = 1), and GGII.16 (n = 1) and two mixed combinations: GGI.2/GGII.12 (n = 5) and GGI.2/GGII.b (n = 1) were identified. The results obtained in this study represent the first documentation in Tunisia on the effectiveness of biological treatment for the removal of NoVs in the area of the capital of Tunis.

Removal of micropollutants from water with NF/RO membranes has received much attention in recent years. However, because of especially diffusion through the polyamide layer, NF/RO membranes never achieve complete removal, which may be a problem given the possibility of micropollutants causing adverse effects in even very low concentrations. In this paper, we have investigated a strategy of implementing adsorbents into the support layer of a NF membrane to increase the overall removal of three selected pesticides by combining membrane rejection and adsorption into one unit operation. The objective of the study was to act as proof of concept for the scheme, as well as to gain insights into how adsorbents may be inserted into the membrane support, and how they affect the membrane performance. The results showed that the addition of the adsorbents to the membrane increased the adsorption capacity of the membrane, and that the adsorbents could be embedded in the membrane without affecting the flux and rejection behaviour. This however depended very much on the specific manufacturing method. Furthermore, the adsorption capacity was found to vary significantly for the three pesticides, indicating a need for adsorbents designed to specifically target a given micropollutant. Overall, the concept of a complete removal membrane is realisable, but several challenges remain to be solved.

A free water surface flow constructed wetland (CW) was designed to evaluate the capacity of this biological treatment system, which receives wastewater from aquaculture and upflow anaerobic sludge blanket (UASB) reactors, to retain heavy metal. The purpose of this study was to determine the role of the sediment and the macrophytes Cyperus giganteus, Typha domingensis, Eichhornia crassipes, and Pontederia cordata in accumulating Al, Cd, Cr, Cu, Fe, Ni, Mn, Pb, and Zn, during the dry (winter) and rainy (summer) seasons. In general, the concentrations and mass loading of heavy metals in the outlet water were lower than in the inlet water. The highest removal efficiency rates of water (mainly mass removal) occurred in the dry season. In the rainy season, the probable low oxygen level in the upper layer of sediment resulted in a release of reduced metals into the water because of organic matter mineralization and an increase in depth. This, coupled with an increase in the hydraulic loading rate (HLR), affected the efficiency removal in this season. The metals were especially immobilized as a result of the sedimentation process and could be removed weakly via macrophyte uptake, with the exception of Mn. In addition to the sediment, which is the main compartment for heavy metal retention in the CW system, the macrophytes have the advantage of being harvested. Therefore, E. crassipes and T. domingensis, which are good metal accumulators, can be recommended for the removal of heavy metals from agricultural wastewaters.

The objective of this study was to investigate the removal of multi-pesticides through a combined treatment process with coagulation–adsorption on nano-clay. Nano-clays like nano-bentonite, nano-halloysite and organically modified nano-montmorillonite were used as the adsorbent, and alum and polyaluminium chloride (PAC) were used as the coagulants. The coagulation method alone was not sufficient to purify water, whereas coagulation plus adsorption methods provided superior purification. Amongst the nano-clays used, organically modified nano-montmorillonite gave the best result in terms of pesticide removal from water. In order to evaluate the effect of coagulant addition on the removal efficiency of nano-clay, the respective adsorption isotherms were also calculated in the presence and absence of coagulants. Freundlich isotherm constants have shown that adsorption of pesticides on different nano-clay depends on the type of clay, presence and absence of coagulants as well as the properties of pesticides. The treatment combination having the maximum removal capacity was used efficiently for the removal of pesticides from natural and fortified natural water. The results indicated that alum–PAC coagulation aided by nano-clay as an adsorbent was the superior process for the simultaneous removal of multi-pesticides from water.

