Huan Jing Ke Xue, 2003 Mar, 24(2), 77 - 81 {Evaluating the fate of gamma-HCH using fugacity model in Tianjin environment}; Cao H et al.; This study taking Tianjin as the study area calculated the concentration and transfer flux of gamma-HCH in all bulks using Matlab based on the assumption of steady state fugacity model . The calculated values agree well with the observed values, the concentrations of gamma-HCH in air, water, soil, sediment, fish, crop, and vegetable were 1.57 x 10(-11), 7.95 x 10(-7), 1.17 x 10(-4), 4.58 x 10(-4), 6.03 x 10(-4), 1.60 x 10(-4), 6.42 x 10(-5) mol/m3 respectively . The result indicated that the main source of gamma-HCH was agricultural application and wastewater from pesticide industries, the biggest bulk sinks were soil and sediment (accounting for 99% of total amount in the environment) . Among all transfer processes deposition and diffusion on the water-sediment and air-soil interface were the primary, and mineralization was the key route for gamma-HCH to disappear in the environment. Huan Jing Ke Xue, 2003 Mar, 24(2), 50 - 3 {Effects of land utilization of sewage sludge on grass and soils}; Wang X et al.; Effects of land disposal of sewage sludge on grass and soil environment were studied . The sewage sludge used was from Northern Shenyang Wastewater Treatment Plant . The results showed that contents of nutrient in the soil were increased after sewage sludge application, especially for organic matter . Grass biomass were increased and the green period were extended with a better growth of the lawn . The heavy metal contents in the soil were increased with Cd contents beyond 2nd grade national environmental quality standard for soils . However, Pb, Cu, Zn contents not accumulated heavily . Poa annua had better ability of absorbing and accumulating Pb from the sewage sludge . When the application rate of sewage sludge capacity was at 25, 30, 60 t.hm-2, Zoysia japonica expressed significant absorption and accumulation of Cd, Cu, Zn. Free Radic Res, 2003 May, 37(5), 573 - 84 Grape and grape seed extract capacities at protecting LDL against oxidation generated by Cu2+, AAPH or SIN-1 and at decreasing superoxide THP-1 cell production . A comparison to other extracts or compounds; Shafiee M et al.; A large body of evidence supports the key role of oxidized low-density lipoprotein in atherosclerosis . The aim of this study was to compare the capacity of natural polyphenols (PP) from Vitis vinifera and Olea europea at protecting LDL against oxidation brought about by Cu2+, oxygen-centered radical-generating AAPH, or peroxynitrite-generating SIN-1 in vitro systems, or at impairing superoxide production in promonocyte cells (THP-1) conveniently differentiated into adherent macrophages . PP were either from the whole grape (fraction A) containing mainly procyanidins, (epi)-catechin and anthocyanins, or from grape seed extracts (fractions B and C) consisting of tannins and procyanidin oligomers with a higher content in B than in C, or from a grape skin extract (fraction D) consisting mainly of anthocyanins, or from a hydrosoluble olive mill wastewater PP extract (fraction E) containing hydroxytyrosol and oleuropein . Chlorogenic acid (F) and catechin (G) were taken as archetypes of PP preventing oxidation partly as copper scavenger and as radical scavenger only, respectively . All grape fractions were efficient towards Cu2+ system (equally or more efficient than F), whereas they were rather poorly efficient towards AAPH and SIN-1 (less efficient than G but as efficient as F) . Among the PP fractions, B was the most effective at protecting LDL in the SIN-1 system and at impairing THP-1 superoxide production . Taken together, these data suggest that the PP fraction from grape seed rich in procyanidins achieves the best compromise between the direct and indirect (i.e . cell-mediated) types of action in protecting LDL against oxidation, strengthening the need for improving the knowledge of its bioavailability in humans. Appl Biochem Biotechnol, 2003 Apr-Jun, 109(1-3), 241 - 52 Anaerobic waste stabilization ponds: a low-cost contribution to a sustainable wastewater reuse cycle; Alexiou GE et al.; Waste stabilization ponds (WSP) have been used extensively all over Europe over the last 50 yr for the treatment of municipal and industrial wastewaters . Models presented in manuals should be used only for guidance, and local experience from pilot and full-scale plants of a particular pond type is extremely valuable . Anaerobic WSP are single-stage, continuous- flow, anaerobic reactors operating at ambient temperatures and low volumetric organic loading as a pretreatment method . This article presents a literature review on the different available operational parameters of anaerobic ponds and examples from full-scale plant performance worldwide . On a wastewater management scheme, involving reuse for agriculture, the zero-energy demand of a waste stabilization pond series for the effective removal of organic and microbiological loading under existing legislation and guidelines will remain a valuable tool for sustainable development. Appl Biochem Biotechnol, 2003 Apr-Jun, 109(1-3), 197 - 206 Anaerobically treated wastewater in agricultural irrigation as an alternative for posttreatment in water-demanding zones; Jeison D et al.; Agroindustries usually produce high amounts of wastewaters and are frequently located close to agricultural activities . Agricultural use of treated wastewaters therefore represents a unique opportunity to solve the problem of water supply for irrigation and disposal of treated water at the same time . This article is the result of collaborative work with the biggest Chilean pisco- (a distillated drink prepared from Muscatel wine) producing company at present . Experiments were conducted to establish anaerobic treatability of wastewaters and also irrigation properties of treated water . With the purpose of confirming laboratory results, a full-scale anaerobic plant was built, and treated water is being used to irrigate 3000 eucalypti . The results showed, at both laboratory and full scale, that anaerobic treatment is suitable for the treatment of pisco wastewater, and that nutrient content of treated water can be beneficial for plant growth, reducing the need for fertilizers. Appl Biochem Biotechnol, 2003 Apr-Jun, 109(1-3), 117 - 26 Pretreatment of swine wastewater using anaerobic filter; Kang H et al.; Efforts were made to assess the efficiency of an anaerobic filter packed with porous floating ceramic media and to identify the optimum operational condition of anaerobic filter as a pretreatment of swine wastewater for the subsequent biological removal of nitrogen and phosphorus . A stepwise decrease in hydraulic retention time (HRT) and an increase in organic loading rate (OLR) were utilized in an anaerobic filter reactor at mesophilic temperature (35 degrees C) . The optimum operating condition of the anaerobic filter was found to be at an HRT of 1 d . A soluble chemical oxygen demand (COD) removal efficiency of 62% and a total suspended solids removal efficiency of 39% at an HRT of 1 d were achieved with an OLR of 16.0 kg total COD/(m3.d), respectively . The maximum methane production rate approached 1.70 vol of biogas produced per volume of reactor per day at an HRT of 1 d . It was likely that the effluent COD/total Kjeldahl nitrogen ratio of 22, the COD/total phosphorous ratio of 47, and the high effluent alkalinity >2500 mg/L as CaCO3 of the anaerobic filter operated at an HRT of 1 d was adequate for the subsequent biological removal of nitrogen and phosphorus. Water Sci Technol, 2003, 47(7-8), 357 - 63 Prevention of odour emergence in sewage networks; Barjenbruch M; Through increasing central development and through the decrease of specific wastewater production, wastewater systems are more and more prone to odour and corrosion problems . Hydrogen sulphide is produced, particularly in anaerobic flow stretches, which will then escape at turbulent places because of change in the flow direction and create odour harassment . Of particular importance in this respect are the transferring shafts after rising mains . The empirical approaches used for the estimation of the assumed sulphide concentrations yield considerable differences in the calculation and must therefore be used with care . This report presents a methodology for the co-ordination of odour- and corrosion-reducing measures which also includes the area of complaint management . It is crucially important to fine-tune the necessary measures (for instance the application of operational or chemical/biological methods) to the specific frame conditions . The practical comparison of the additional dosage of external water, iron and nitrate served to test the efficiency of these methods . The dosage of iron and nitrate led to considerable reductions in H2S content at the transferring shaft . The online measurement of the spectral adsorption coefficient (SAC) could become one control parameter for saving chemicals . It should be pointed out that it is necessary to consider the relevant measures and effects of odour and corrosion production during the planning stage--from the creation of the development plan of cities and communities . Through the selection of the wastewater disposal method to the planning of details . Moreover, the relevant financial means for these measures must be included in the economic plan. Water Sci Technol, 2003, 47(7-8), 351 - 6 Research of the flow procedures in a pressure sewer system; Dohse C et al.; At the Institute of Land Reclamation, Hydrology and Sanitary Engineering of the University at Rostock the pressure and flow ratios are examined within a measuring section in the pressure dewatering system on the Darss peninsula . The objective of the research project is the knowledge upgrade about the highly unsteady hydraulic conditions in a pressure sewer system . This paper firstly presents the method and the dimensioning of pressure dewatering systems, which can be done using either the peak effluent method or the statistical method; the examination program will be explained . The examination includes pressure difference measuring with two pressure meters and flow data measuring via magnetic-inductive flow meters . Additionally the pump running times of 15 pumping stations, as well as the compressor action of the pressure pipe rinsing station are continuously and temporarily recorded and saved . Finally the measuring results which provide initial information about the pressure and flow conditions in a pressure dewatering system will be presented . The effects of the rinsing, the low pressure differences, the air cushions, the seasonal differences as well as the daily development graphs of the wastewater production are all clearly visible. Water Sci Technol, 2003, 47(7-8), 311 - 7 A comparative analysis: storm water pollution policy in California, USA and Victoria, Australia; Swamikannu X et al.; Urban drainage systems historically were developed on principles of hydraulic capacity for the transport of storm water to reduce the risk of flooding . However, with urbanization the percent of impervious surfaces increases dramatically resulting in increased flood volumes, peak discharge rates, velocities and duration, and a significant increase in pollutant loads . Storm water and urban runoff are the leading causes of the impairment of receiving waters and their beneficial uses in Australia and the United States today . Strict environmental and technology controls on wastewater treatment facilities and industry for more than three decades have ensured that these sources are less significant today as the cause of impairment of receiving waters . This paper compares the approach undertaken by the Environmental Protection Authority Victoria for the Melbourne metropolitan area with the approach implemented by the California Environmental Protection Agency for the Los Angeles area to control storm water pollution . Both these communities are largely similar in population size and the extent of urbanization . The authors present an analysis of the different approaches contrasting Australia with the USA, comment on their comparative success, and discuss the relevance of the two experiences for developed and developing nations in the context of environmental policy making to control storm water and urban runoff pollution. Water Sci Technol, 2003, 47(7-8), 251 - 7 Emissions of heavy metals into river basins of Germany; Scherer U et al.; The input of seven heavy metals (Cd, Cr, Cu, Hg, Ni, Pb and Zn) into the large river basins of Germany via various point and diffuse pathways were estimated for the period of 1985 through 2000 . To quantify the emissions via point sources a nationwide survey on heavy metal data of municipal wastewater treatment plants and industrial direct discharges was carried out . The input via diffuse pathways was calculated using an adapted version of the model MONERIS . This model accounts for the significant transport processes, and it includes a Geographical Information System (GIS) that provides digital maps as well as extensive statistical information . For a comparison