This study assessed the human health risk of exposure to legacy PAHs in the Nwaenebo River sediments that received effluents for over two decades from the Nigeria National Petroleum Corporation (NNPC) petroleum product Depot in Emene, Enugu, Nigeria. The study went further to estimate economic costs of the sediment PAHs pollution based on the human health risk of exposure. The human health risks were determined by estimating carcinogenic and mutagenic risks via Benzo[a]pyrene total potential equivalent (BaP TPE) and mutagenic equivalent quotient (MEQ). The economic costs of the sediment pollution comprised costs due to mortality and those due to morbidity and were estimated using the value of statistical lives (VSLs) and cost of illness (CoI), respectively. The study, with an appropriate selection of sampling points established that the NNPC petroleum Depot was responsible for the Nwaenebo River sediment PAHs pollution with ƩPAHs concentration 14.3–163 mg/kg. The carcinogenic and mutagenic risks varied from 1.3*10^-5 to 4.7*10^-5 and 1.4*10^-5 to 6.0*10^-5 respectively. Based on risk threshold of 10^-6, these risks were high. The long term economic costs of pollution of the sediments by the PAHs were estimated at 60.5 million USD and 0.46 million USD for mortality and morbidity costs, respectively.

Current mitigation strategies to offset marine plastic pollution, a global concern, typically rely on preventing floating debris from reaching coastal ecosystems. Specifically, clean-up technologies are designed to collect plastics by removing debris from the aquatic environment such as rivers and estuaries. However, to date, there is little published data on their potential impact on riverine and estuarine organisms and ecosystems. Multiple parameters might play a role in the chances of biota and organic debris being unintentionally caught within a mechanical clean-up system, but their exact contribution to a potential impact is unknown. Here, we identified four clusters of parameters that can potentially determine the bycatch: (i) the environmental conditions in which the clean-up system is deployed, (ii) the traits of the biota the system interacts with, (iii) the traits of plastic items present in the system, and, (iv) the design and operation of the clean-up mechanism itself. To efficiently quantify and assess the influence of each of the clusters on bycatch, we suggest the use of transparent and objective tools. In particular, we discuss the use of Bayesian Belief Networks (BBNs) as a promising probabilistic modelling method for an evidence-based trade-off between removal efficiency and bycatch. We argue that BBN probabilistic models are a valuable tool to assist stakeholders, prior to the deployment of any clean-up technology, in selecting the best-suited mechanism to collect floating plastic debris while managing potential adverse effects on the ecosystem.

Electric and magnetic fields characterized by high efficiency, low consumption and environment-friendly performance have recently generated interest as a possible measure to enhance the performance of the biological treatment process used to remove refractory organics. Few studies have been carried out to-date regarding the simultaneous application of electric and magnetic fields on biofilm process to degrade diclofenac. In this study, 3DEM-BAF was designed to evaluate the electrio-magnetic superposition effect on diclofenac removal performance, kinetics, community structure and synergistic mechanism. The results show that 3DEM-BAF could significantly increase the average removal rate of diclofenac by 65.30 %, 57.46 %, 9.48 % as compared with that of BAF, 3DM-BAF, 3DE-BAF, respectively. The diclofenac degradation kinetic constants and dehydrogenase activity of 3DEM-BAF were almost 6.72 and 2.53 times higher than those of BAF. Microorganisms of 3DEM-BAF in the Methylophilus and Methyloversatilis genera were distinctively enriched, which was attributed to the screening function of electric field and propagation effect of magnetic field. Moreover, three processes were found to contribute to diclofenac degradation, namely electro-magnetic-adsorption, electro-chemical oxidation and electro-magnetic-biodegradation. Thus, the simultaneous application of electric and magnetic fields on biofilm process was demonstrated to be a promising technique as well as a viable alternative in diclofenac degradation enhancement.

