We examined the consequences of the spatial heterogeneity of atmospheric ammonia (NH3) by measuring and modelling NH3 concentrations and deposition at 25 m grid resolution for a rural landscape containing intensive poultry farming, agricultural grassland, woodland and moorland. The emission pattern gave rise to a high spatial variability of modelled mean annual NH3 concentrations and dry deposition. Largest impacts were predicted for woodland patches located within the agricultural area, while larger moorland areas were at low risk, due to atmospheric dispersion, prevailing wind direction and low NH3 background. These high resolution spatial details are lost in national scale estimates at 1 km resolution due to less detailed emission input maps. The results demonstrate how the spatial arrangement of sources and sinks is critical to defining the NH3 risk to semi-natural ecosystems. These spatial relationships provide the foundation for local spatial planning approaches to reduce environmental impacts of atmospheric NH3.

In this study, the aqueous uptake and dietary assimilation (trophic transfer) of two endocrine disrupting compounds (dioxin and phathalic acid) in the green mussel Perna viridis were quantified. During short-term exposure period, dioxin rapidly sorbed onto phytoplankton and its accumulation was much higher than that of phthalate. The uptake of these two compounds by the mussels increased with increasing temperature and salinity (for dioxin only). The dietary assimilation of the two contaminants was rather modest (10–64% for dioxin and 20–47% for phthalate), and was greatly dependent on the food species and concentration. Interestingly, dietary assimilation increased with increasing diatom food concentration. Gut passage time was partially responsible for the variable dietary assimilation. Given the high dissolved uptake rate and the modest dietary assimilation, aqueous exposure was predicted to be the dominant bioaccumulation source for both dioxin and phthalate in the green mussels under most conditions.

Metal toxicity to lettuce Lactuca sativa was determined following mixture exposure based on the concepts of concentration addition (CA) and response addition (RA). On the basis of conventional models assuming no interaction between mixture components, Ag+ was the most toxic, followed by Cu2+ and Zn2+. Furthermore, ion–ion interactions were included in quantitatively estimating toxicity of interactive mixtures of Cu2+–Zn2+ and Cu2+–Ag+ by linearly expanding the CA and RA models. About 80–92% of the variability in the root growth could be explained by this approach. Estimates by the extended models indicate significant alleviative effects of Zn2+ on Cu2+ toxicity whereas Cu2+ did not significantly affect Zn2+ toxicity. According to the extended CA model, Cu2+ significantly reduced Ag+ toxicity while Ag+ enhanced Cu2+ toxicity. Similar effects were not found by the extended RA model. These interactions might result from their individual uptake mechanisms and toxic actions as published in literature.

We hypothesized that the photosynthetic performance of mangrove stands restored by the single planting of mangroves species would be lowered due to residual stressors. The photosynthetic parameters of the vegetation of three planted mangrove stands, each with a different disturbance history, were compared to reference sites and correlated with edaphic environmental variables. A permutational analysis of variance showed significant interaction when the factors were compared, indicating that the photosynthetic parameters of the restoration areas differed from the reference sites. A univariate analysis of variance showed that all the photosynthetic parameters differed between sites and treatments, except for photosynthetic efficiency (αETR). The combination of environmental variables that best explained the variations observed in the photosynthetic performance indicators were Cu, Pb and elevation disruptions. Fluorescence techniques proved efficient in revealing important physiological differences, representing a powerful tool for rapid analysis of the effectiveness of initiatives aimed at restoring coastal environments.

Ecotoxicologists often implicitly assume that populations are homogenous entities in which all individuals have similar responses to a contaminant. However, genetically variable responses occur within populations. This variation can be visualized using dose–response curves of genetically related groups, similar to the way that evolutionary biologists construct reaction norms. We assessed the variation in reproductive success of full-sibling families of captive zebra finches (Taeniopygia guttata) experimentally exposed to methylmercury. We found significant variation among families in the effects of methylmercury on several reproductive parameters. This variation suggests that there may be strong responses to selection for resistant genotypes in contaminated areas. This has important implications for the evolution of tolerance as well as risk assessment and wildlife conservation efforts on sites with legacy contamination.