of the calculated heavy metal emission with the measured heavy metal load at monitoring stations the losses of heavy metals due to retention processes within the river systems have to be considered . Therefore heavy metal retention was calculated according to the retention functions given by Vink and Behrendt . For the large river basins a good correspondence could be found between estimated and measured heavy metal loads in rivers . The total emission into the North Sea decreased for each metal during the period of 1986 to 2000 . The reduction varies between 87% for Hg and 41% for Ni mainly caused by the decline via point sources . Today's emissions of heavy metals into river basins of Germany are dominated by the input via diffuse pathways . The most important diffuse emission pathways are "paved urban areas" and "erosion". Water Sci Technol, 2003, 47(7-8), 209 - 16 Water quality management in the Kaoping River watershed, Taiwan; Kao CM et al.; The Kaoping River basin is the largest and the most intensively used river basin in Taiwan . It is 171 km long and drains a catchment of more than 3,250 km2 . Based on the current water quality analysis, the Kaoping River is heavily polluted . Concern about the deteriorating condition of the river led the Government of Taiwan to amend the relevant legislation and strengthen the enforcement of the discharge regulations to effectively manage the river and control the pollution . Investigation results demonstrate that both point and non-point source pollutants are now the causes of biochemical oxygen demand (BOD), nutrients, and pathogens in the river . The main water pollution sources are livestock wastewater from hog farms, municipal wastewater, industrial wastewater, non-point source (NPS) pollutants from agricultural areas, and leachate from riverbank landfills . The current daily BOD, NH3-N, and TP loadings to Kaoping River are 74,700, 39,400, and 5,100 kg, respectively . However, the calculated BOD, NH3-N, and TP carrying capacities are 27,700, 4,200, and 600 kg per day . To protect public health and improve the river water quality, a comprehensive management and construction strategy is proposed . The proposed strategy includes the following measures to meet the calculated river carrying capacity: (1) a hog ban in the entire Kaoping River basin, (2) sewer system construction to achieve 30% of connection in the basin within 10 years, (3) removal of 10 riverbank landfills, and (4) enforcement of the industrial wastewater discharge standards . After the implementation of the proposed measures, the water quality should be significantly improved and the BOD and nutrient loadings can be reduced to below the calculated carrying capacities. Water Sci Technol, 2003, 47(7-8), 141 - 7 River basin management, described for the example of the Emschergenossenschaft; Baumgart HC et al.; Considerable problems concerning drainage capacity made it necessary, at the beginning of the 20th Century, to make a joint public-private effort, because the existence of the Ruhr Area as an industrial location was endangered . By Prussian law a co-operative was established for wastewater and drainage-management of the entire Emscher river system . In the past the Emscher Association and the later founded Lippe Association have proved to be the best instrument to cope with the wastewater problems of a densely-populated industrial area . In recent time, the Emscher area is undergoing fundamental structural changes . To increase its attractiveness increased efforts are needed for a modernisation of the wastewater transport and treatment system . To deal with the various and complex tasks to reshape the Emscher system, the joint association again provides a highly efficient and competent instrument. Water Sci Technol, 2003, 47(7-8), 125 - 31 Periphyton collectors as a tool to measure environmental performance of ocean outlets; Lemmens S; Brown and Root has participated in extensive investigations of the effects of the discharges from Perth's Ocean Outlets, as part of the Perth Long-Term Ocean Outlet Monitoring (PLOOM) Programme (1995 to 2001) . The major environmental concern with these discharges is the potential for nutrients in the wastewater to stimulate excess primary production in the sea . PLOOM, and its predecessor, the Perth Coastal Waters Study, have been instrumental in developing parameters for the measurement of the performance of Perth's ocean outlets . These parameters are currently being integrated in the development of Environmental Quality Criteria (EQC) for the Perth region . EQC play an important role in the management framework by providing the quantitative benchmarks for measuring success in achieving the environmental quality objectives . PLOOM has monitored a range of environmental parameters in the Perth Metropolitan area, including water quality, nutrient levels, water circulation and plume dilution, levels of metals and pesticides present in the marine environment, and the environmental health of benthic communities, in particular of temperate reef systems . During the PLOOM studies, a valuable tool was being developed to monitor outlet performance . Artificial reef structures ("periphyton collectors") were placed in the plume trajectory . Here, periphyton is defined as: the microalgae (diatoms and microscopic filamentous forms), algal propagules, bacteria, microfauna and particulate material that are found in a mucous-like layer commonly coating seagrass leaves, and that initially colonise artificial surfaces . The advantage of periphyton collectors is that these largely remove the effects of natural variability, can be placed at any depth and distance from a potential nutrient source, provide an easy, cost effective measure of environmental impact, integrated over an extended period (one month), and produce tangible results which can be interpreted by the wider community, as well as legislative authorities and by outlet managers . In addition, outlet performance can be measured by means of these tools, and tested against accepted environmental criteria . Between 1995-2001, periphyton collectors, consisting of 15 x 15 cm PVC plates attached to moorings at fixed depths (2, 4 and 8 m), were deployed for one month during spring, summer and autumn, at increasing distance from the source (250 and 500 m distance to the north, east, west, and south, and at 1,000, 2,000, 4,000 m to the north and south only) . After retrieval, the collectors were analysed for total biomass (g AFDW m(-2)), calcium carbonate content (% AFDW) and chlorophyll levels (chlorophyll a m(-2)) . The results confirmed the predictions made by hydrodynamic modelling (e.g . Zic and Gondinoudis, 2002) and are in accordance with measured nutrient and chlorophyll a levels around the outlets, and demonstrated that the zone of influence was strongly determined by the prevailing currents (to the north), and largely restricted to surface layers (2-4 m depth) . Both biomass and chlorophyll content proved reliable parameters, which have the potential to be used as Environmental Quality Criteria (EQC's) for the management of Perth's coastal waters . These EQC's were developed in collaboration with legislative authorities, as part of draft criteria, in accordance with national guidelines: ANZECC/ARMCANZ (2000) Australian and New Zealand Guidelines for Fresh and Marine Water Quality. Water Sci Technol, 2003, 47(7-8), 109 - 16 Integrated environmental assessment of tertiary and residuals treatment--LCA in the wastewater industry; Beavis P et al.; In the wastewater industry, decision-makers lack access to an environmental tool that can assist in further informing the non-financial analysis of a system . Such a tool should incorporate impacts beyond the effluent quality and look at the supporting processes of a plant as well as plant specific operations . Life Cycle Assessment can provide the means to fill a gap in pertinent information towards more sustainable decision-making . The project "Best Practice LCA in the Wastewater Industry" is commissioned by the CRC for Waste Management and Pollution Control at UNSW with representatives from Sydney Water Corporation (SWC), NSW Department of Land and Water Conservation and the NSW Department of Public Works . Two case studies were researched to provide a post-implementation review of changes in wastewater . Case study 1: The conversion from chlorine gas to hypochlorite and UV disinfection has been completed for several inland wastewater plants at SWC . A review of operational data for each of the options has been incorporated into an LCA of each technology . Under efficient dosing conditions, disinfection with the hypochlorite system has the minimum environmental impact . Case study 2 deals with the conversion from anaerobic to aerobic digestion . Aerobic digestion minimises release of nutrients into a sidestream to be further treated in the plant . However conversion results in more biosolids production and higher electricity requirements . This study includes a consideration of the environmental impacts of biosolids production and application . On the basis of the extended boundary including consideration of reflux composition, energy requirements and biosolids quality to potentially offset fertiliser production, anaerobic digestion performs best in 6 out of 9 impact categories . These results suggest that environmental LCA has a role in informing decision-making on unit process and treatment train selection by quantifying aspects on non-financial criteria . Also, improvement potentials are foreshadowed but not detailed. Water Sci Technol, 2003, 47(7-8), 81 - 6 Integrated water resources management in the Ruhr River Basin, Germany; Bode H et al.; The Ruhr, with an average flow of 80.5 m3/s at its mouth, is a comparatively small tributary to the Rhine River that has to perform an important task: to secure the water supply of more than 5 million people and of the industry in the densely populated region north of the river . The complex water management system and network applied by the Ruhrverband in the natural Ruhr River Basin has been developed step by step, over decades since 1913 . And from the beginning, its major goal has been to achieve optimal conditions for the people living in the region . For this purpose, a functional water supply and wastewater disposal infrastructure has been built up . The development of these structures required and still requires multi-dimensional planning and performance . Since the river serves as receiving water and at the same time as a source of drinking water, the above-standard efforts of Ruhrverband for cleaner water also help to conserve nature and wildlife . Ruhrverband has summed up its environmental awareness in the slogan: "For the people and for the environment" . This basic water philosophy, successfully applied to the Ruhr for more than 80 years, will be continued in accordance with the new European Water Framework Directive, enacted in 2000, which demands integrated water resources management in natural river basins, by including the good ecological status of surface waterbodies as an additional goal. Water Sci Technol, 2003, 47(7-8), 65 - 71 Wastewater services for small communities; Gray S et al.; Connection to centralised regional sewage systems has been too expensive for small-dispersed communities, and these townships have traditionally been serviced by on-site septic tank systems . The conventional on-site system in Australia has consisted of an anaerobic holding tank followed by adsorption trenches . This technique relies heavily on the uptake of nutrients by plants for effective removal of nitrogen and phosphorus from the effluent, and is very seasonal in its efficiency . Hence, as these small communities have grown in size, the environmental effects of the septic tank discharges have become a problem . In locations throughout Australia, such as rural Victoria and along the Hawkesbury-Nepean River, septic tanks as being replaced with the transport of sewage to regional treatment plants . For some isolated communities, this can mean spending 20,000 dollars-40,000 dollars/household, as opposed to more common connection prices of 7,000 dollars/household . This paper explores some alternative options that might be suitable for these small communities, and attempts to identify solutions that provide acceptable environmental outcomes at lower cost . The types of alternative systems that are assessed in the paper include local treatment systems, separate blackwater and greywater collection and treatment systems both with and without non-potable water recycling, a small township scale treatment plant compared to either existing septic tank systems or pumping to a remote regional treatment facility . The work demonstrated the benefits of a scenario analysis approach for the assessment of a range of alternative systems . It demonstrated that some of the alternatives systems can achieve better than 90% reductions in the discharge of nutrients to the environment at significantly lower cost than removing the wastewater to a remote regional treatment plant . These concepts allow wastewater to be retained within a community allowing for local reuse of treated effluent. Water Sci Technol, 2003, 47(7-8), 49 - 55 Hydraulics of sub-superficial flow constructed wetlands in semi arid climate conditions; Ranieri E; This paper reports the evaluation of the hydraulics of two constructed wetland (cw(s)) plants located in Apulia (the South Eastern Italy region characterized by semi arid climate conditions) . These fields were planted with Phragmites australis hydrophytes and are supplied with local secondary wastewater municipal treatment plant effluent . Each plant--Kickuth Root-Zone method based--covers an area of approx . 