Archived samples from the Park Grass Experiment, established in 1856, were analysed to determine the impacts of long-term phosphate fertiliser applications on arsenic concentrations in soil and herbage. In plots receiving 35 kg P ha−1 annually (+P), topsoil As concentrations almost doubled from an initial value of ∼10 mg kg−1 during 1888–1947 and remained stable thereafter. The phosphate fertilisers used before 1948 contained 401–1575 mg As kg−1, compared to 1.6–20.3 mg As kg−1 in the later samples. Herbage samples from the +P plots collected during 1888–1947 contained significantly more As than those from the −P plots, but later samples did not differ significantly. Mass-balance calculations show that the increase in soil As can be explained by the As input from P fertiliser applications before 1948. The results demonstrate that the P fertilisers used on the Park Grass Experiment before 1948 caused substantial As contamination of the soil.

We measured selenium (Se) speciation in the waters of 16 lakes located near two major metal smelters and compared it to Se concentrations in a potential biomonitor, the planktivorous insect Chaoborus. We used this sentinel because planktonic algae and crustaceans, which are lower in the trophic chain leading to Chaoborus, are more difficult to separate and identify to species, whereas many fish species are not obligate planktivores. Percentages of selenate and organo-Se were generally higher in acidic lakes, whereas those of selenite were usually greater in alkaline waters. Chaoborus Se concentrations varied widely among lakes and, with the exception of a single high-sulfate lake, were significantly and highly correlated with those of dissolved organo-Se plus selenate (Se(VI)). We suggest that Chaoborus larvae would be highly effective for monitoring the Se-exposure of planktonic food webs in lakes.

Several studies demonstrated high mercury (Hg) methylation and demethylation in the periphyton associated with floating roots in tropical ecosystems. The importance of aquatic plants on methylmercury production in three temperate ecosystems from south-western France was evaluated through Hg species concentrations, and Hg methylation/demethylation activities by using stable isotopic tracers (199Hg(II), Me201Hg). Hg accumulation and high methylation and demethylation yields were detected in plant roots and periphyton, whereas results for sediment and water were low to insignificant. The presence of sulfate reducing prokaryotes was detected in all compartments (T-RFLP based on dsrAB amplified through nested PCR) and their main role in Hg methylation could be demonstrated. In turn, sulfate reduction inhibition did not affect demethylation activities. The estimation of net MeHg budgets in these ecosystems suggested that aquatic rhizosphere is the principal location for methylmercury production and may represent an important source for the contamination of the aquatic food chain.

Responses of Collembola to 7 years of CO2 enrichment (550 ppm) in a Swiss free-air CO2 enrichment (FACE) experiment in a forest with 80- to 120-year-old trees were investigated in this study. Contrary to our expectations, increased CO2 caused a significant decrease in Collembola numbers, including a significant decrease in euedaphic Collembola. Increased CO2, however, did not affect community group richness. Collembola biomass was not significantly changed by CO2 enrichment, regardless of whether it was considered in terms of the total community, life-strategy groups, or individual species (with an exception of Mesaphorura krausbaueri). The reason for this is that CO2 enrichment caused a general increase in individual body size, which compensated for reduced abundances. The results are consistent with the idea that the rhizosphere is important for soil fauna, and the combination of reduced fine root growth and increased soil moisture might trigger a reduction in Collembola abundance.

The increased use of titanium dioxide nanoparticles (nano-TiO2) in consumer products such as sunscreen has raised concerns about their possible risk to human and environmental health. In this work, we report the occurrence, size fractionation and behavior of titanium (Ti) in a children's swimming pool. Size-fractionated samples were analyzed for Ti using ICP-MS. Total titanium concentrations ([Ti]) in the pool water ranged between 21 μg/L and 60 μg/L and increased throughout the 101-day sampling period while [Ti] in tap water remained relatively constant. The majority of [Ti] was found in the dissolved phase (<1 kDa), with only a minor fraction of total [Ti] being considered either particulate or microparticulate. Simple models suggest that evaporation may account for the observed variation in [Ti], while sunscreen may be a relevant source of particulate and microparticule Ti. Compared to diet, incidental ingestion of nano-Ti from swimming pool water is minimal.

