Effects of soil properties on the accumulation of metals to wood mice (Apodemus sylvaticus) were evaluated at two sites with different pH and organic matter content of the soil. pH and organic matter content significantly affected accumulation of Cd, Cu, Pb and Zn in earthworms and vegetation. For Cd, Cu and Zn these effects propagated through the food web to the wood mouse. Soil-to-kidney ratios differed between sites: Cd: 0.15 versus 3.52, Cu: 0.37 versus 1.30 and Zn: 0.33–0.83. This was confirmed in model calculations for Cd and Zn. Results indicate that total soil concentrations may be unsuitable indicators for risks that metals pose to wildlife. Furthermore, environmental managers may, unintentionally, change soil properties while taking specific environmental measures. In this way they may affect risks of metals to wildlife, even without changes in total soil concentrations. Soil properties significantly affect accumulation of heavy metals to wood mice so; risks cannot be based on total concentrations.

Soil amendments previously shown to be effective in reducing metal bioavailability and/or mobility in calcareous metal-polluted soils were tested on a calcareous dredged sediment-derived soil with 26 mg Cd/kg dry soil, 2200 mg Cr/kg dry soil, 220 mg Pb/kg dry soil, and 3000 mg Zn/kg dry soil. The amendments were 5% modified aluminosilicate (AS), 10% w/w lignin, 1% w/w diammonium phosphate (DAP, (NH4)2HPO4), 1% w/w MnO, and 5% w/w CaSO4. In an additional treatment, the contaminated soil was submerged. Endpoints were metal uptake in Salix cinerea and Lumbricus terrestris, and effect on oxidation-reduction potential (ORP) in submerged soils. Results illustrated that the selected soil amendments were not effective in reducing ecological risk to vegetation or soil inhabiting invertebrates, as metal uptake in willows and earthworms did not significantly decrease following their application. Flooding the polluted soil resulted in metal uptake in S. cinerea comparable with concentrations for an uncontaminated soil.

Since lichens lack roots and take up water, solutes and gases over the entire thallus surface, these organisms respond more sensitively to changes in atmospheric purity than vascular plants. After centuries where effects of sulphur dioxide and acidity were in the focus of research on atmospheric chemistry and lichens, recently the globally increased levels of ammonia and nitrate increasingly affect lichen vegetation and gave rise to intense research on the tolerance of lichens to nitrogen pollution. The present paper discusses the main findings on the uptake of ammonia and nitrate in the lichen symbiosis and to the tolerance of lichens to eutrophication. Ammonia and nitrate are both efficiently taken up under ambient conditions. The tolerance to high nitrogen levels depends, among others, on the capability of the photobiont to provide sufficient amounts of carbon skeletons for ammonia assimilation. Lowly productive lichens are apparently predisposed to be sensitive to excess nitrogen.

Effects of traffic-related nitrogenous emissions on purple moor grass (Molinia caerulea (L.) Moench) transplants, used here as a new biomonitoring species, were assessed along 500 m long transects orthogonal to roads located in two open areas in the Maurienne valley (French Alps). Leaves were sampled during summer 2004 and 2005 for total N-content and 15N-abundance determination while nitrogen oxides (NO and NO2) concentrations were determined using passive diffusion samplers. A significant and negative correlation was observed between plant total N-content, and 15N-abundance and the logarithm of the distance to the road axis. The strongest decreases in plant N parameters were observed between 15 and 100 m from road axis. They were equivalent to background levels at a distance of about 800 m from the roads. In addition, motor vehicle pollution significantly affected vegetation at road edge, as was established from the relationship between leaf 15N-abundance, total N-content and road traffic densities.

Mercury (Hg) stored in vegetation and soils is known to be released to the atmosphere during wildfires, increasing atmospheric stores and altering terrestrial budgets. Increased erosion and transport of sediments is well-documented in burned watersheds, both immediately post-fire and as the watershed recovers; however, understanding post-fire mobilization of soil Hg within burned watersheds remains elusive. The goal of the current study is to better understand the impact of wildfire on soil-bound Hg during the immediate post-fire period as well as during recovery, in order to assess the potential for sediment-driven transport to and within surface waters in burned watersheds. Soils were collected from three southern California watersheds of similar vegetation and soil characteristics that experienced wildfire. Sampling in one of these watersheds was extended for several seasons (1.5 years) in order to investigate temporal changes in soil Hg concentrations. Laboratory analysis included bulk soil total Hg concentrations and total organic carbon of burned and unburned samples. Soils were also fractionated into a subset of grain sizes with analysis of Hg on each fraction. Low Hg concentrations were observed in surface soils immediately post-fire. Accumulation of Hg coincident with moderate vegetative recovery was observed in the burned surface soils 1 year following the fire, and mobilization was also noted during the second winter (rainy) season. Hg concentrations were highest in the fine-grained fraction of unburned soils; however, in the burned soils, the distribution of soil-bound Hg was less influenced by grain size. The accelerated accumulation of Hg observed in the burned soils, along with the elevated risk of erosion, could result in increased delivery of organic- or particulate-bound Hg to surface waters in post-fire systems.