2,000 m2 . The evapotranspiration phenomenon has been evaluated within perforated tubes fixed to the field bottom and very high values--up to 40 mm/d--were found . Hydraulic conductivity has been evaluated by in situ measurements at different field points . Hydraulic gradients and the piezometric curve within the field are also reported. Water Sci Technol, 2003, 47(7-8), 33 - 9 Sustainability concept for a newly built urban area in Malmö, Sweden; Gruvberger C et al.; National goals regarding sustainable development from the Swedish government were decisive in the planning process when the newly built city district Western Harbour was established in the city of Malmo, Sweden . A systems analysis was used as a tool for evaluating different collection and treatment systems . This type of analysis does not include more subjective factors such as acceptance of organic fertilizers based on human waste and user acceptance of collection schemes . These aspects, however, will often determine the success of a technical solution . When the system for collection and treatment of old organic waste and wastewater was designed, both subjective and objective factors were considered . This meant that a centralised solution for wastewater treatment was selected . In order to facilitate a more sustainable solution for sludge management a treatment process with recovery of phosphorus will have to be introduced . Organic waste is sorted out and treated in an anaerobic digestion process . Source sorting of solid organic waste has been difficult to implement in Sweden due to inadequate sorting discipline . As a consequence two relatively new systems are tested in the area . A comprehensive evaluation will be carried out during a period of two years. Water Sci Technol, 2003, 47(7-8), 11 - 8 A conceptual framework for the sustainable management of wastewater in Harare, Zimbabwe; Nhapi I et al.; The aim of this study was to formulate an integrated wastewater management model for Harare, Zimbabwe, based on current thinking . This implies that wastewater is treated/disposed of as close to the source of generation as possible . Resource recovery and reuse in a local thriving urban agriculture are integrated into this model . Intervention strategies were considered for controlling water, nitrogen and phosphorus flows to the lake . In the formulation of strategies, Harare was divided into five major operational areas of high-, medium-, and low-density residential areas, and also commercial and industrial areas . Specific options were then considered to suit landuse, development constraints and socio-economic status for each area, within the overall criteria of limiting nutrient inflows into the downstream Lake Chivero . Flexible and differential solutions were developed in relation to built environment, population density, composition of users, ownership, future environmental demands, and technical, environmental, hygienic, social and organisational factors . Options considered include source control by the users (residents, industries, etc.), using various strategies like implementation of toilets with source separation, and natural methods of wastewater treatment . Other possible strategies are invoking better behaviour through fees and information, incentives for cleaner production, and user responsibility through education, legislative changes and stricter controls over industry. Water Sci Technol, 2003, 47(7-8), 1 - 9 Evaluating integrated urban water systems alternatives for Brisbane, Australia; Mitchell G et al.; The Brazil Development Study investigates the feasibility of alternative approaches to providing sustainable water services to a 226 ha mixed residential and industrial greenfield development within the city of Brisbane, Australia . The alternatives include techniques such a the use of rainwater tanks, water use efficiency, a local wastewater treatment plant for recycling of reclaimed water and composting toilets amongst others . This paper evaluates a series of urban development scenarios against the objectives of the study . The insights gained into the drivers for cost and environmental impact for this particular site are discussed as well as a number of issues of concern and challenges to Council and the community. Environ Sci Technol, 2003 May 15, 37(10), 2152 - 8 Marine sponges as biomonitor of polychlorobiphenyl contamination: concentration and fate of 24 congeners; Perez T et al.; The aim of this study was first to assess the relevance of a marine sponge, Spongia officinalis, as a biomonitor of PCB . Twenty-four chlorobiphenyl congeners have been measured along a pollution gradient both in sponges and seawater . S . officinalis displays a capacity to accumulate all types of congeners . The highest concentration factors were found for hexa- and heptachlorobiphenyls . Concentrations recorded in sponges agreed quite well with the PCB concentrations of study sites . The prevalence of CB138 and CB153 definitely demonstrated the urban origin of the PCB detected, despite the ban on their production and the existence of a wastewater treatment plant since 1987 . The CB138/CB153 ratio is approximately 1.2 in commercial mixtures as well as in seawater . In sponges, this ratio varies strongly in space and time, from 1 in sponges at the most polluted site to 0.3 at the reference site . This change in the ratio of these two very persistent congeners, which is not observed in seawater, indicates a metabolism of CB138 in sponges . As it was recently demonstrated for nonpersistent organic contaminants, sponges might well be able to degrade PCB, but further work is needed to identify the processes involved. Appl Environ Microbiol, 2003 Jun, 69(6), 3593 - 9 A rapid microtiter plate method to measure carbon dioxide evolved from carbon substrate amendments so as to determine the physiological profiles of soil microbial communities by using whole soil; Campbell CD et al.; Sole-carbon-source tests (Biolog), designed to identify bacteria, have become very popular for metabolically fingerprinting soil microbial communities, despite disadvantages associated with the use of carbon source profiles that primarily select for fast-growing bacteria . In this paper we describe the use of an alternative method that combines the advantages of the Biolog community-level physiological profile (CLPP) method, in which microtiter-based detection plates are used, with the ability to measure carbon dioxide evolution from whole soil . This method facilitates measurement over short periods of time (4 to 6 h) and does not require the extraction and culturing of organisms . Deep-well microtiter plates are used as test wells into which soil is placed . The apparatus to fill the deep-well plates and interface it with a second removable detection plate is described . Two detection systems, a simple colorimetric reaction in absorbent alkali and scintillation counting with radioactive carbon sources, are described . The methods were compared to the Biolog-CLPP system by using soils under different vegetation types and soil treated with wastewater sludge . We aimed to test the hypothesis that using whole soil would have specific advantages over using extracts in that more immediate responses to substrates could be obtained that would reflect activity rather than growth . The whole-soil method was more rapid and gave earlier detection of C source use . Also, the metabolic fingerprints obtained could discriminate between sludge treatments. Mar Pollut Bull, 2003, 47(1-6), 193 - 7 Approaches to environmental restoration of a polluted harbour with submerged archaeology: the Alexandria case study; El-Rayis OA et al.; Many invaluable underwater buildings of archaeological interest in Alexandria were discovered in 1996 at different sites in the Eastern Harbour of Alexandria . There is a belief that the best way to protect these invaluable heritages is to transfer them to an underwater park or museum . Obviously, the execution of such a project depends essentially upon the water quality (including water transparency) improving in the future . The harbour is presently polluted by discharge of wastewater effluents from different sources . It has recently been decided to restore this important coastal area through: (1) stopping the direct discharge of wastewater effluents into this semi-enclosed harbour in 1993 and (2) gradually reducing the discharge of the municipal wastewater through marine outfalls at two sites lying at the outer sides of the harbour . Zero discharge is expected to be effective by the end of the year 2001 . The present work, therefore, is a follow up of the study of water quality in the harbour after 1993: in 1996 and 1999-2000 . The water quality of an open sea reference station was also studied for comparison . The results reveal occurrence of an improvement of the environmental conditions in the harbour . The water has turned from being eutrophic to mesotrophic . The harbour is expected to become meso/oligotrophic as soon as the complete cessation of the discharge from the two outside sources is attained. Mar Pollut Bull, 2003, 47(1-6), 162 - 8 Finnish strategies for reduction and control of effluents to the marine environment--examples from agriculture, municipalities and industry; Kohonen JT; The most serious environmental problem encountered in the Baltic Sea is eutrophication . Finland finalised in spring 2002 its national Programme for the Protection of the Baltic Sea . The programme contains more than 30 measures for improving the state of the Baltic Sea and protecting the marine environment . Total national investments during the next 10-15 years will amount to EUR 300-370 million . The highest annual cost will be environmental support to agriculture . The bulk of the rest of the money will be used for nitrogen purification of municipal wastewater, improvement of water protection in dispersed settlement areas, and investments to improve maritime safety and decrease the risks of oil spills. Mar Pollut Bull, 2003, 47(1-6), 30 - 6 The characteristics of nutrients and eutrophication in the Pearl River estuary, South China; Huang XP et al.; In the spring of 1998, 24-h time series and synchronization of vertical profiles of NO(3)-N, NO(2)-N, NH(3)-N, PO(4)-P, chlorophyll a, suspended substance, salinity, temperature and other chemical parameters were taken at 10 stations in the Pearl River estuary in order to analyze the status and characteristics of nutrients and eutrophication . The results indicated that dissolved inorganic nitrogen (DIN) mainly came from the four river channels in the main estuary, and NO(3)-N was the main form of DIN in most area . The concentration of DIN was general above 0.30 mg l(-1) in the estuary, and more than 0.50 mgl(-1) in most part . Phosphate from four river channels was not the main sources, but land-based sources from the area near Shenzhen Bay or along the estuary were obvious, and other land-based sources outside the estuary brought by coastal current and flood tide current were also the main contributions . The concentration of phosphate was generally about 0.015 mg l(-1) except the area near Shenzhen Bay . The ratio of N:P was generally high, and it was higher in the north than in the south . The highest ratio was higher than 300, and the lowest one was over 30 . The concentration of chlorophyll a was about 0.8-7.8 mg m(-3), and turbidity and phosphate may be the main two limiting factors for algal bloom in the estuary . The concentration of nutrients decreased slightly in the past decade, but still stayed at a high level . The nutrients mainly came from domestic sewage, industrial wastewater, agriculture fertilizer and marine culture in the Pearl River estuary. Mar Pollut Bull, 2003, 47(1-6), 25 - 9 A model of fish preference and mortality under hypoxic water in the coastal environment; Karim MR et al.; Eutrophication and associated occurrence of hypoxic condition could cause significant damage to marine ecosystems, resulting in considerable economic losses to fisheries and aquaculture and is a major source of stress that fish often have to contend with in order to survive . This problem is likely to be exacerbated in the coming years, since the wastewater treatment facilities is unlikely to catch up with increasing human activities . Moreover, large-scale reclamation projects in coastal areas have recently been increased, and these activities certainly have adverse impacts on water quality and fisheries resources . Coastal construction has a significant role in the development of hypoxic water by