The contamination of rivers and riparian soils is a growing problem for several catchments in southern Quebec due to agricultural pollutants and other sources of pollution. This study deals with the concentration of heavy metals in alluvial soils and their spatial variability following the various flood return periods (0-20 years and 20-100 years) and outside flood zones. The heavy metal concentration of some soils exceeds levels in government standards. The elements with the highest concentrations are mainly Ni, Pb and Zn. For instance, the levels of Zn and Pb can be as high as 310 and 490 mg kg^-1. In general, heavy metal concentrations are highest in active sedimentation zones (0-20 yrs). In this instance, the ANOVA test was conducted to determine whether the differences in heavy-metal concentrations in the soils could be significant between the three zones (Frequent Flood (FF), Moderate Flood (MF), and No Flood (NF)). With the increase in the flood return rate and current hydroclimatic changes, a downstream remobilization of contaminants can be expected, leading to a larger riparian area of contamination.

Pollutant loadings in two watersheds, Mulberry and Catoma were assessed using the pollutant loading (PLOAD) model and model results were compared with those obtained from field sampling followed by laboratory analysis. The PLOAD model was used to determine water pollutants including total nitrogen (TN), total phosphorus (TP), orthophosphate (PO₄^3-), nitrite (NO₂^–) and nitrate (NO₃^–) in two watersheds, Mulberry and Catoma that are part of the Alabama River Basin. Results revealed that both Mulberry and Catoma watersheds had TN and TP values that exceeded the US Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) limits set for rivers and streams. The TN and TP values were in the range of hypertrophic for lakes, and eutrophic for rivers. The PLOAD model results were in agreement with analytical results. We conclude that PLOAD is a valid model for determining pollutant loading in watersheds and provides a relatively faster and cheaper method of assessing impairment of watershed bodies compared to conventional methods.

The present study reports the temporal variations of CO₂ mixing ratio measured using Vaisala GMP-343 sensor (at 15 m height) in Dehradun (30.1 °N, 77.4 °E) during 2009. Being a valley station, the mixing ratios are controlled by biospheric processes but not by large scale transport phenomenon or local pollution. A distinct diurnal cycle varies from 317.9 ppm in the afternoon to 377.2 ppm in the morning (before sunrise). The minimum early morning (0700-1000 IST) drop and minimum afternoon (1300-1700 IST) trough observed during monsoon months are related to the enhanced vegetation activity due to rain at the site. The maximum night time (2200 IST to next day 0700 IST) build up of CO₂ observed during monsoon season is associated with the increase in heterotrophic respiration due to high moisture content in the soil. This is also confirmed by the positive coherence between night time CO₂ mixing ratio with soil respiration simulated from Carnagie-Ames-Standford Approach (CASA) model. The strong negative coherence with net ecosystem productivity (simulated from the same model) shows that observations captured the regional changes in emission and uptake of CO₂ in atmosphere.

This study aimed to detect the present levels and distribution of CO, CO₂, SO₂, NO₂, and total hydrocarbons gases (HCs) produced from different industrial plants in Basra city, Iraq. Measurements were carried out in the winter and summer of 2011. CO, SO₂, NO₂, and HC concentrations were measured using a Drager CMS portable detector, while CO₂ concentrations were measured using a RI-411A portable detector. The average minimum concentrations of CO, CO₂, SO₂, NO₂, and HCs were 2.0 mg/L, 250.0 mg/L, 4.0 mg/L, 0.4 mg/L, 0.5 mg/L, and 0.3 mg/L, respectively. Their average maximum concentrations were 18.0 mg/L, 280 mg/L, 0.9 mg/L, 1.3 mg/L, and 1.3 mg/L, respectively. The results indicate that stations close to the electrical power plant and oil refinery have higher levels of pollutants when compared to the urban station. According to the standards guidelines reported by the World Health Organization's Environmental Protection Act, the detected concentrations of CO for short-term exposure and the average concentrations of NO₂ and SO₂ for short-term and long-term exposure pose serious health hazards, especially in the industrial areas.