The research and interest towards the use of constructed floating wetlands for (waste)water treatment is emerging as more treatment opportunities are marked out, and the technique is applied more often. To evaluate the effect of a floating macrophyte mat and the influence of temperature and season on physico-chemical changes and removal, two constructed floating wetlands (CFWs), including a floating macrophyte mat, and a control, without emergent vegetation, were built. Raw domestic wastewater from a wastewater treatment plant was added on day 0. Removal of total nitrogen, NH₄-N, NO₃-N, P, chemical oxygen demand (COD), total organic carbon and heavy metals (Cu, Fe, Mn, Ni, Pb and Zn) was studied during 17 batch-fed testing periods with a retention time of 11 days (February-March 2007 and August 2007-September 2008). In general, the CFWs performed better than the control. Average removal efficiencies for NH₄-N, total nitrogen, P and COD were respectively 35%, 42%, 22% and 53% for the CFWs, and 3%, 15%, 6% and 33% for the control. The pH was significantly lower in the CFWs (7.08 ± 0.21) than in the control (7.48 ± 0.26) after 11 days. The removal efficiencies of NH₄-N, total nitrogen and COD were significantly higher in the CFWs as the presence of the floating macrophyte mat influenced positively their removal. Total nitrogen, NH₄-N and P removal was significantly influenced by temperature with the highest removal between 5°C and 15°C. At lower and higher temperatures, removal relapsed. In general, temperature seemed to be the steering factor rather than season. The presence of the floating macrophyte mat restrained the increase of the water temperature when air temperature was >15°C. Although the mat hampered oxygen diffusion from the air towards the water column, the redox potential measured in the rootmat was higher than the value obtained in the control at the same depth, indicating that the release of oxygen from the roots could stimulate oxygen consuming reactions within the root mat, and root oxygen release was higher than oxygen diffusion from the air.

Ground-level dynamics of O₃, NO x and benzene, toluene, ethylbenzene and xylenes were characterised at rural sites in the medium Ebro River Basin (Northern Spain) from April to September (2003-2007) and by means of automated and passive monitoring. The study registered high O₃ levels within the area, which were influenced by traffic emissions, and a monthly evolution of these levels consistent with the occurrence of a broad summer maximum, typical of polluted areas. The mean ozone concentration registered in the studied area by means of passive sampling was 87 ± 12 μg m⁻³. The 2008/50/EC objective value for the protection of vegetation was widely exceeded during this study (AOT40 = 57,147 ± 14,114 μg m⁻³ h), suggesting that current ambient levels may pose a risk for crops and vegetation in this important agroindustrial region.

Many natural vegetation species have been shown to be negatively affected by ozone. This study has investigated how the presence of competing species in a community affects two common responses to ozone: visible injury and senescence. Monocultures and mixtures of Trifolium repens and Lolium perenne were grown in large containers and were exposed in solardomes to either a rural episodic ozone profile (AOT40 of 12.86 ppm h) or control conditions (AOT40 of 0.02 ppm h) for 12 weeks. The proportion of ozone-injured or senesced leaves was different in the different regions of the canopy. The highest proportions of injured/senesced leaves were in the plant material growing at the edge of the canopy and the upper canopy, with a significantly lower proportion of injured leaves in the inner canopy. The presence of L. perenne increased the proportion of ozone-injured leaves in T. repens at the final harvest, whilst the presence of T. repens decreased the proportion of senesced leaves in L. perenne. In L. perenne, the proportion of injured leaves at the edge and inner canopy decreased significantly when grown in competition, whilst for T. repens the reverse effect occurred in the inner canopy only. Different mechanisms appeared to influence the interaction between response to ozone and competitors in these two species. In L. perenne the response to ozone may have been related to nitrogen supply, whereas in T. repens canopy structure was more important.