changing the current and mixing pattern of water . Changes in species composition and decreases in species richness and diversity have been well documented in hypoxic systems . Hypoxia could cause endocrine disruption in fish and eliminate populations of sensitive species . Shallow coastal areas are of great importance for the special nursery of fish and shellfish and land reclamation in these areas cause strong damage to fisheries . Although the tolerance of aquatic life to hypoxia is known, there is no information about the mortality of fish caused by hypoxia because fish can swim around it and no modeling study has yet been carried out . Criteria that influence the movement of fish are: amounts of food, water temperature and depth, dissolved oxygen concentration and nature of seabed . However, among these, water temperature and dissolved oxygen are the most crucial parameters that affect survival, movement and growth of fish . In this paper, a model of fish preference and mortality for environmental conditions was developed and applied to the Hakata Bay where hypoxic water occurs every summer . For the purpose of this study, a field survey of fish behavior under hypoxic water was conducted by releasing marbled sale (Pleuronectes yokohamae) in the inner bay . Moreover, a series of preference tests for DO, salinity and temperature in the laboratory were conducted in order to decide preference parameters of fish . Using the results of both field and laboratory studies, a sub-module of fish preference and mortality was coded within an integrated hydrothermal and eutrophication model (CHEM) to predict the behavior and mortality of marbled sale when hypoxia would occur in the bay . The model could reasonably simulate the behavior of the fish under hypoxia . An assessment of the impact of the ongoing land reclamation project of about 401 ha in the Wajiro tidal flat zones at the head of the bay on the fisheries resources was also conducted using the model . The results showed that the artificial land lowered the mortality rate of fish under hypoxic condition in the bay during the summer period. Environ Toxicol Chem, 2003 Jun, 22(6), 1309 - 17 The relationships of biochemical endpoints to histopathology and population metrics in feral flatfish species collected near the municipal wastewater outfall of Orange County, California, USA; Roy LA et al.; In July 2000, 330 individuals of three flatfish species were collected from reference locations and nine sites surrounding the outfall of the Orange County (CA, USA) Sanitation District (OCSD) municipal wastewater discharge . Species included hornyhead turbot (Pleuronichthys verticalis), English sole (Pleuronectes vetulus), and bigmouth sole (Hippoglossina stomata) . Livers of sampled animals were examined for the expression of vitellogenin (in males), cytochrome P450 1A (CYP1A), and DNA damage (comet assay) . Biliary fluorescent aromatic compounds (FACs) were also measured . Comparisons with tissue and sediment contaminant residues, liver histopathology, and population estimates were assessed to determine whether relationships exist between levels of biological organization . The CYP1A results indicated exposure to planar aromatic hydrocarbons at one nearshore site . Regression analysis of all English sole CYP1A to total sediment polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs) (r2 = 0.97; p < 0.05) indicated a significant correlation . Widespread exposure to estrogens was observed at all sites without correlation to the abundance of the three species examined . Fluorescent aromatic compounds demonstrated no correlation to CYP1A expression . Overall, histopathology and biochemical endpoints did not indicate significant adverse effects in fish at the OCSD outfall. Environ Toxicol Chem, 2003 Jun, 22(6), 1288 - 94 Effect of dissolved organic matter of various origins and biodegradabilities on the bioaccumulation of polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons in Daphnia magna; Gourlay C et al.; As a preliminary study of the influence of urban organic matter on the bioavailability of polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs), the effect of different types of dissolved organic matter (DOM) on the bioaccumulation of fluoranthene, pyrene, or benzo{a}pyrene in Daphnia magna was studied . Commercial humic substances, DOM from the aeration basin of a wastewater treatment plant, and highly biodegradable DOM (algae or animal extracts) were tested . The bioaccumulation of benzo{a}pyrene was reduced by each DOM (up to 80% reduction with humic substances) . Pyrene bioaccumulation was also decreased by each DOM to a lesser extent . Fluoranthene bioaccumulation was affected by the presence of humic acids only . In each experiment, the solution containing humic DOM led to the lowest bioaccumulation . Supposing that only dissolved PAHs were bioavailable, the reduction of bioaccumulation allowed a biological estimate of the partition coefficients of DOM and PAH, K(DOC) . The estimated coefficients were positively related to the aromaticity of DOM and negatively related to its biodegradability. Ann N Y Acad Sci, 2003 Mar, 984, 401 - 10 Hydrophobic pervaporation: toward a shortcut method for the pervaporation-decanter system; Field RW et al.; Pervaporation is a relatively new technology . Although hydrophilic pervaporation has become established, hydrophobic pervaporation for recovery of organics from water has not been a commercial success . Technologic reasons for this are suggested . However, as the pressure to include waste minimization and to recycle, as well as pollution prevention, increases, there will be opportunity for the development of new wastewater treatment processes . This may lead to hybrid processes, including a coupling of pervaporation with conventional technology . The hybrid process examined herein is a simple pervaporation-decanter system that is applicable to organics with limited solubility in water . In this system, the PV unit produces permeate that after condensation gives two liquid phases . The organic phase is relative pure and concentrated (and available for reuse), whereas the aqueous phase can be recycled into the PV feed stream . For a given feed concentration and water purity target, there is a minimum membrane selectivity (alpha(min)) that yields a two-phase condensate . If the membrane has a selectivity that is just greater than the minimum, the recycle rate of the aqueous phase relative to the feed rate will be very large and likewise the membrane area . Also, for a membrane with known organic permeability, one can define a theoretical A(min), the minimum membrane area required when the separation factor is so high that the aqueous phase is negligible . For membranes with alpha > alpha(min), values of the required membrane area, A, have been obtained for various representative duties, and a correlation between alpha/alpha(min) and A/A(min) has been obtained (compare with the Gilliland correlation used in distillation) . An approximate relationship is (A/A(min) (- 1))(alpha/alpha(min) (- 1)) = 1 . Since alpha(min) and A(min) can be calculated readily, this relationship is a shortcut tool that permits estimation of A for any alpha and any duty . Finally, membrane areas for the above hybrid system and those for PV alone are compared. Ann N Y Acad Sci, 2003 Mar, 984, 178 - 93 Characteristics and application of ceramic nanofiltration membranes; Weber R et al.; In this paper we report on the characteristic and filtration behavior of a newly developed ceramic nanofiltration membrane and compare it with other commercial ceramic nanofiltration membranes currently available . It is shown that it is possible to produce a ceramic membrane with separation properties in the nanofiltration range and with permeability rates that are clearly superior to those of polymer nanofiltration membranes . The ceramic membrane was used in tests involving the treatment of textile wastewater, alkaline solutions from bottle washing machines, and pickling bath solutions. Chemosphere, 2003 Aug, 52(6), 1089 - 94 Leaching behavior and chemical stability of copper butyl xanthate complex under acidic conditions; Chang YK et al.; Although xanthate addition can be used for treating copper-containing wastewater, a better understanding of the leaching toxicity and the stability characteristics of the copper xanthate complexes formed is essential . This work was undertaken to evaluate the leaching behavior of copper xanthate complex precipitates by means of toxicity characteristics leaching procedure (TCLP) and semi-dynamic leaching test (SDLT) using 1 N acetic acid solution as the leachant . Also, the chemical stability of the copper xanthate complex during extraction has been examined with the studying of variation of chemical structure using UV-vis, Fourier transform infrared and X-ray photoelectron spectroscopies (XPS).Both TCLP and SDLT results showed that a negligible amount of copper ion was leached out from the copper xanthate complex precipitate, indicating that the complex exhibited a high degree of copper leaching stability under acidic conditions . Nevertheless, chemical structure of the copper xanthate complex precipitate varied during the leaching tests . XPS data suggested that the copper xanthate complex initially contained both cupric and cuprous xanthate, but the unstable cupric xanthate change to the cuprous form after acid extraction, indicating the cuprous xanthate to be the final stabilizing structure . Despite that, the changes of chemical structure did not induce the rapid leaching of copper from the copper xanthate complex. Environ Sci Technol, 2003 May 1, 37(9), 1955 - 61 Supercritical water oxidation of sulfide; Wang T et al.; Supercritical water oxidation (SCWO) of sulfide wastewater with oxygen as the oxidant was investigated using ammonium sulfide solution as the model waste . The experiments, which were conducted in a bench-scale continuous SCWO installation, indicated that S2- could be completely oxidized to SO4(2-) within the residence time of less than 10 s under the supercritical water conditions at 698.2-773.2 K and 22.0 MPa-30.0 MPa . The reaction pathway of S2- in SCWO was determined to be S2- --> S2O3(2-) --> SO3(2-) --> SO4(2-) . The effects of temperature, pressure, and oxygen content on SCWO of S2- were also studied . The kinetic model based on this pathway was established with the reaction rate constants and orders found by fitting the experimental data . The dependence of the rate constants on the temperature can be described with Arrhenius' law . The rate constants are dependent on the density of SCW, and the dependence is logarithmically linear. J Environ Sci Health A Tox Hazard Subst Environ Eng, 2003 Jun, 38(6), 1073 - 85 Removal of total suspended solids from wastewater in constructed horizontal flow subsurface wetlands; Manios T et al.; Subsurface horizontal flow experimental wetlands (reed beds), were designed and built based on a combination of two design methodologies, that of the WRc and Severn Trent Water plc (1996) and that of the USA, EPA (1988) . Four different growing media were used with a combination of top soil, gravel, river sand, and mature sewage sludge compost, to determine the best substrate for total suspended solids (TSS) removal . Eight units were constructed, two for each growing media . One bed for each pair was planted with Typha latifolia plants commonly known as cattails . Primary treated domestic wastewater, was continuously fed to the beds for more than six months . All eight beds performed very well . The best performance was achieved by the gravel reed beds with an almost constant removal rate above 95% and an average effluent concentration of less than 10 mg/L . Soil based beds containing top soil and sand, managed to reach values of removal around 90% . The wetlands containing compost in their substrate, produced an effluent with average concentration of less than 30 mg/L and a percentage removal between 80% and 90% . As expected, there was no significant difference in the performance of planted and unplanted wetlands. J Environ Sci Health A Tox Hazard Subst Environ Eng, 2003 Jun, 38(6), 991 - 1005 Removal of organic pollutants and metabolic adaptation of microorganisms by micro-aeration; Saito M et al.; Aerobic systems are high rate processes for wastewater treatment, but they consume much power for aeration . Several low-cost anaerobic systems have been developed for mid- and low-income countries . The removal efficiencies of nutrients, particulate matter, and pathogens are not satisfactory for the anaerobic systems . Micro-aeration is a type of low-cost aerobic application which enhances oxygen transfer through water surface . Trickling was found the most efficient method of micro-aeration and batch experiments were performed to evaluate the effectiveness . When soluble organic carbon was removed, ORP7 (redox potential rectified to pH at 7) were around -120 or +260 mV . When soluble organic carbon increased due to organic overload, ORP7 was around +30 mV . At +30 mV, carbon fraction of biomass increased to 0.54 (higher than average value of 0.46) . It was