The Catskill Mountains have been adversely impacted by decades of acid deposition, however, since the early 1990s, levels have decreased sharply as a result of decreases in emissions of sulfur dioxide and nitrogen oxides. This study examines trends in acid deposition, stream-water chemistry, and soil chemistry in the southeastern Catskill Mountains. We measured significant reductions in acid deposition and improvement in stream-water quality in 5 streams included in this study from 1992 to 2014. The largest, most significant trends were for sulfate (SO42−) concentrations (mean trend of −2.5 μeq L−1 yr−1); hydrogen ion (H+) and inorganic monomeric aluminum (Alim) also decreased significantly (mean trends of −0.3 μeq L−1 yr−1 for H+ and −0.1 μeq L−1 yr−1 for Alim for the 3 most acidic sites). Acid neutralizing capacity (ANC) increased by a mean of 0.65 μeq L−1 yr−1 for all 5 sites, which was 4 fold less than the decrease in SO42− concentrations. These upward trends in ANC were limited by coincident decreases in base cations (−1.3 μeq L−1 yr−1 for calcium + magnesium). No significant trends were detected in stream-water nitrate (NO3−) concentrations despite significant decreasing trends in NO3− wet deposition. We measured no recovery in soil chemistry which we attributed to an initially low soil buffering capacity that has been further depleted by decades of acid deposition. Tightly coupled decreasing trends in stream-water silicon (Si) (−0.2 μeq L−1 yr−1) and base cations suggest a decrease in the soil mineral weathering rate. We hypothesize that a decrease in the ionic strength of soil water and shallow groundwater may be the principal driver of this apparent decrease in the weathering rate. A decreasing weathering rate would help to explain the slow recovery of stream pH and ANC as well as that of soil base cations.

The transport and retention of sediments in fine grain sizes plays an important role in the cycles of phosphorus (P), and is closely related to the extent and potential for eutrophication in water reservoirs. In order to highlight the environmental indications for the transport of fine sediment particles and the associated bioavailable phosphorus (Bio-P) in the world largest reservoir, the Three Gorges Reservoir (TGR), the suspended and bed sediments were collected at 13 sections in 2016. The sediment physicochemical properties, micromorphology of sediment particles, distribution of elements on particle surface, P adsorption parameters, and P fractions in different grain sized sediments were analyzed. The results showed that the fine sediment particles had a strong P adsorption ability due to their micromorphology, mineral compositions, and the high contents of Fe/Al/Mn (hydr)oxides, which contributed a higher concentration of Bio-P in <16 μm sediment particles. The adsorption of P on the sediment particles occurred longitudinally along the TGR, and the fine sediment particles (<16 μm) dominated the transport and distribution of Bio-P in the TGR sediments. The reduced inflow and retention of fine sediment particles, caused by the construction of cascade reservoirs along the Jinsha River (upper reach of the Yangtze River), has resulted in the decrease in the retention of Bio-P in the TGR. Therefore, we conclude that the continuously decrease of inflow and retention of the fine sediment particles in the TGR, and with it a reduced sediment P buffer capacity, may enhance algal blooms occurrence also in view of the increased P discharge from the overall TGR catchment. The study results can contribute to improved management guidance on fine sediment particles and associated phosphorus for the operation and environmental protection of other large reservoirs in the world.

Water treatment residuals (WTRs) are produced by the treatment of potable water with coagulating agents. Beneficial recycling in agriculture is hampered by the fact that WTRs contain potentially toxic contaminants (e.g. copper and aluminium) and they bind phosphorus strongly. These issues were investigated using a plant bioassay (Lactuca sativa), chemical extractions and an isotopic dilution technique. Two WTRs were applied to an acidic and a neutral pH soil at six rates. Reductions in plant growth in amended soils were due to WTR-induced P deficiency, rather than Al or Cu toxicity. The release of potentially toxic Al from WTRs was found to be mitigated by their alkaline nature and pH buffering capacity. However, acidification of WTRs was shown to release more soluble Al than soil naturally high in Al. Copper availability was relatively low in all treatments. However, the lability of WTR-Cu increased when the WTR was applied to the soil.