Background, aim, and scope The Lower Mississippi River is a major transportation route for commercial goods and petroleum products produced and refined locally. Oil spills caused by vessel accidents and equipment failure at refineries are a serious threat to the drinking water supply of Southern Louisiana, as well as to the many natural, economic, and social resources supported by the river. Providing accurate trajectory modeling to contingency planners is critical to protecting the local environment. The majority of trajectory model results, assuming a uniform shoreline, show 60-70% of spilled oil can be retained. This study examines the impact of detailed shoreline mapping that captures spatial and temporal changes in shoreline type on oil spill trajectory modeling. Materials and methods Detailed shoreline maps based on recent remote sensing imagery were generated to identify spatial changes in shoreline. A hydrodynamic model of the 78 mile reach from Convent, Louisiana to West Pointe a la Hache was developed to obtain the stage levels and velocity fields of four river discharges. Based on river stage level, another layer was added to the shoreline maps, so that shoreline type was accurately represented at each river discharge, a feature not included in previous mapping. An oil spill trajectory model was then used to investigate the effect of implementing different re-floatation half-lives that correlate to the shoreline maps developed for this study at four river discharges. Results Detailed shoreline mapping showed the Lower Mississippi River has four major shoreline types each with different oil re-floatation half-lives: muddy clay, sand, low vegetation, and high vegetation. As flow rate changed, the shoreline spatial variability also changed, from 84% mud/sand and 16% vegetation at low flow rates to 4% mud and 96% vegetation at higher flow rates. At flow rates with large variability in shoreline type, the distribution of oil attached to the shore was significantly different from results of simulations that used a constant shoreline type and re-floatation half-life. Discussion At low flow rates, simulations with the detailed delineation of shoreline type predicted that ~30% of the oil would be beached/retained because the oil was able to travel further down the reach and interact with the shoreline in multiple locations. Simulations at the low flow rates with the existing shoreline mapping predicted approximately 65% of the oil would be retained as did all the simulations at the highest flow rates. At high flow rates, the oil interacted mostly with vegetation and results were very similar to those obtained with a single re-floatation half-life of 1 year. In addition to shoreline type, river geometry and the hydrodynamics were major factors influencing the distribution of oil along the river reach. Conclusions Shoreline re-floatation half-lives have a major impact on simulating the distribution of oil along the shore after a spill, especially in areas with a high variability of shoreline type as in the lower Mississippi River. Assigning the correct re-floatation half-life and retention capacity is only possible when shoreline types have been correctly identified. The maps developed for this study provided an important level of detail and incorporated the change in shoreline type with flow rate, resulting in more detailed trajectory modeling of the study reach. Recommendations and perspectives Shoreline maps should include as much detail about shoreline type as possible. When developing shoreline maps or environmental sensitivity assessments, the focus should include specific characteristics of the study area; using standardized maps or methods of assessment may leave out detail that could negatively impact modeling efforts. Finally, shoreline sensitivity to oiling is an important area of research that will benefit from an improved understanding of oil retention by vegetation.

Background, aim and scope Precipitation samples collected from 1995 to 2000 at meteorological station in the eastern outskirts of Herceg Novi (Montenegro) were analysed on Na⁺, K⁺, Mg²⁺, Ca²⁺, Cl⁻, SO₄ ²⁻, NO₃ ⁻ and NH₄ ⁺. Four-day backward trajectory simulations were conducted during the precipitation period to investigate the regional transport of main ions and their deposition in the region of the southeastern Adriatic Sea. The air mass trajectories were classified into six trajectory categories by the origin and direction of their approach to Herceg Novi. Materials and methods A bottle and funnel with a small net between them was used for sampling at a height of 1.5 m above the ground. The concentrations of Cl⁻, NO₃ ⁻, NH₄ ⁺ and SO₄ ²⁻ were determined spectrophotometrically, the concentrations of Na⁺ and K⁺ were determined by the FAES method and the concentrations of Mg²⁺ and Ca²⁺ by the FAAS method. The factor analysis technique (PCA analysis) based on the calculation of the factors was employed to differentiate the contribution of emission sources to the content of the main ions in the precipitation. The obtained data sets were processed using the SPSS 11.5 statistical program. The Hybrid Single-Particle Lagrangian Integrated Trajectory model was used to study the air origin for the city of Herceg Novi (42°27′N, 18°33′E), Montenegro. Discussion The following origins of the air masses were considered: northern Europe (NE), eastern Europe-northeastern Europe (EE-NE); eastern Mediterranean-southeastern Europe (EM-SE); Africa-Central Mediterranean (A-CM); western Mediterranean (WM); western Europe-Central Europe (WE-CE) and undefined. The heights and frequencies of precipitation coming by air masses from northern Europe and eastern-northeastern Europe are the lowest. On the contrary, the heights and frequencies of precipitation coming by air masses from the western Mediterranean (36.6%) and Africa and the Central Mediterranean (30.6%) are the highest. The sea salt components (Na⁺, Cl⁻, Mg²⁺) are significantly correlated, except for air masses originating from the northern and eastern European regions. Significant correlations between SO₄ ²⁻ and NO₃ ⁻ are found in air masses coming from the western Europe and North Africa, over the Mediterranean. Conclusions The highest volume-weighted mean (VWM) of: SO₄ ²⁻ , NH₄ ⁺ and Mg²⁺ are for precipitation from EE-NE while the highest values of VWM of Cl ⁻ are from WM and of K⁺ are from WE-CE. Long-range transport of Sahara dust is confirmed. Recommendations and perspectives For better estimation of origins of water-soluble ions in precipitation expanding list of analysis on anions of organic acids, such as HCOO⁻, CH₃COO⁻, and C₂H₂COO⁻, could be indicative of volatile organic compounds emitted by vegetation but also traffic. The chemical composition of precipitation together with a study of air backward trajectories is the proper tool for tracking the long-range transport of water-soluble ions and estimating transboundary pollution.