presumable that the ORP7 of -120, +260, and +30 mV were anaerobic, aerobic, and internal storage mode, respectively . Maximum reaction rate of aerobic condition was four times as high as that of anaerobic condition . At internal storage mode, the rate was halved from aerobic mode . It is concluded that microorganisms adapt the metabolic systems to conform to the redox environment, which can be evaluated by ORP . Organic overload results metabolic shift to internal storage mode which retards mineralization of organic matter. Water Environ Res, 2003 Mar-Apr, 75(2), 163 - 70 Detection of infectious human adenoviruses in tertiary-treated and ultraviolet-disinfected wastewater; Thompson SS et al.; A pilot-scale study investigating the use of low-pressure, high-intensity UV radiation for disinfection of urban wastewater was conducted . The inactivation of coliform bacteria, wastewater-indigenous enteric viruses, seeded poliovirus, and seeded F-specific coliphage was studied . During the course of the pilot study, infectious human adenoviruses were isolated from 15 of 16 large-volume samples of UV-disinfected secondary- and tertiary-treated wastewater . Half of the tertiary-treated, UV-disinfected effluent samples from which the adenoviruses were isolated had total coliform concentrations that complied with California's Water Recycling Criteria . To determine the relative UV resistance of the adenovirus isolates, purified viruses were seeded into tertiary-treated waste-water and exposed to low-pressure, high-intensity, collimated UV radiation . A dose of approximately 170 mW-s/cm2 was required to achieve 99.99% inactivation . These findings suggest that UV doses effective at meeting certain wastewater regulations for total coliform bacteria may not provide suitable inactivation of the UV-resistant human adenoviruses. Water Environ Res, 2003 Mar-Apr, 75(2), 121 - 5 Examination of mechanisms for odor compound generation during lime stabilization; Kim H et al.; Lime-stabilized biosolids produced from a wastewater treatment plant often emit odors, especially those described as "fishy" and "decaying" . These odors can generate public opposition to biosolids land-application programs even though they represent an environmentally friendly recycling of organic material that is beneficial to the agricultural industry . Therefore, it is critical to examine the controlling factors involved in odor production during the lime stabilization process . Results from preliminary experiments examining added polymer and protein material to dewatered limed biosolids show increased trimethylamine (TMA) production with further increases in 1-hour and 4-hour storage times prior to liming . Further experiments with water-silica slurry reaction media reveal that enzymatically facilitated degradation of polymer and protein is the overriding factor in TMA and dimethyldisulfide (DMDS) production . It is hypothesized that macromolecules such as polymer and proteins in biosolids are first broken down enzymatically, upon which the addition of lime causes TMA and DMDS to be released. J Hazard Mater, 2003 May 30, 99(3), 303 - 11 Removal characteristics of anionic metals by micellar-enhanced ultrafiltration; Baek K et al.; Surfactant-based separation of Fe(CN)(6)(3-) and CrO(4)(2-) using regenerated cellulose membrane was studied in order to assess the potential of micellar-enhanced ultrafiltration for the remediation of wastewater or groundwater polluted with ferriccyanide and chromate . In the ferriccyanide/octadecylamine acetate (ODA) and chromate/ODA systems, removal of ferriccyanide increased from 73 to 92% and to 98%, and that of chromate from 64 to 97% and to >99.9% as the molar ratio of ODA to ferriccyanide and to chromate increased from 1 to 2 and to 3, respectively . In the ferriccyanide/chromate/ODA system, while the removal of ferriccyanide increased from 62 to 72% and to 93%, the removal of chromate from 20 to 38% and to 68% as the molar ratio of ferriccyanide:chromate:ODA increased from 1:1:1 to 1:1:2 and to 1:1:4, respectively . With the molar ratio of 1:1:6, the removal was >99.9 and 98% for chromate and ferriccyanide, respectively . Ferriccyanide ions were more easily bound to ODA micelles because the binding power of ferriccyanide was greater than that of chromate. Aquat Toxicol, 2003 May 29, 63(4), 431 - 46 Developmental estrogenic exposure in zebrafish (Danio rerio): II . Histological evaluation of gametogenesis and organ toxicity; Weber LP et al.; Aquatic species can be exposed to endocrine disrupting chemicals (EDCs) in wastewater that often includes the weak estrogen, 4-nonylphenol (NP) and the potent estrogen, 17alpha-ethinylestradiol (EE) . The goal of the present study was to determine concentration-dependent effects of developmental exposure to NP and EE on gametogenesis, as well as gonad, kidney and liver pathology using quantitative histological evaluation of hematoxylin/eosin-stained saggital sections of zebrafish (Danio rerio) . The major finding of the present study was that exposure to NP (>/=100 microg/l nominal) and EE (>/=1 ng/l nominal) from 2 to 60 days post-hatch (dph) caused concentration-dependent suppression of gametogenesis in both male and female zebrafish . Severe kidney pathology was observed in 60 dph zebrafish, specifically glomerular dilation or degeneration, fibrosis, tubule enlargement and tubule necrosis, at a threshold of 10 ng/l EE . However, minor kidney histopathology indicated by increased pyknotic nuclei in kidney tubule and interstitial (hematopoietic) cells was detected at lower estrogenic exposures (>/=10 microg/l NP nominal) than delayed gametogenesis . Considering all histological parameters in the current study, the rank order of potency for pathological effects in 60 dph zebrafish was 10 ng/l EE>1 ng/l EE=100 microg/l NP>30 microg/l NP>10 microg/l NP10 (nominal concentrations) . Zebrafish from the same cohort examined in the current study that had been placed in clean water from 60 to 300 dph had histologically normal testes and no kidney or liver histopathology . However, increased ovarian follicle atresia was detected at 300 dph in zebrafish exposed developmentally to 100 microg/l NP . Therefore, we conclude that functional rather than morphological changes may be more important for future evaluations of developmental exposure to estrogens in fish, and that negative effects in female rather than male gonads may contribute to prolonged breeding impairment. Water Res, 2003 Jun, 37(11), 2732 - 8 Study on the use of NADH fluorescence measurements for monitoring wastewater treatment systems; Farabegoli G et al.; Fluorescence measurement of intracellular nicotinamide adenine dinucleotide (NADH) provides information about the physiological response of microbes towards changing conditions in their environment and has been suggested to be useful for the control of wastewater treatment plants . In this study, the practical usefulness of such measurements was evaluated from batch experiments with a commercially available NADH sensor in a bench scale reactor . The sensor was linear in the NADH concentration, robust, almost maintenance free, and hardly sensitive to floc size distribution . Measured fluorescence intensity proved to depend strongly on the concentration of active heterotrophic biomass . The NADH level was supposed to be dependent on the ratio of electron donor/electron acceptor availability inside the cells; however, neither acetate nor ammonium addition was reflected by the measurement signal.A jump wise NADH signal change was observed at complete oxygen or nitrate depletion as also reflected by bends in the redox curve . In the near zero concentration ranges of oxygen and nitrate (0.1-0.5mg/l) the signal changes only slightly in the opposite direction to the redox trend. Water Res, 2003 Jun, 37(11), 2627 - 35 Estimating DOC regime in a wastewater treatment plant by UV deconvolution; Escalas A et al.; A UV-deconvolution method was modified, and applied to estimation of dissolved organic carbon (DOC) along a municipal wastewater treatment plant (WWTP) in Catalonia, Spain . One grab sample was taken every 2h at four sampling points, for 1 week (336 samples), in order to characterise day/night and weekday/weekend DOC regimes along the plant . Samples were centrifuged before DOC determination or estimation . Four components were selected for describing wastewater composition and spectra . Reference spectra for these components were taken from the literature and proved to correctly explain the sample spectra . A two-step deconvolution method was developed, which avoided negative nitrate coefficients while keeping deconvolution error low . The calibration file for DOC estimation was determined by analysing DOC and acquiring UV spectra from 48 samples . DOC values were correlated to UV spectra by multiple linear regression . Determination coefficient and standard error were comparable to the values found in the literature . In raw or diluted samples with an absorbance between 2.0 and 2.5, DOC was probably underestimated by the method . This points to some nonlinearity for absorbances above 2.0, rather than the 2.5 limit suggested by the original method . DOC calculation through UV deconvolution allowed for the estimation of DOC regime along the WWTP . Time bands for higher and lower DOC concentrations were determined and characterised at each sampling point, for weekdays and the weekend . Except for the plant effluent, clear time bands were found . In effluent, DOC was always low, and very small oscillations were detected, due to DOC removal and intense mixing in the biological process . DOC profiles at each point are discussed in this paper . The modified deconvolution method has proved to be an accurate and efficient technique for estimating DOC of a large number of raw and diluted samples. Water Res, 2003 Jun, 37(11), 2583 - 94 Dynamic behavior of ozonation with pollutant in a countercurrent bubble column with oxygen mass transfer; Chen YH et al.; The dynamic behavior of ozonation with pollutants in a countercurrent bubble column is studied for the model establishment . Bubble columns have been widely used for an ozonation system in the plants and laboratories . In addition, a countercurrent bubble column has been commonly recommended than a cocurrent one because it has a higher ozone transfer efficiency . Therefore, the investigation of this paper focuses on the countercurrent bubble column . As an ozonation process starts, the gas mixture of ozone and oxygen is introduced into the bottom of a column, and then transferred into the liquid . The pollutants in the wastewater are eliminated subsequently via oxidation by the dissolved ozone . There certainly exists a temporary and unsteady period before the ozonation system reaches steady state . However, available ozonation models employed to describe ozone and pollutant profiles have commonly been developed for steady state . The treating qualities of wastewater in the early stage of ozonation are usually not predicted, and the time required for the steady-state establishment remains to be determined . Moreover, oxygen mass transfer is usually neglected in previous ozonation models so that the increase of dissolved oxygen is uncertain . These information is desirable for the proper design and operation of ozonation system in a bubble column . Thus, the aim of this study is to model and investigate the dynamic processes of ozonation with pollutants including oxygen mass transfer . The dynamic axial dispersion model proposed is employed to predict the variation of the ozone, pollutant, and oxygen concentrations profiles . The validity of the model was demonstrated by comparing the predicted results with the experimental data . The o-cresol was chosen as the model pollutant . The temporal concentration variations of the residual o-cresol and dissolved oxygen in the effluent liquid, and the off-gas ozone in the free volume were measured accordingly . Furthermore, the variation of the enhancement factor of ozone and the amount of off-gas were predicted . Note that it usually needs 2-5 hydraulic retention times to approach steady state under the conditions of this study . Further, the effects of dimensionless system parameters on the performance of the ozonation processes are examined . As a result, the proposed dynamic model of ozonation with pollutants is useful for proper prediction of the variables of an ozonation system in a countercurrent bubble column. Mycopathologia, 2002, 156(3), 193 - 205 Ecology of dermatophytes and other keratinophilic fungi in swimming pools and polluted and unpolluted streams; Ali-Shtayeh MS et al.; The biodiversity and richness of keratinophilic fungal communities including dermatophytes were assessed in three stream sites and three swimming pools in the Nablus district in Palestine, using hair baiting (HBT) and surface dilution plate (SDP) techniques, over 8- and 6-month periods, respectively . The effect of wastewater effluent and selected ecological factors on these fungi in relation to species diversity and population densities were also considered . Fifty keratinophilic fungal species were