Anthropogenic heat emission (AHE) is an important driver of urban heat islands (UHIs). Further, both urban thermal environment research and sustainable development planning require an efficient estimation of anthropogenic heat flux (AHF). Therefore, this study proposed an improved multi-source AHF model, which was constructed using diverse data sources and small-scale samples, to better represent the spatiotemporal distribution of AHF. The performances of three machine learning algorithms (Cubist, gradient boosting decision tree, and simple linear regression) were quantitatively evaluated, and the impact of spatiotemporal heterogeneity on AHF estimation was considered for the first time. The results showed that multi-source datasets and sophisticated algorithms could more effectively reduce the estimation error and improve the accuracy of the spatiotemporal distribution of AHF than simple linear regression. In practical applications, the Cubist model performed better, with prediction errors being less than 0.9 W⋅m−2. Further, the characteristics of different heat sources from the model outputs varied widely, and the building metabolic heat exhibited significant seasonal spatiotemporal variations, which were largely determined by the regional climate. In contrast, industrial and transportation heat showed marginal monthly fluctuations. Similarly, spatiotemporal heterogeneity significantly affected the estimation of building metabolic heat (0.62 W⋅m−2), but it did not affect other heat sources. The proposed improved AHF model was verified to effectively capture the spatiotemporal variations of building heat and solve the issue of overestimation of industrial heat in urban regions. This study provides new methods and ideas for the accurate spatiotemporal quantification of AHF that can supplement future studies on climate warming, UHI, and air pollution.

Heavy metal (loid)s (HMs) and polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) in soils from a typical industrial county of Shanxi were synchronously measured to determine the spatial clustering of combined HMs and PAHs pollution, and the resulting source-specific health risks. The spatial interaction of HMs and PAHs was determined by the Moran's I index, and a bivariate local indicators of spatial association (LISA) analysis showed that the high HMs-high PAHs clusters were mainly distributed in Fencheng and Xijia towns, as well as the main urban areas of Xiangfen County. The spatial clusters of high naphthalene (Nap)-high HMs were more obvious than those of high benzo(a)pyrene (Bap)-high HMs. Based on positive matrix factorization (PMF), four sources were identified for both HMs and PAHs, with coal consumption and industrial emission identified as common sources of both pollutants. The source-oriented health risk was determined using an improved health risk assessment model. The cancer risk from the combined pollution industrial emissions was relatively serious for both adults and children, with the risk value exceeding 10⁻⁶. Therefore, special attention should be paid to emission control. Based on spatial clustering and source-specific health risk assessment, the largest risk areas and pollutant sources were in the main urban areas of Fencheng and Xijia towns. The spatial interaction patterns and source-specific HMs and PAHs pollution concentrations provide a basis for effective pollution management and control. Finally, a systematic framework for reference was proposed for risk area identification and analysis of the source-oriented health risks of combined HMs and PAHs pollution.

In this study, two proficient Cadmium (Cd) resistant and plant growth-promoting actinobacterial strains were isolated from metal-polluted soils and identified as Streptomyces sp. strain RA04 and Nocardiopsis sp. strain RA07. Multiple abiotic stress tolerances were found in these two actinobacterial strains, including Cd stress (CdS), drought stress (DS) and high-temperature stress (HTS). Both actinobacterial strains exhibited multifarious plant growth-promoting (PGP) traits such as phosphate solubilization, and production of indole-3-acetic acid, siderophores and 1-aminocyclopropane-1-carboxylate deaminase under CdS, DS and HTS conditions. The inoculation of strains RA04 and RA07 significantly increased Sorghum bicolor growth and photosynthetic pigments under CdS, DS, HTS, CdS + DS and CdS + HTS conditions as compared to their respective uninoculated plants. The actinobacterial inoculants reduced malondialdehyde concentration and enhanced antioxidant enzymes in plants cultivated under various abiotic stress conditions, indicating that actinobacterial inoculants reduced oxidative damage. Furthermore, strains RA04 and RA07 enhanced the accumulation of Cd in plant tissues and the translocation of Cd from root to shoot under CdS, CdS + DS and CdS + HTS treatments as compared to their respective uninoculated plants. These findings suggest that RA04 and RA07 strains could be effective bio-inoculants to accelerate phytoremediation of Cd polluted soil even in DS and HTS conditions.