Few studies were made regarding the pulmonary effects of exposure to volcanogenic air pollution, representing an unrecognized health risk for humans inhabiting non-eruptive volcanically active areas (10% of world human population). We tested the hypothesis whether chronic exposure to air pollution of volcanogenic origin causes lung injury, using wild mice (Mus musculus) as model. Lung injury was determined using histological morphometric parameters, inflammatory status (InfS) and the amount of black silver deposits (BSD). Mice exposed to volcanogenic air pollution have decreased percentage of alveolar space, alveolar perimeter and lung structural functionality (LSF) ratio and, increased alveolar septal thickness, amount of BSD and InfS. For the first time it is evidenced that non-eruptive active volcanism has a high potential to cause lung injury. This study also highlights the usefulness of M. musculus as bioindicator species, and of the developed biomarker of effect LSF ratio, for future animal and/or human biomonitoring programs.

To assess the effect of long-term dissolution on bioavailability and toxicity, triethoxyoctylsilane coated and uncoated zinc oxide nanoparticles (ZnO-NP), non-nano ZnO and ZnCl2 were equilibrated in natural soil for up to twelve months. Zn concentrations in pore water increased with time for all ZnO forms but peaked at intermediate concentrations of ZnO-NP and non-nano ZnO, while for coated ZnO-NP such a clear peak only was seen after 12 months. Dose-related increases in soil pH may explain decreased soluble Zn levels due to fixation of Zn released from ZnO at higher soil concentrations. At T = 0 uncoated ZnO-NP and non-nano ZnO were equally toxic to the springtail Folsomia candida, but not as toxic as coated ZnO-NP, and ZnCl2 being most toxic. After three months equilibration toxicity to F. candida was already reduced for all Zn forms, except for coated ZnO-NP which showed reduced toxicity only after 12 months equilibration.

The use of accumulation bioindicator to assess metal bioavailability has mainly concerned individual species. This work addresses this issue at the plant community level. Metal content within different species from plant communities found at three contaminated and one uncontaminated site was compared. Results showed that for two contaminated sites, leaf metals concentrations were comparable to those in plants from control site, i.e. approx (mg/kg) 0.1 Cd, 0.2 Cr, 9.2 Cu, 1.8 Ni, 0.5 Pb and 42 Zn. Only plants from the third site showed higher metal contents, ranging from 1.5- to 8-fold those of the control community. This contrasted with ammonium acetate–EDTA extractions, which indicated a very high “availability” of metals at the three sites, as compared to the control site. Thus, metal content in plant communities provided accurate information on actual transfer toward the ensemble of vegetation, which could be used to establish site-specific “fingerprints” of metal bioavailability.

We set up a free-air ozone (O3) exposure system for determining the photosynthetic responses of Siebold's beech (Fagus crenata) and oak (Quercus mongolica var. crispula) to O3 under field conditions. Ten-year-old saplings of beech and oak were exposed to an elevated O3 concentration (60 nmol mol−1) during daytime from 6 August to 11 November 2011. Ozone significantly reduced the net photosynthetic rate in leaves of both species in October, by 46% for beech and 15% for oak. In beech there were significant decreases in maximum rate of carboxylation, maximum rate of electron transport in photosynthesis, nitrogen content and photosynthetic nitrogen use efficiency, but not in oak. Stomatal limitation of photosynthesis was unaffected by O3. We therefore concluded photosynthesis in beech is more sensitive to O3 than that in oak, and the O3-induced reduction of photosynthetic activity in beech was due not to stomatal closure, but to biochemical limitation.

We evaluated the correlation between soil organic carbon (OC) content and metabolic responses of Eisenia fetida earthworms after exposure to phenanthrene (58 ± 3 mg/kg) spiked into seven artificial soils with OC contents ranging from 1 to 27% OC. Principal component analysis of 1H nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) spectra of aqueous extracts identified statistically significant differences in the metabolic profiles of control and phenanthrene-exposed E. fetida in the 1% OC soil only. Partial least squares analysis identified a metabolic response in the four soils with OC values ≤11% which was well correlated to estimated phenanthrene porewater concentrations. The results suggest that the higher sorption capability of high OC soils decreased the bioavailability of phenanthrene and the subsequent metabolic response of E. fetida.