The paper presents the analysis of the pollution of water and sludge of the pond situated in the park of Kedainiai town. The analysis of pollutants such as heavy metals and oil-products has been carried out with the aim to evaluate the possibilities of arranging a sanitary safe bathing, place in the park and use the accumulated sludge. It was determined that the content of heavy metals in sludge exceeds the maximum permissible limit for sludge pollution in Lithuania. According to cadmium amount, the pollution also exceeds maximum allowable soil pollution level. However, the sludge in the pond contains a rather large amount of oil-products. After carrying out stirring-up tests of bottom sludge, it was determined that turbid water is polluted with oil-products that exceed the maximum permissible limit.

Constructed wetlands (CW) are considered as one of principal wastewater treatment methods containing and soil filters. CW may be of subsurface vertical flow (VF) and horizontal flow (HF). The objective of the studies was to estimate N-removal efficiency differences in CW of vertical and horizontal flow. To evaluate nitrogen (N) removal efficiency, the database of the studies on both construction of CW collected within the period of 1995-2005 was used. Horizontal filter systems characterize for a 1.6 times higher N-removal efficiency than vertical filters. Generally, N-removal efficiency depends on the load of filters. When filter load was 1.5 g mE-2dE-1 according to TN, N-removal efficiency is 39.6 and 24.0% in HF and VF systems respectively. Considering the seasons of the year, no significant difference was observed in N-removal efficiency in HF and VF systems during cold and warm periods of the year. N contained in water after the treatment process in filters is detected in different forms. NH4-N is prevailing in HF, while in VF systems NO3-N is dominant. It was also observed that NH4-N in the effluent during the initial operation of VF after the construction works in the first two months in the warm and in four months during their operation in the cold period of the year was prevailing.

Staphylococci and Salmonella bacteria have the influence on the quality of the compost. The samples of the compost were taken before and after the period of low outside temperature (till -20 deg C) to obtain different numbers of Staphylococci and Salmonella bacteria. Comparing to the data at the end of 2005, the number of Salmonella sp. at the beginning of 2006 decreased till zero, but the number of Staphylococcus aureus at the beginning of 2006 increased. The results showed that low outside temperature does not impede the functioning of the Staphylococcus aureus bacteria.

The paper focuses on the exposition of the research results on agricultural resources in Kurzeme peninsula-climatic resources, qualitative evaluation of the land, condition of land amelioration, topographic resources, and structural breakdown of farm land by types of use. It is concluded that extremely various climatic and soil conditions govern in the region. The Southeast part of Kurzeme peninsula is displayed very favourably by the aggregate value of agricultural resources. Labour productivity in Kurzeme has been analysed as well.

The article analyzes the diversification types, forms and their choice conditioned by the inner and outer environmental factors in agriculture business organizations. The analysis of the agriculture census data showed that external diversification of agriculture business organizations is more popular compared to internal diversification. The former diversification ensures extra incomes and higher employment of human resources without additional investment and with minimal risk. Wage labour is the main form of the external diversification. The internal diversification implements 5.9 % of agriculture business organizations. Mostly these organizations choose closely related forms of internal diversification (non-traditional agriculture, ecological agriculture). Above mentioned agriculture business organizations are aimed of the synergy in more rational usage of available inner resources and less activity risk. The diversification of agricultural business organizations activity (when applying unrelated forms, e.g., wood reprocess and trade of wood ware, crafts, rural tourism) prevails in unfavourable for farming localities and is characteristic to organizations with higher intellectual and management potential.

Currently public services become more and more significant in procurement of daily activities of each inhabitant and the entire society. Therefore optimal solutions of the regulatory issues are the topic of the day. Objective of the article is to analyse regulatory systems of the provision of water and waste water utilities in Latvia and in other countries, to draw conclusions derived from the analyses and put forward suggestions for the choice of the most appropriate regulatory system in the local governments of Latvia. The hypotheses advanced in the study have proved that each country may use its own discretion when selecting the regulatory system for water and waste water utilities.