Hg pollution is a global concern due to its high ecotoxicity and health risk to human beings. A comprehensive understanding of the fast-developed technology applied in determining and controlling Hg pollution is beneficial for risk assessment and field remediation. Herein, we mainly assembled the recent progress on Hg treatment in the environment by nanotechnology. The advantages and disadvantages of the conventional and nanotechnology-based methods commonly used in water-/soil-Hg remediation were compared and summarized. Specifically, green nanomaterials derived from plant tissues (e.g., nanocellulose) have prominent merits in remediation of Hg contaminated environments, including high efficiency in Hg removal, low cost, environment-friendly, and easily degradable. Based on the theories of Hg biogeochemistry and existed researches, four promising pathways are proposed, 1) developing surface-modified green nanocellulose with high selectivity and affinity towards Hg; 2) designing effective dispersants in preventing nanocellulose from agglomeration in soil; 3) mediating soil properties by adding green nanomaterials-based fertilizers; 4) improving plant-Hg-extract capacity with green nanomaterials addition. Briefly, more efficient and available approaches are still expected to be developed and implemented in the natural environment for Hg remediation.

Cadmium (Cd) and arsenic (As) are loaded into rice grain via two pathways: i) root uptake from the soil and then translocation to the grain, and ii) remobilization of Cd and As previously accumulated within the vegetative tissues to the grain. However, the relative contributions of the two pathways are not well understood in soil-grown rice plants. In this study, we used eight different water management regimes applied at different growth periods to manipulate the concentrations of Cd and As in porewater and then established a mathematical model to estimate the relative importance of the two pathways. Different water management regimes had dramatic and opposite effects on the solubility of Cd and As in soil, and their subsequent accumulation in both straw and grain. Water management applied at different growth periods had markedly different impacts on grain Cd and As concentrations. Water management during grain filling had a much greater impact on grain Cd than on grain As concentrations, whereas water treatment during the vegetative growth stage had a larger effect on grain As concentrations. Under the typical water management practice (i.e. flooding through the vegetative stage followed by drainage during grain filling), grain filling is the key period for the accumulation of Cd in the grain, with 98% of the grain Cd from root uptake during this period and the contribution of remobilization being very limited. In contrast, 95% of the grain As was remobilized from that accumulated within the plant prior to the grain filling, with the tillering, jointing, and heading period each contributing 20–40% of the grain As, whereas root uptake during grain filling contributed minor. These differences can be harnessed to design a segmented water management strategy to control grain Cd and As accumulation simultaneously.

Per- and Poly-fluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) are one of the major persistent environmental contaminants. Epidemiological studies have linked PFAS exposures to altered immunity and increased occurrence of infections in children. However, the mechanisms leading to immune susceptibility to bacterial infections remains unclear. To elucidate the mechanism, transcriptional alteration in the Caenorhabditis elegans model caused by a PFAS contaminated environmental water and two reconstituted PFAS solutions were evaluated using RNA-sequencing. PFAS affected the expression of several genes involved in C. elegans immune surveillance to Gram-positive bacteria (cpr-2, tag-38, spp-1, spp-5, clec-7, clec-172). The combined exposure to PFAS and Staphylococcus aureus significantly reduced C. elegans survival and increased intestinal membrane permeability. Furthermore, the growth of S. aureus in the presence of PFAS increased the expression of virulence genes, specifically, the virulence gene regulator saeR and α-hemolysin, hla, which resulted in increased hemolytic activity. The present study demonstrated that PFAS exposure not only increased C. elegans susceptibility to pathogens by reducing host immunity and increasing intestinal membrane permeability, but also increased bacteria virulence. This presents a broader implication for humans and other animals, where environmental contaminants simultaneously reduce host resilience, while, increasing microbial pathogenicity.

Carcinogenic and neurotoxic polybrominated diphenyl ethers (PBDEs) are environmentally ubiquitous and have been widely investigated. However, little is understood regarding their pollution status, sources, and potential risk to persons in public transportation microenvironments (PTMs). We collected 60 dust samples from PTMs and then selected four materials typical of bus interiors to determine the sources of PBDEs in dust using principal component analysis coupled with Mantel tests. We then evaluated the risk of PBDEs to public health using Monte Carlo simulations. We found that PBDE concentrations in dust were 2-fold higher in buses than at bus stops and that brominated diphenyl ether (BDE)-209 was the main pollutant. The number of buses that passed through a bust stop contributed to the extent of PBDE pollution, and the primary potential sources of PBDEs in dust were plastic handles and curtains inside buses; BDE-209 and BDE-154 were the main contributors of pollution. We found that health risk was 8-fold higher in toddlers than in adults and that the reference doses of PBDEs in dust were far below the United States Environmental Protection Agency limits. Our findings provide a scientific basis that may aid in preventing PBDE pollution and guiding related pollution management strategies in PTMs.