Research involving the thermal soil dynamics of wetland areas has not yet been explored in a way that promotes a deeper understanding of the dynamics of this region. This makes it necessary for further studies to contribute to the understanding of this biome. In the present work, we studied the thermal dynamics of the soil contrasting seasonal conditions in the Vochysia Divergens Forest. The Fourier equation was used to analyze the influence of the thermal conductivity and thermal gradient on the soil heat flux. We determined how variable water content causes the system to behave differently in the four seasons, observing seasonality in soil when completely dry and when completely flooded.

United States farmers typically spend over $10 billion annually on commercial fertilizer. Chemical inputs such as nitrogen (N) are essential for maintaining crop yields; however, farmers often apply excessive N inputs as an insurance policy. Nitrogen fertilizer consumption in the U.S. quadrupled from 3 million metric tons in 1961 to over 12 million metric tons in 2004, and per ha N fertilizer use quadrupled. Increase in N use has been associated with the impairment of U.S. streams, lakes, and aquifers. The objective of this research study was to develop an integrated farm-level economic/environmental risk framework for trade-off analysis between farm profitability and environmental externalities (impacts). Results indicated that there was no single point of optimal trade-off between farm profitability and the environment. Additionally, trade-offs between farm profit and environmental impacts varied significantly depending on the choice of cropping or tillage system.

Confinement is the predominant method of producing poultry and eggs for consumption in the US. Because of its high-density approach, the potential health threats regarding pathogenesis in animals and humans have raised concerns. Although there best management practices exist to control the persistence and proliferation of pathogenic bacteria in poultry houses, very little is known about the bacterial communities, and poultry houses are potential pathogen sinks. We assessed the contribution of industrial poultry production to the structure and composition of bacterial communities in the soils at a poultry production site. Soil samples were collected from under poultry housing areas, litter storage areas, and an accompanying pasture adjacent to the production area; and environmental DNA was extracted from the samples. Following validation and amplification, DNA was sequenced using bacterial-tag encoded pyrosequencing. Bioinformatics analysis showed that the bacterial communities in the soils showed no significant differences in species richness according to observed and estimated operational taxonomic units (Chao1 and rarefaction). Proteobacteria were the major phyla present in all samples ranging from 37.1% in the soils under poultry houses to 53.4% of the sequences identified under pasture soils. Significant shifts in specific taxa were observed, including drops in the abundance of Acidobacteria observed from the poultry house to litter storage soils (P < 0.05) α-Proteobacteria increased from poultry house soil (10.9%) to pasture soils (32.8%, P < 0.01) and soils under litter storage (22.3%, P < 0.05). The phyla Bacteroidetes, which were observed between poultry house and pasture soils, dropped significantly from 21.8% to 7.2% (P < 0.05). Clustering exhibited a closer relationship between the soils under pasture and litter storage, while those under the poultry houses were unique. Pathogenic genera were also found in greater abundance under the poultry houses, which raises the question of persistence and re-colonization of bedding material even in the presence of mitigation attempts.

A total of 800 indoor (I) and outdoor (O) air samples from eight large office buildings (LOBs) were analyzed for 78 VOCs using the latest sampling and preconcentration technology. Of these VOCs, 73 and 66 were detected in the I and O samples, respectively, at various levels and proportions. The I/O ratios were > 1, and ethanol exhibited the highest ratio of 14.7. The levels of aliphatic hydrocarbons were higher in LOBs located in the southern region of Kuwait, where the majority of industrial activities are located. By contrast, these levels were significantly lower in LOBs located in the northern and far northern regions, where industrial activities are absent. There was evidence of CFCs leaking from HVAC systems in several of the LOBs. BTEX inter-species ratios suggest that vehicular emissions contributed less to the outdoor air composition at the LOB at Jahra compared to other LOBs. Alcohols and carbonyls were the first and second most abundant classes of chemicals, respectively, in the VOC mixtures at the LOBs. None of the VOCs exceeded the recommended air quality limits.