recovered from the aquatic habitats studied, of which 42 were recovered from stream sites and 22 from swimming pools . Of these fungi 6 were either dermatophytes (Microsporum gypseum, and Trichophyton mentagrophytes) or dermatophyte related species (Chrysosporium merdarium, Ch . tropicum, Ch . keratinophilum and T . terrestre) . The most frequently isolated species in the three pools were Acremonium strictum and Cladosporium cladosporioides, using Sabouraud dextrose agar medium (SDA) . The most abundant species were Acr . strictum, and Aspergillus flavus . However, only 4 species were isolated using the SDA medium amended with 5-flurocytosine (5-FC) . The most frequent and abundant species in the three stream sites using SDA medium were Geotricum candidum, and Penicillium chrysogenum . The most frequent species in the three sites using the 5-FC medium, was Paecilomyces lilacinus . Using HBT, the most abundant and frequent species in the three stream sites were G . candidum, and Pa . lilacinus, on SDA medium, and Pa . lilacinus, and Gliocladium nigrovirens on the 5-FC medium . The 5-FC medium was more suitable for the isolation of dermatophytes and closely related species than the SDA medium; 6 were recovered on 5-FC, whereas only one on the SDA medium . Variation in the levels of keratinophilic fungal populations from the three stream sites sampled 5 times over an 8-month period, followed comparable fluctuation patterns . Wastewater affected fungal population densities with the highest levels in the un-polluted stream sites, and lowest in the heavily polluted sites . Swimming pools, polluted and un-polluted stream sites were found to be rich in pathogenic and potentially pathogenic fungi. Int J Environ Health Res, 2003 Jun, 13(2), 107 - 15 Sanitation and hygiene in urban and rural households in East Africa; Tumwine J et al.; Latrine possession, disposal of children's faeces and waste-water in 1015 households in 33 sites in Kenya, Tanzania and Uganda were studied in 1997 . Assistants conducted interviews and observed the state and use of latrines, disposal of children's faeces, wastewater, and household socio-demographic characteristics . Latrine possession was 92.4% in Uganda, 95% in Kenya and 99.5% in Tanzania . In unpiped sites, 73.5% of Ugandan, 90.5% of Tanzanian and 95% of Kenyan households had latrines . Over 30% of latrines in rural Uganda were contaminated with faeces, compared with 10% in Tanzania . More latrines in urban Kenya and Uganda had contaminated surroundings than in the rural areas . The mean number of people using a toilet in the urban areas (10) was significantly higher than in rural areas (7), (F = 45.5; P < 0.001) . Toilets in Kenya and Uganda were more likely to be fouled than in Tanzania . Households where the head was an educated professional or business person, or the toilet had a door, lid or concrete wall or floor or waste water was disposed of in the latrine, were less likely to have fouled toilets . Most households disposed of the faeces safely with a few placing them in the garden or elsewhere . The study emphasises the need to promote appropriate sanitation and hygiene. J Environ Sci Health A Tox Hazard Subst Environ Eng, 2003 May, 38(5), 935 - 47 Performance of COD removal from acid scarlet BS-containing solution in a novel packed-bed hollow-tube photocatalytic (PHP) reactor; Xiong Y et al.; A novel packed-bed hollow-tube photocatalytic (PHP) reactor using TiO2-coated Ti particles as fillers was designed and applied to treat a simulated dye wastewater containing Acid Scarlet BS . The experimental results showed that PHP reactor could efficiently remove chemical oxygen demand (COD) from the dye solution and the COD removal efficiency was considerably dependent on the operating parameters, airflow, initial dye concentration and initial pH value of solution . It was also found that the inserting of the hollow tubes could apparently increase the COD removal efficiency of the packed-bed photo-reactor while the application of external electric field could improve the degradation efficiency of the dye but not obviously promote COD removal. J Environ Sci Health A Tox Hazard Subst Environ Eng, 2003 May, 38(5), 897 - 907 Electrophoretic nature and evaluation of poly-aluminum-chloride-sulfate (PACS) as a coagulant for water and wastewater treatment; Gao BY et al.; A series of poly-aluminum-chloride-sulfates (PACS), which have different OH/Al (gamma) and Al(3+)/SO4(2-) mole ratios, has been prepared using AlCl3 x 6H2O, A(SO4)3 x 18H2O and Na2CO3 as raw materials . The electrophoretic nature of PACS was investigated by electrophoresis . Laboratory experiments were undertaken to evaluate the PACS in comparison with polyaluminum chloride (PAC) for the coagulation of simulating water and actual wastewaters . The experimental results show that the gamma value and the Al(3+)/SO4(2-) mole ratio affect the electrophoretic nature of PACS . PACS has a maximum zeta potential at about a gamma value of 1.5 and Al(3+)/SO4(2-) mole ratio of 12-16 . The zeta potential of PACS varies with pH . The performance of PACS as coagulant is affected by gamma value and Al(3+)/SO4(2-) mole ratio . PACS of gamma = 2.1 and Al(3+)/SO4(2-) = 15 gives best turbidity removal effectiveness . In comparison with PAC of gamma = 2.0, PACS of gamma = 2.0 and Al(3+)/SO4(2-) = 16 gives higher removal efficiency for turbidity and COD, and shows the following advantages in the clarification of waters and wastewaters: rapid aggregation velocity, larger and heavier flocs, and lower required dosage. J Environ Sci Health A Tox Hazard Subst Environ Eng, 2003 May, 38(5), 883 - 96 Factors affecting the performances of sepiolite and zeolite for the treatment of textile wastewater; Armagan B; In this study, the adsorption mechanism of three reactive azo dyes (Everzol Black B, Everzol Red 3BS, Everzol Yellow 3RS H/C) on natural porous minerals, sepiolite and zeolite, have been examined in order to identify the ability of clay minerals on the removal of colored textile dyes from aqueous solutions . High ion exchange capacity, high surface areas and importantly their relatively cheap prices make them attractive adsorbents . For this purpose, series of batch adsorption tests were carried out as a function of solids concentration, time and dye concentration using natural and modified sepiolites and zeolites . Also, experiments were conducted to determine the amount of solid to be used in adsorption tests . An optimum solids concentration was selected as 0.05 g/mL (5%) . Most of the adsorption was found to take place within the first 2h of mixing, taking into account the extreme changes like pH and concentration, the mixing period was selected as 4 h for further testing . The adsorption results indicate that both natural sepiolite and zeolite have limited adsorption capacities of the reactive dyes but are substantially improved by modifying their surfaces with quaternary amines . The mechanism of adsorption process is elucidated on the basis of experimental data. J Environ Sci Health A Tox Hazard Subst Environ Eng, 2003 May, 38(5), 823 - 38 Soil contamination and plant uptake of heavy metals at polluted sites in China; Wang QR et al.; We investigated heavy metal contamination in soils and plants at polluted sites in China including some with heavy industries, metal mining, smelting and untreated wastewater irrigation areas . We report our main findings in this paper . The concentrations of heavy metals, including Cd and Zn, in the soils at the investigated sites were above the background levels, and generally exceeded the Government guidelines for metals in soil . The concentrations of metals in plants served to indicate the metal contamination status of the site, and also revealed the abilities of various plant species to take up and accumulate the metals from the soil . Substantial differences in the accumulation of heavy metals were observed among the plant species investigated . Polygonum hydropiper growing on contaminated soils in a sewage pond had accumulated 1061 mg kg(-1) of Zn in its shoots . Rumex acetosa L . growing near a smelter had accumulated more than 900 mg kg(-1) of Zn both in its shoots and roots . Therefore these species have potential for phytoremediation of metal-contaminated sites . Our results indicate the need to elucidate the dynamics of soil metal contamination of plants and the onward movement of metal contaminants into the food chain . Also our results indicate that the consumption of rice grown in paddy soils contaminated with Cd, Cr or Zn may pose a serious risk to human health, because from 24 to 22% of the total metal content in the rice biomass was concentrated in the rice grain . Platanus acerifolia growing on heavily contaminated soil accumulated only very low levels of heavy metals, and this mechanism for excluding metal uptake may have value in crop improvement . Sources of metal entering the environmental matrices studied included untreated wastewater, tailings or slurries and dust depositions from metal ore mining, and sewage sludge . Pb, Zn or Cd concentrations declined with the distance from metal smelter in accordance with a good exponential correlation (R2>0.9), and this shows that metal dust deposition is an important contributor to metal contamination of soils. J Colloid Interface Sci, 2003 Apr 1, 260(1), 166 - 75 Interaction of the zeolitic tuff with Zn-containing simulated pollutant solutions; Trgo M et al.; The possibility of removing Zn(2+) cations from wastewater by ion exchange using natural zeolites as exchangers has been investigated . The process of binding of zinc ions into zeolite structure has been established by several reaction mechanisms as a fast chemical reaction of ion exchange, accompanied by slower adsorption of different ionic species and possible precipitation or coprecipitation with the zeolite structure . The physicochemical phenomena such as hydrolysis and dissolution of surface layers are the result of interaction of zeolite with hydrogen or hydroxyl ions from the solution . Complexation of OH(-) with Zn(2+) to form the zinc-hydroxy species strongly depends on pH value and affect the uptake mechanism as to lower dissolution of surface aluminosilicate layers . Structure imperfections as a surface property of mineralogical nonhomogeneous zeolitic grains can lead to formation of sorption surface sites with different energy, which affects the nonuniform distribution of different zinc species adsorbed . It is particularly possible in zeolitic tuff samples with relatively high content of aluminosilicates as minor mineralogical components, which is characteristic of Croatian deposits. Stud Surf Sci Catal, 1999, 120, 455 - 71 Adsorption processes in spacecraft environmental control and life support systems; DallBauman LA et al.; The environmental control and life support system on a spacecraft maintains a safe and comfortable environment in which the crew can live and work by supplying oxygen and water and by removing carbon dioxide, water vapor, and trace contaminants from cabin air . Although open-loop systems have been used successfully in the past for short-duration missions, the economics of current and future long-duration missions in space will make nearly complete recycling of air and water imperative . A variety of operations will be necessary to achieve the goal of nearly complete recycling . These include separation and reduction of carbon dioxide, removal of trace gas-phase contaminants, recovery and purification of humidity condensate, purification and polishing of wastewater streams, and others . Several of these can be performed totally or in part by adsorption processes . These processes are good candidates to perform separations and purifications in space due to their gravity independence, high reliability, relative high energy efficiency, design flexibility, technological maturity, and regenerative nature . For these reasons, adsorption has historically played a key role in life support on U.S . and Russian piloted spacecraft . Among the life support applications that can be achieved through use of adsorption technology are removal of trace contaminants and carbon dioxide from cabin air and recovery of potable water from waste streams . In each of these cases adsorption technology has been selected for use onboard the International Space Station . The requirements, science, and hardware for these applications are discussed . Human space exploration may eventually lead to construction of planetary habitats . These habitats may provide additional opportunities for use of adsorption processes, such as control of greenhouse gas composition, and may have different resources available to them, such as gases present in the planetary atmosphere . Separation and purification processes based on adsorption can be expected to continue to fulfill environmental control and life support needs on future missions. Waste Manag Res, 2003 Apr, 21(2), 145 - 54 Kinetics of anaerobic treatment of landfill leachates combined with urban wastewaters; Fueyo G et al.; The anaerobic degradation of landfill leachates mixed with domestic wastewater has been studied in a pilot-scale