During processing of aromatized rapeseed oils, volatiles from the added spices migrate in oil and give specific taste and aroma to oils, but there are no investigations about volatile compound migration in oil. The aim of this research was to determine volatile compounds in oils aromatized with basil, oregano, and thyme. In basil 43 volatile compounds, in oregano - 39, and in thyme - 37 volatile compounds were identified. In oil aromatized with basil - 8, in oil aromatized with oregano - 20, and in oil aromatized with thyme 11 volatile compounds were identified. From the total amount of identified compounds in spices, 23-30% of volatiles found in thyme migrated in oil aromatized with thyme, from oregano in oil migrated 12-15% of volatiles, but from basil in oil aromatized with basil - only 5% of volatiles. More volatile compounds as camphene, alpha-pinene, and alpha-thujene migrate in oil better than less volatile compounds like methyl chavicol, and thymal. Migration of the same compound in oil from various spices differed. It could be explained by the location of the volatile compound in plant structure.

The task of the research was to study the chemical composition of sea buckthorn and raspberry marc as well as of high milling wheat bread with berry marc. Wheat bread, i.e. the control sample and the bread samples with 3%, 5% and 7% (from the flour mass) of raspberry and sea buckthorn marc, was baked in the experimental bakery. The content of sugar, fat, protein, fibre and titratable acids was determined by using standard methods. The content of vitamin E, carotene, pectin and phenol compounds was determined by using spectrophotometric method. The obtained results prove that sea buckthorn and raspberry marc have fibre, fat, sugar acids, carotene, phenol compounds, vitamin E, and pectin. The content of fibre and carotene increased in wheat bread samples when raspberry and sea buckthorn marc was added. Depending on the amount of marc added to the bread, the changes in the content of fat, sugar, and carotene in wheat bread samples were studied. The wheat bread with raspberry and sea buckthorn marc contained vitamin E and phenol compounds.

Company - oriented risk analyses is the necessary precondition to establish, validate and improve HACCP procedures in catering enterprise. In catering area no microbiological criteria exist for ready-to eat food in both European and Latvian level. The objective of the study was to apply risk assessment approach to evaluate microbiological risks during food preparation processes in school catering establishments. The aim of the author's research was to assess the level of microbiological contamination of food as well as the changes of microbial contamination during technological processing of food to motivate the necessity for controlling of food contamination levels in frame of HACCP procedures. It was concluded that no significant risk in consumption of cooked minced meat food if cooking temperature is adequate and food is stored at correct temperature after cooking. The storage of salads in ambient air temperature causes a significant increase of bacterial contamination due to high initial contamination level that may create a serious risk in case of pathogenic bacteria. On the basis of research it was concluded that microbiological investigation should be a recommended way to test step-by step the performance of technological processes because the hygiene situation is specific to each catering establishment and safety of the end-products may vary considerably. Microbiological testing of food and environmental samples could be a helpful tool for development and validation of HACCP procedures to assess potential risks and to establish critical limits for managing of technological steps in school food service area.

After Latvia has joined the EU, all the positive social and economic changes make us to believe that students' personalities will be developed in the same positive way. Of course it should be admitted that any changes in young personalities can be strongly affected by the university study course, its aims and content. Joining the EU allowed many Latvian students to use the possibility of studying and working abroad, and many of them are already using this chance not even thinking about the future of their native region. The majority of LUA students come from province as do many more from other higher schools but they differ from other higher schools but they differ from the previous generations with their more dynamical and free vision and more constructive actions. At the same time the idea of students' responsibility and upbringing their sense of affiliation to their native regions becomes more relevant. We investigated students' awareness of responsibility and civil maturity. The attention was paid to the development of students' patriotic attitudes during the acquisition of the course of studies at the institution of higher education. It is very important how a student's matured personality was developed. Love to the motherland was emphasized in Latvian pedagogy in pre-war years, but in our higher schools the idea of patriotic upbringing still remains at the very low level or sometimes does not even exist. The main objective for the higher schools management is initiating this process overwhelming student's drift away from their native district. The innovating rural tourism course for higher schools can be regarded as one of the possible instruments of patriotic upbringing.