The present investigation was focused on the variations in rainwater infiltration experienced by soils of Gamboa zone (Panama Canal Watershed) during various seasons of the year, employing a time-lapse analysis of electrical resistivity tomography (ERT). In 2009, a total of 3 geoelectrical tests were undertaken during the dry, transition and rainy seasons across a profile 47 m in length, strategically distributed on site. The results obtained in this study showed strong variations in calculated resistivity between these seasons, taking the dry season as a reference with decreases and increases of percent difference of resistivity between -20% and -100%, and between 50% and 100%, respectively. These decreases, when displayed through a sequence of time-lapse images, reveal a superficial extension of the water content variations along the entire profile, as well as strong inversion artifacts showing false increases of calculated electrical resistivity. Decreases are the product of the rainfall increase obtained in this type of tropical environment; permanent conductive anomalies in 3 tests are associated with the streams close to the study site. The results of this work were compared with a simulation resulting from a series of bidimensional models applied to the 3 studies evaluated: dry, transition and rainy seasons.

Pursuing the goal to develop an express technique for the characterizing of forest ecology, this paper presents a description of the found dependence of nuclear magnetic resonance (NMR) relaxation times of water in soils on the pollution caused by vehicle exhausts. Test measurements were made in Mari El Republic of Russia where wildwood areas located close to human activity are showing degradation, which has drastically intensified in the resent several years. Samples were collected at distances between 100 m to 1.1 km from the highway towards the direction of virgin forest assuming that their contamination level was naturally varied. The measured spin-spin NMR relaxation time of wetted samples showed a growth of more than 20% with the increase of distance from the pollution source. Here we try to explain this effect. As the conclusion, we propose to use the transverse relaxation time of moisturized soil as an indicator for the environment pollution monitoring.

Coastal processes should be one of the main issues in coastal zone management; ignoring it could lead to wrong decisions which, in turn, could lead to environmental disaster. This letter shows some examples of coastal structures that are built without taking into account coastal processes, and discusses their impact on the environment, with the hopes that the examples provided can serve as a warning for any future decisions. The analyzed zone is the coast of the Calabria Region in southern Italy. The coast is being studied as part of an agreement between the Mediterranea University of Reggio Calabria and the Calabria Basin Authority, concerning the redaction of the Coastal Erosion Risk Mitigation Plan. All data and results are obtained from a preliminary study of the coastal processes in Calabria. Calabria, with more than 700 km of coasts, is affected by coastal erosion, so the proper management and protection of the coastal zone represents an important issue that cannot be avoided.

Mining has long been at the center of the South African economy and has contributed to significant developments within the country. However, despite the large economic impact, surface water pollution due to mining is prevalent in most of the country's water catchments. Surface water in many areas of the central Roodepoort area in Johannesburg, South Africa, has also been impacted primarily by mining activities. The surface water quality for the Bosmontspruit, Russell's Stream, and the New Canada Dam was assessed in this study from October 2010 to March 2011. Physicochemical and biological characteristics of the water were determined for eight monitoring points, and the results obtained were compared with the in-stream water quality guidelines for the Klip River catchment and the South African Water Quality Guidelines. A trend noticed throughout the sampling period was the noncompliance to the set target water quality ranges (TWQRs) in the levels of total dissolved solids (TDS) and dissolved oxygen (DO). The results indicate that concentrations of iron, aluminum, nickel, manganese, and potassium were above the permissible limits across the Bosmontspruit and Russell's Stream. Excessive fecal coliforms and ammonium pollution were also detected in the Bosmontspruit. Additionally, during the monitoring period, it was noted that the water was being utilized for domestic purposes, and may pose health hazards due to poor water quality.

A better understanding and prediction of the dynamic processes that govern the coastal zone is the topic of the current paper; in particular, a deep investigation of the coastal processes that affect the shoreline dynamic and flood inundation risk is carried out at the Annunziata river mouth area (Italy). The Annunziata River is situated in the Northern part of Reggio Calabria city; it is, at the same time, a source of danger and an important environmental and hydrological resource for Reggio Calabria, since on the right side there is the city port and on the left side there is the public beach. The protection and management of coastal areas should be supported by a deep knowledge of the interaction between water motion and seabed topography, which affects the natural response of coastal systems to changes in external conditions and to human interferences. This work tries to analyze the coastal morphology through the use of some recent models based on spectral theory.