Upflow Anaerobic Sludge Blanket (UASB) reactor . A previous work in laboratory-scale had shown that a fraction (5%) of the refractory organic matter could be additionally degraded when these two substrates were treated in conjunction, but this synergistic effect in the Chemical Oxygen Demand (COD) removal was not reproduced . However, the mass loading rate for which the maximum degradation was obtained was higher for the mixtures (0.5 kg COD/kg SSV x d) than for the separated components (0.18 and 0.19), allowing an increase in the treatment capacity of the leachates . The methane productivity (304 L/kg COD) was close to the theoretical maximum and independent of the proportion of the mixture components . The experimental data were fitted to a modification of Haldane's kinetic model, in which the parameters depend on the hydraulic residence time and the biomass concentration. J Chromatogr A, 2003 Apr 18, 993(1-2), 29 - 37 Simultaneous determination of neutral and acidic pharmaceuticals in wastewater by high-performance liquid chromatography-post-column photochemically induced fluorimetry; Gonzalez-Barreiro C et al.; An analytical method for the simultaneous determination of acidic and neutral pharmaceutical active compound (PhACs) residues in wastewater has been developed based on the combination of high-performance liquid chromatography (HPLC) and photochemically induced fluorimetry . The photoderivatization conditions for each particular PhAC have been assessed . Off-line optimization of the HPLC separation for both neutral and acidic compounds has been utilised and evaluated . Detection limits in the low ng/ml range have been achieved without sample pretreatment . By applying the developed analytical method combined with solid-phase extraction to real wastewater samples an enrichment factor of approximately two orders of magnitude can be obtained. Environ Monit Assess, 2003 May, 84(1-2), 35 - 44 Removal and recovery of metals from a coal pile runoff; Ibeanusi VM et al.; The removal and recovery of heavy metals from a coal pile runoff water using a mixture of multiple metal-tolerant bacterial strains of ATCC 55673, and ATCC 55674 and a Pseudomonas sp . was investigated . The analysis of elemental composition of metal precipitates recovered from the bacterial biomass by transmission electron microscopy andenergy dispersive X-ray analysis revealed the presence of metals originally present in the wastewater . In addition, analysis of metals in culture supernatant and bacterial biomass by inductively coupled plasma emission spectroscopy (ICP-ES) indicated a removal range of 82-100% and a recovery of 15-58% of metals from the wastewater and bacterial biomass, respectively. Ambio, 2003 Mar, 32(2), 124 - 9 Water management for a megacity: Mexico City Metropolitan Area; Tortajada C et al.; The paper presents an overview of the present situation of the Mexico City Metropolitan Area (MCMA) . The analysis indicates an urgent need to radically improve the current water supply and wastewater management practices, to become sustainable . The MCMA is one of the most rapidly growing urban centers of the world, with a population of about 21 million people, a very high rate of immigration and numerous illegal settlements . In order to meet the increasing water demand, successive governments have focused almost exclusively on supply management and engineering solutions, which have resulted in investments of hundreds of millions of USD and the construction of major infrastructure projects for interbasin water transfer . Environmental, economic and social policies associated with water management are mostly inadequate and insufficient, which is resulting in increasing deterioration in the environment, health and socioeconomic conditions of a population living in one of the largest urban agglomerations of the world . Surprisingly, however, no long-term strategies on demand-management, reuse, conservation, and improved water-management practices have been developed so far. Bioresour Technol, 2003 Mar, 87(1), 129 - 32 Utilization of various agricultural wastes for activated carbon preparation and application for the removal of dyes and metal ions from aqueous solutions; Kadirvelu K et al.; Activated carbons were prepared from the agricultural solid wastes, silk cotton hull, coconut tree sawdust, sago waste, maize cob and banana pith and used to eliminate heavy metals and dyes from aqueous solution . Adsorption of all dyes and metal ions required a very short time and gave quantitative removal . Experimental results show all carbons were effective for the removal of pollutants from water . Since all agricultural solid wastes used in this investigation are freely, abundantly and locally available, the resulting carbons are expected to be economically viable for wastewater treatment. Bioresour Technol, 2003 Mar, 87(1), 113 - 24 Mathematical modeling of non-ideal mixing continuous flow reactors for anaerobic digestion of cattle manure; Keshtkar A et al.; Most conventional digesters used for animal wastewater treatment include continuously stirred-tank reactors . While imperfect mixing patterns are more common than ideal ones in real reactors, anaerobic digestion models often assume complete mixing conditions . Therefore, their applicability appears to be limited . In this study, a mathematical model for anaerobic digestion of cattle manure was developed to describe the dynamic behavior of non-ideal mixing continuous flow reactors . The microbial kinetic model includes an enzymatic hydrolysis step and four microbial growth steps, together with the effects of substrate inhibition, pH and thermodynamic considerations . The biokinetic expressions were linked to a simple two-region liquid mixing model, which considered the reactor volume in two separate sections, the flow-through and the retention regions . Deviations from an ideal completely mixed regime were represented by changing the relative volume of the flow-through region (a) and the ratio of the internal exchange flow rate to the feed flow rate (b) . The effects of the hydraulic retention time, the composition of feed, the initial conditions of the reactor and the degree of mixing on process performance can be evaluated by the dynamic model . The simulation results under different conditions showed that deviations from the ideal mixing regime decreased the methane yield and resulted in a reduced performance of the anaerobic reactors . The evaluation of the impact of the characteristic mixing parameters (a) and (b) on the anaerobic digestion of cattle manure showed that both liquid mixing parameters had significant effects on reactor performance. Bioresour Technol, 2003 Mar, 87(1), 51 - 6 Comparative evaluation of yeast and bacterial treatment of high salinity wastewater based on biokinetic coefficients; Dan NP et al.; This paper compares the performance of the aerobic treatment of high organic-high salinity wastewater by yeast and bacterial systems . The biokinetic coefficients for both the systems were determined and used to analyze the behavior of the yeast and bacterial systems under high salinity conditions . It was found that the yeast culture was more efficient compared to the bacterial culture, especially for high salinity conditions that severely inhibit growth and performance of bacterial systems . The values of the biokinetic coefficients obtained from this study are in agreement with the observations . Nutrient removal capacity has also been found to be better for yeast due to higher nutrient uptake in the yeast biomass. Anal Bioanal Chem, 2003 Apr, 375(8), 1130 - 5 Epub 2003 Feb 22. On-line monitoring of opaque liquids by photoacoustic spectroscopy; Schmid T et al.; A new photoacoustic sensor system for on-line monitoring of highly concentrated and optical opaque liquid samples is presented . The dyeing of textiles is performed with highly concentrated dye solutions with concentrations ranging from 50 mg L(-1) up to 40 g L(-1) . For process optimization and control of the wastewater, an on-line monitoring of the dye concentration is needed . Optical transmission measurements allow the determination of the dye concentration in a relatively small range . Samples with concentrations in the upper mg L(-1) and g L(-1) range have to be diluted before the measurement due to their optical opacity . Additionally, light-scattering particles have a strong effect on the transmitted light intensity . By photoacoustic spectroscopy, concentrations in condensed matter can be determined over several orders of magnitude . Furthermore, scattering particles do not generate any photoacoustic signal. Med Pr, 2003, 54(1), 73 - 80 {Harmful agents in municipal wastewater treatment plants}; Cyprowski M et al.; Chemical and biological hazards and health effects of exposure to some selected agents on the workers of municipal wastewater treatment plants are reported . This issue has not as yet been thoroughly analyzed in Poland . The workers of wastewater treatment plants are exposed to: heavy metals (Pb, Cu, Zn, Cd, Cr, Ni), polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAH), polychlorinated biphenyls (PCB), volatile organic matter, hydrogen sulfide, organic agents, including bacteria, viruses and fungi, organic-produced endotoxins and glucans . The most frequent disorders reported by the wastewater--treatment workers comprise respiratory and gastrointestinal infections, ocular and dermal irritations, headache and discomfort . The assessment of hygienic conditions at individual workplaces is difficult because of lack of hygiene standards for airborne microorganisms and endotoxins . Up to now, the exposure of workers employed in municipal wastewater treatment plants has not been assessed in Poland . The number of the affected workers is estimated at 11,000-19,000 people. J Biotechnol, 2003 May 8, 102(3), 233 - 9 A general model for biosorption of Cd2+, Cu2+ and Zn2+ by aerobic granules; Liu Y et al.; Aerobic granules are microbial aggregates with a strong and compact structure . This study looked into the feasibility of aerobic granules as a novel type of biosorbent for the removal of individual Cd(2+), Cu(2+) and Zn(2+) from aqueous solution . Based on the thermodynamics of biosorption reaction, a general model was developed to describe the equilibrium biosorption of individual Cd(2+), Cu(2+) and Zn(2+) by aerobic granules . This model provides good insights into the thermodynamic mechanisms of biosorption of heavy metals . The model prediction was in good agreement with the experimental data obtained . It was further demonstrated that the Langmuir, Freundlich and Sips or Hill equations were particular cases of the proposed model . The biosorption capacity of individual Cd(2+), Cu(2+) and Zn(2+) on aerobic granules was 172.7, 59.6 and 164.5 mgg(-1), respectively . These values may imply that aerobic granules are effective biosorbent for the removal of Cd(2+), Cu(2+) and Zn(2+) from industrial wastewater. Chemosphere, 2003 Jul, 52(1), 55 - 66 Risk assessment approach for untreated wastewater using the QUAL2E water quality model; McAvoy DC et al.; This paper presents a novel approach for assessing the risk of consumer product ingredients in surface waters that receive untreated wastewater . The approach utilizes the water quality simulation model QUAL2E for predicting the impact caused by conventional pollutants, as well as the exposure concentration of consumer product ingredients . This approach invokes an impact zone concept whereby the receiving water can be thought of as a natural wastewater treatment system . After the river has recovered via self-purification, the ecosystem is then assessed by traditional risk assessment methods . This approach was validated using data collected from the Balatuin River, which is located in the Philippines . Results from this study support the use of QUAL2E for assessing the risk of consumer product ingredients in riverine systems receiving untreated wastewater. Chemosphere, 2003 Jul, 52(1), 43 - 53 The influence of untreated wastewater to aquatic communities in the Balatuin River, The Philippines; Dyer SD et al.; A risk assessment of chemical constituents in rivers that receive untreated wastewater should take into account the adverse effects of increased biological oxygen demand (BOD), ammonia and reduced dissolved oxygen (DO) . This concept was tested via a field study in the Balatuin River, The Philippines, where the influence of physical and chemical factors, including the consumer product chemical linear alkylbenezene sulfonate (LAS), to aquatic communities (algae, invertebrates, fish) was determined . Periphytic algae were found to be insensitive to high BOD (>10 mg/l) and ammonia (>0.01 mg unionized NH(3)/l), concentrations from organically enriched untreated wastewater discharges . However, taxa richness and abundance of macroinvertebrates were influenced greatly by the discharges . Where BOD and ammonia concentrations were elevated, the dominant taxa were oligochaete worms and chironominds . Fish and crustaceans (freshwater crabs and prawns) were found only in sites with the least BOD concentrations (furthest upstream and