More than 2300 sediment pore water distribution coefficients (KPCBi ds) of 93 polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs) were measured and modeled from sediments from Indiana Harbor and Ship Canal. KPCBi ds were calculated from previously reported bulk sediment values and newly analyzed pore water. PCBs in pore waters were measured using SPME PDMS-fiber and ∑PCB ranged from 41 to 1500 ng L−1. The resulting KPCBi ds were ∼1 log unit lower in comparison to other reported values. A simple model for the KPCBi d consisted of the product of the organic carbon fraction and the octanol–water partition coefficient and provided an excellent prediction for the measured values, with a mean square error of 0.09 ± 0.06. Although black carbon content is very high in these sediments and was expected to play an important role in the distribution of PCBs, no improvement was obtained when a two-carbon model was used.

The complexation of Zn, Cd and Pb with dissolved organic matter (DOM) in the rhizosphere of hyperaccumulating ecotype (HE) and a non-hyperaccumulating ecotype (NHE) of Sedum alfredii was measured using resin equilibration method. After the growth of HE S. alfredii, the rhizosphere soil pH was reduced by 0.27–0.33 units, due to enhanced DOM derived from root exudation. For both ecotypes of S. alfredii, the fraction of free metal as a percentage of soluble metal varied from 22.1 to 42.5% for Zn2+, from 8.1 to 15.5% for Cd2+, and from 4.5 to 10.4% for Pb2+. Resin equilibration experiment results indicated that HE–DOM had greater ability to form complexes with Zn, Cd and Pb than NHE–DOM, Visual MINTEQ model gave excellent predictions of the complexation of Zn and Cd by DOM (R2 > 0.97). DOM in the rhizosphere of HE S. alfredii could significantly increase metal mobility through the formation of soluble DOM-metal complexes.

1H NMR metabolomics and conventional ecotoxicity endpoints were used to examine the response of earthworms exposed to petroleum hydrocarbons (PHCs) in soil samples collected from a site that was contaminated with crude oil from a pipeline failure in the mid-1990s. The conventional ecotoxicity tests showed that the soils were not acutely toxic to earthworms (average survival ≥90%), but some soil samples impaired reproduction endpoints by >50% compared to the field control soil. Additionally, metabolomics revealed significant relationships between earthworm metabolic profiles (collected after 2 or 14 days of exposure) and soil properties including soil PHC concentration. Further comparisons by partial least squares regression revealed a significant relationship between the earthworm metabolomic data (collected after only 2 or 14 days) and the reproduction endpoints (measured after 63 days). Therefore, metabolomic responses measured after short exposure periods may be predictive of chronic, ecologically relevant toxicity endpoints for earthworms exposed to soil contaminants.

The built environs alter hydrology and water resource chemistry. Florida is subject to nutrient criteria and is promulgating “no-net-load-increase” criteria for runoff and constituents (nutrients and particulate matter, PM). With such criteria, green infrastructure, hydrologic restoration, indirect reuse and source control are potential design solutions. The study simulates runoff and constituent load control through urban source area re-design to provide long-term “no-net-load-increases”. A long-term continuous simulation of pre- and post-development response for an existing surface parking facility is quantified. Retrofits include a biofiltration area reactor (BAR) for hydrologic and denitrification control. A linear infiltration reactor (LIR) of cementitious permeable pavement (CPP) provides infiltration, adsorption and filtration. Pavement cleaning provided source control. Simulation of climate and source area data indicates re-design achieves “no-net-load-increases” at lower costs compared to standard construction. The retrofit system yields lower cost per nutrient load treated compared to Best Management Practices (BMPs).

The thyroid hormone disrupting activities of drinking water sources from the lower reaches of Yangtze River were examined using a reporter gene assay based on African green monkey kidney fibroblast (CV-1) cells. None of the eleven tested samples showed thyroid receptor (TR) agonist activity. Nine water samples exhibited TR antagonist activities with the equivalents referring to Di-n-butyl phthalate (DNBP) (TR antagonist activity equivalents, ATR-EQ50s) ranging from 6.92 × 101 to 2.85 × 102 μg DNBP/L. The ATR-EQ50s and TR antagonist equivalent ranges (ATR-EQ30–80 ranges) for TR antagonist activities indicated that the water sample from site WX-8 posed the greatest health risks. The ATR-EQ80s of the water samples ranging from 1.56 × 103 to 6.14 × 103 μg DNBP/L were higher than the NOEC of DNBP. The results from instrumental analysis showed that DNBP might be responsible for the TR antagonist activities in these water samples. Water sources along Yangtze River had thyroid hormone disrupting potential.