Natural processes and human activities exert important impacts on elemental cycling in coastal sediments, which has not been well documented. Sediments in the Bohai Sea and North Yellow Sea were investigated to assess the impacts of the Yellow River inputs and/or anthropogenic perturbations on diagenesis of iron and sulfur. Labile iron (0.5 M HCl-extractable iron) in the sediments is low due to iron-poor nature of source materials. Dynamic regimes and low availability of labile organic carbon (OC) result in relatively low sulfide contents in deltaic sediments. However, low but continuous supply of labile OC exported from an anthropogenically impacted bay could substantially elevate sulfide burial in sediments near the bay. Neither offshore oil exploitations nor frequent algal blooms in the seas have detectable influences on iron and sulfur diagenesis in the sediments. The sediments are capable of quickly consuming porewater sulfide by reaction with reactive iron under the current conditions.

Industrial pressures suffered by estuarine zones leave a pollution record in their sediment. Thus, high concentrations of many heavy metals and some organic compounds are often found in estuarine sediment. This work aims to contribute to the enhancement of water quality management strategies in these zones by studying in detail the diffusive processes that take place between the water and sediment using a two-pronged approach: experimental practice and numerical simulation. To provide an example of the practical application of the methodologies proposed in this paper, the Suances Estuary (northern Spain) was selected as the study zone. This estuary exhibits significant historical pollution and its sediment acts as a continuous internal source of zinc, mainly due to diffusive processes derived from the concentration gradient between the interstitial water at the solid particles of the sediment and the bottom of the water column. The experimentally obtained results, based on 6 case studies, demonstrated the buffering capacity of the system and allowed the determination of the required time for the mass transfer processes to reach an equilibrium state. Furthermore, the diffusion rate of zinc was approximately modeled taking into consideration the high concentration variability observed in sediment along the entire estuary. The convergence between the modeled and the experimental results indicated the required contact time to reach an equilibrium state in a real field situation.

A waste–struvite/diatomite compound (MAP@Dia) recovered from nutrient-rich wastewater treated by MgO-modified diatomite (MgO@Dia) was provided to immobilize lead in aqueous solution and contaminated soil. The mechanism and effectiveness of lead immobilization was investigated, and the pHₛₜₐₜ leaching test and fixed-bed column experiments were carried out to assess the risk of MAP@Dia reuse for lead immobilization. The results showed that MAP@Dia were effective in immobilizing lead in aqueous solution with adsorption capacity of 832.47–946.50 mg/g. The main mechanism of Pb immobilization by MAP@Dia could be contributed by surface complexation and dissolution of struvite followed by precipitation of hydroxypyromorphite Pb₁₀(PO₄)₆(OH)₂. Lead(II) concentration reduced from 269.61 to 78.26 mg/kg, and residual lead(II) increased to 53.14% in contaminated soil when the MAP@Dia application rate was 5%. The increased neutralization capacity (ANC) and lower lead extraction yields in pHₛₜₐₜ leaching test in amended soil suggested 5 times of buffering capacity against potential acidic stresses and delayed triggering of “chemical time bombs.” The results of column studies demonstrated that amendment with MAP@Dia could reduce the risk of lead and phosphorus (P) leaching. This study revealed that MAP@Dia could provide an effective solution for both P recycling and lead immobilization in contaminated soil.

The layered double hydroxides (LDHs) with a hydrotalcite-like structure are believed to possess great potentials as environmental remediation materials including removal of heavy metals from aqueous solutions by adsorption. A new LDH was synthesized with Mg²⁺ as the structure-stabilizing ion (FeMnMg-LDH) based on a co-precipitation method, which showed promised adsorption capacity for Pb. Its adsorption characteristics for Cd²⁺, an environmental active element relative to Pb, were examined in this paper. The results showed that adsorption equilibria were well described by Langmuir isotherm and the adsorption kinetics well followed a pseudo-second-order kinetic model. The maximum Cd²⁺ adsorption capacity of FeMnMg-LDH was about 59.99 mg/g at 25 °C, which is significantly higher than that of other similar kinds of absorbents. The high Cd²⁺ removal efficiency could maintain at a wide pH range due to its buffering capacity. The coexisting cations competed with Cd²⁺ adsorption on the FeMnMg-LDH with a sequence of Cu²⁺ > Pb²⁺ > Mg²⁺ > Ca²⁺ when coexisting ions were added in the adsorption system separately. The positive value of ΔH° (14.016 kJ/mol) suggested that the adsorption process is endothermic while the positive ΔS° value (0.08 kJ/mol K) revealed that the randomness increased at the solid-solution interface during the adsorption process. FeMnMg-LDH removes Cd²⁺ from aqueous solution mainly by surface adsorption, surface-induced precipitation, and ion exchange. The FeMnMg-LDH has been further proved to be a good absorbent for the removal of heavy metals from aqueous solution.