In this study, we developed a new method for the preconcentration and spectrophotometric determination of vanadium (V) using dispersive liquid-liquid microextraction (DLLME) and optical sensors using 4-(5-bromo-2-pyridylazo)-5-(diethylamino)-phenol (Br-PADAP) as a complexing reagent. The preconcentration is based on the extraction of vanadium ions (V) in trichloroethylene in the form of a complex with Br-PADAP, using ethanol as a dispersion solvent. After injecting the solvent into a solution containing vanadium, a homogeneous mixture is obtained. The mixture is centrifuged to deposit the desired phase onto a triacetylcellulose membrane. Then, the supernatant is discarded, and the membrane is exposed to the radiation beam of a spectrophotometer without the use of a microcuvette. Under optimal conditions, the detection limit was determined to be 0.57 μg L⁻¹, and the quantification limit was 1.91 μg L⁻¹. The accuracy of the method was verified by analyzing a certified reference material, BCR®414, plankton. The procedure was applied to the determination of vanadium levels in shellfish samples, specifically shrimp and oyster.

The effect of glyphosate on richness and structure of the Rhizobiaceae and total bacterial communities in an agricultural soil after different treatments was studied. The herbicide was applied on the soil in the presence or the absence of Medicago sativa plants with or without inoculation with the Sinorhizobium meliloti reference strain RCR2011. Terminal-restriction fragment length polymorphism (T-RFLP) profiling showed that this agricultural soil has a high total microbial and rhizobial genetic diversity. To investigate the impact of the herbicide on microbial activity, fluorescein diacetate (FDA) and a panel of three enzymes (phosphatase, catalase, and protease BAA) were assessed. Depending on the type of enzyme tested, the enzymatic activities responded differently to the action of glyphosate, the presence of M. sativa, and the inoculation with RCR2011. The present work gives original insights into the effect of the herbicide on the rhizospheric area of M. sativa with or without rhizobial inoculation by the fact that glyphosate changes microbial diversity and affects soil enzymatic activities.

We investigated a peat profile from the Izery Mountains, located within the so-called Black Triangle, the border area of Poland, Czech Republic, and Germany. This peatland suffered from an extreme atmospheric pollution during the last 50 years, which created an exceptional natural experiment to examine the impact of pollution on peatland microbes. Testate amoebae (TA), Centropyxis aerophila and Phryganella acropodia, were distinguished as a proxy of atmospheric pollution caused by extensive brown coal combustion. We recorded a decline of mixotrophic TA and development of agglutinated taxa as a response for the extreme concentration of Al (30 g kg⁻¹) and Cu (96 mg kg⁻¹) as well as the extreme amount of fly ash particles determined by scanning electron microscopy (SEM) analysis, which were used by TA for shell construction. Titanium (5.9 %), aluminum (4.7 %), and chromium (4.2 %) significantly explained the highest percentage of the variance in TA data. Elements such as Al, Ti, Cr, Ni, and Cu were highly correlated (r > 0.7, p < 0.01) with pseudostome position/body size ratio and pseudostome position. Changes in the community structure, functional diversity, and mechanisms of shell construction were recognized as the indicators of dust pollution. We strengthen the importance of the TA as the bioindicators of the recent atmospheric pollution.

Early-life exposure to pollutants, such as lead, may have long-lasting consequences on health, behavior, and cognition. However, experiments on delayed effects of specific pollutants are very rare in wild animals. We experimentally exposed wild nestling great tits (Parus major) to dietary lead (high, low, or control group) in levels relevant to exposure levels of wild populations in Europe and studied delayed effects on phenotypic and behavioral traits in captivity. We also included a group of birds from a vicinity of a copper smelter, exposed to a mixture of toxic metals and altered food supply during development. This experimental setup allowed us to compare the strength of direct (exposure to lead per se) and indirect (pollution-related changes in diet) effects of pollutants. Our experimental lead treatment significantly increased lead levels in bone and feces compared with controls. However, we found no carry-over effect of early-life dietary lead on morphology, plumage coloration, or heat shock proteins. Treatment did not affect activity, exploration, neophobia, or success in learning and spatial memory task. We conclude that with the exposure levels and relatively short exposure period used, delayed effects on the measured traits were not found. However, it is important to further study other types of behavioral traits and ultimately fitness effects.