downstream) . The maximum concentration of LAS (0.122 mg/l) was less than that expected to affect 5% of taxa (0.245 mg/l), whereas exceedences of DO and ammonia criteria were observed in several sites . The lack of recovery observed was attributed to influences of low DO, high ammonia and poor colonization from upstream and downstream reaches due to organically-enriched discharges J Environ Monit, 2003 Apr, 5(2), 341 - 5 Occurrence and persistence of perfluorooctanesulfonate and other perfluorinated surfactants in groundwater at a fire-training area at Wurtsmith Air Force Base, Michigan, USA; Moody CA et al.; Various formulations of fire-extinguishing materials, including aqueous film-forming foams (AFFFs), were used as part of fire-training exercises conducted at Wurtsmith Air Force Base (WAFB) in northeastern Michigan from the 1950s until the base was decommissioned in 1993 . As a result of past fire-training exercises, AFFF-laden wastewater containing fuels, solvents, and other materials directly entered groundwater without prior treatment . Perfluorinated surfactants are key components in some AFFF formulations . In this study, groundwater was analyzed for perfluoroalkanesulfonates and perfluorocarboxylates . Perfluoroalkanesulfonates were directly detected using negative-ion electrospray ionization mass spectrometry . Derivatized perfluorocarboxylates were detected using electron impact gas chromatography-mass spectrometry . Groundwater from wells around fire-training area FTA-02 at WAFB contained four perfluorinated surfactants ranging in concentration from 3 to 120 microg L(-1): perfluorooctanesulfonate (PFOS); perfluorohexanesulfonate; perfluorooctanoate; and perfluorohexanoate . This is the first report demonstrating that PFOS, recently shown to be toxic to organisms ranging from zooplankton to primates, is still present in groundwater in measurable quantities five or more years after its last known use. J Environ Monit, 2003 Apr, 5(2), 319 - 23 Determination of petroleum hydrocarbons and polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons in sludge from wastewater treatment basins; Pavlova A et al.; Screening by gas chromatography with flame ionization detection and gas chromatography-mass spectrometry has been carried out on sludge extracts of wastewater treatment basins . Soxhlet extraction with trichlorotrifluoroethane was applied . The yields for petroleum hydrocarbons and PAH recovery were high, usually in excess of 90% . The proposed investigations permit a quick assessment of petroleum pollutants in the environment. Water Res, 2003 May, 37(10), 2520 - 4 Wastewater treatment by radial freezing with stirring effects; Gay G et al.; Radial freezing experiments on wastewater models were conducted in the presence of imposed stirring in order to remove impurities . The studied samples (dilute Na-montmorillonite suspensions charged with nitrates and with zinc or lead) were placed inside a cylindrical annulus, cooled at a controlled temperature around -7 degrees C at its inner wall which rotated around a vertical axis . The freezing front propagated toward the still outer wall which was maintained at a constant temperature around +1 degrees C . Thanks to stirring, considerable purification rates up to 99.97% were attained . It was also demonstrated that combining radial freezing and stirring ended in residual concentrations which agreed with drinking water standards. Water Res, 2003 May, 37(10), 2442 - 8 Reactor design and kinetics study of 4,4'-dichlorobiphenyl photodecay in surfactant solution by using a photosensitizer and hydrogen source; Chu W et al.; The system design based on the photodegradation kinetics of 4,4'-dichlorobiphenyl (4,4'-DCB) in surfactant solution with the aid of solvents (acetone and/or squalane) has been studied . Organic solvents acetone and squalane were added as a photosensitizer and a hydrogen source, respectively, to achieve better photolysis performance . The quantum yield of 4,4'-DCB photodecay in Tween 80 micellar solution in the presence of added acetone was increased from 0.032 to 0.043 at its optimal condition . Acetone was shown to be an effective photosensitizer at low concentration, but an overdose would quench the reaction . Furthermore, the addition of squalane could further promote the photodechlorination of 4,4'-DCB in the Tween 80/acetone solutions for an additional 59% of rate improvement . However, an overdose of either solvent was found to cause UV light attenuation and to reduce the observed quantum yield . This effect has been justified and quantified in this study by a proposed light attenuation model, which has also been incorporated into the kinetic equation so that the resulted formula can be used to design the UV reactors for water and wastewater treatment works. Water Res, 2003 May, 37(10), 2426 - 34 Membrane treatment by nanofiltration of exhausted vegetable tannin liquors from the leather industry; Cassano A et al.; A rational use of water in the leather industry is described by applying the criteria of "clean technologies" by means of membrane processes . A nanofiltration (NF) process was used for recovering tannins and water from exhausted baths and reusing them as tanning agents and washings . Results of experiments performed on laboratory and semi-industrial pilot scale plants, operating and fluid-dynamic conditions and mass balance of the NF process are reported and discussed . Chemical and physical analytical values measured on skins treated with the recovered solutions were very similar to those measured on control skins tanned with standard solutions . According to the obtained results, a process scheme is suggested . It permits both to recover water and to increase the tannin/non tannin (T/NT) ratio in the retentate solution, starting from exhausted tanning baths and by using a NF membrane purification/concentration . The final volume reduction factor of tested exhausted baths was 5.25, the increase of T/NT ratio was from 1.1 to 2.3 and the average permeate flux was 12.5l/m(2)h . Advantages are in terms of: reduction of environmental impact (up to 75% of COD reduction of the global effluent), simplification of cleaning-up processes of wastewaters, decrease of disposal costs, saving of chemicals and water. Water Res, 2003 May, 37(10), 2365 - 71 Wastewater disinfection with PAA and UV combined treatment: a pilot plant study; Caretti C et al.; This study is part of a larger research project on Advanced Treatments for wastewater reuse in agriculture . Because of Italy's strict microbiological limits on unrestricted wastewater reuse in agriculture (2 MPN/100ml Total Coliforms), a very high degree of disinfection is necessary.The objective of this study is to proceed in validating, with a pilot plant experimentation, previous laboratory results on the disinfection efficacy of the synergic combined treatment between ultraviolet irradiation (UV) and peracetic acid (PAA) . The research has been carried out through a 5 month on-site experimental study in a pilot plant, considering four different solutions: PAA addition, UV irradiation, addition of PAA upstream the UV device (PAA+UV) and addition of PAA downstream the UV device (UV+PAA) . In the investigated experimental conditions (2-8 ppm of PAA with 10-30 min contact time; 100-300 mJ/cm(2) UV), it has been impossible to meet the microbiological limits through an exclusive use of UV irradiation or PAA . The disinfection efficacy enhances by using the UV+PAA treatment, but a much higher efficacy gain occurs by using the PAA+UV treatment . In this latter case, the higher efficiency is recognized as being brought about by the formation of free radicals due to the photolysis of the PAA when in presence of the UV rays . A preliminary cost analysis has been carried out in order to highlight the more economically advantageous solution which guarantees compliance to the strict limits. J Colloid Interface Sci, 2003 May 1, 261(1), 133 - 45 Plastic deformation in cake consolidation; Zhao J et al.; Cake filtration has a variety of applications in wastewater treatment by solid/liquid separation processes . In order to obtain the physical properties of the filter cake, a Compression-Permeability Cell (C-P Cell) can be used to examine the constitutive relationships among the solid compressive stresses, porosity and the specific filtration resistance . In this paper, a mathematical model is proposed to study the transient distribution of stresses, strains and void ratios in the confined cake of a C-P Cell under constant axial loads for dewatering . Simulations have been carried out using a plasticity model and the sensitivity analysis has revealed the possible contribution a finite plasticity can bring about the two types of cake examples with either medium or high compressibility. Environ Monit Assess, 2003 Apr, 83(3), 295 - 302 Photocatalytic degradation of phenol; Akbal F et al.; In this study photocatalytic degradation of phenol in the presence of UV irradiated TiO2 catalyst and H2O2 was investigated . Effects of TiO2 and H2O2 concentrations and pH on photocatalytic degradation were examined . The rate constants for photocatalytic degradation were evaluated as a function of TiO2 and H2O2 concentrations and pH of the solution . It was found that photodegradation is an effective method for the removal of phenol and disappearance of phenol obeyed first order kinetics . The amount of CO2 produced during photocatalytic degradation was corresponding to the complete mineralization . Photodegradation can be an alternative method for the treatment of phenol containing wastewaters. Rev Soc Bras Med Trop, 2003 Jan-Feb, 36(1), 41 - 50 Epub 2003 Apr 22. Environmental sanitation conditions and health impact: a case-control study; Heller L et al.; This epidemiological investigation examines the impact of several environmental sanitation conditions and hygiene practices on diarrhea occurrence among children under five years of age living in an urban area . The case-control design was employed; 997 cases and 999 controls were included in the investigation . Cases were defined as children with diarrhea and controls were randomly selected among children under five years of age . After logistic regression adjustment, the following variables were found to be significantly associated with diarrhea: washing and purifying fruit and vegetables; presence of wastewater in the street; refuse storage, collection and disposal; domestic water reservoir conditions; feces disposal from swaddles; presence of vectors in the house and flooding in the lot . The estimates of the relative risks reached values up to 2.87 . The present study revealed the feasibility of developing and implementing an adequate model to establish intervention priorities in the field of environmental sanitation. Sci Total Environ, 2003 May 20, 307(1-3), 11 - 8 Degradative hydrogen peroxide oxidation of chelates catalysed by metallophthalocyanines; Pirkanniemi K et al.; Catalytic oxidation of various chelating agents in aqueous solutions, namely: diethylenetriaminepentakis(methylphosphonic acid) (DTPMP); diethylenediaminepentaacetic acid (DTPA); ethylenediamine tetraacetic acid (EDTA); nitrilotriacetic acid (NTA); and beta-alaninediacetic acid (beta-ADA) was studied . Hydrogen peroxide was used as oxidising agent in combination with five different metallotetrasulfophthalocyanines as catalysts . (Reaction temperature was set to 60 degrees C, which is expected to be the temperature of bleaching wastewaters of modern pulp mill in the near future . Among the uncomplexed chelating agents, EDTA was most readily degraded, while DTPMP and NTA were less degradable . beta-ADA and DTPA concentrations remained high . The metal speciation of these chelating agents has a significant effect on their chemical degradability . Iron, manganese and sodium complexes were most degradable, while zinc, copper and calcium complexes were more difficult to oxidise. J Environ Qual, 2003 Mar-Apr, 32(2), 694 - 701 Polyvalent cation effects on myo-inositol hexakis dihydrogenphosphate enzymatic dephosphorylation in dairy wastewater; Dao TH; Information is needed on organic polyphosphates such as myo-inositol 1,2,3,5/4,6-hexakis dihydrogenphosphate or phytate (IP6) contribution to the sources and sinks of dissolved phosphorus (PO4-P) in the soil-manure-water system . Effects of Na+, Ca2+, Al3+, and Fe3+ and cation to IP6-P mole ratios on the enzymatic dephosphorylation of IP6 were studied to determine controlling mechanisms of dephosphorylation and persistence in manure . Phytate- and PO4-P were analyzed by high-performance liquid chromatography . Phytate dephosphorylation by Aspergillus ficuum (Reichardt) Henn . phytase EC 3.1.3.8 decreases by 50 +/- 3.6 and 40 +/- 4% at pH 4.5 and 6, respectively, as Ca2+ concentrations increase and cation to IP6-P mole ratios reach 6:6 . Polyanionic IP6 has a high affinity for Al3+ and Fe3+ and reductions in dephosphorylation average 27 and 32% at a cation to IP6-P mole ratio of 1:6 for Al3+ and Fe3+, respectively, while reaching more than 99% at a mole ratio of 6:6 . A phytase-hydrolyzable phosphorus (PHP) fraction is native to ruminant animal manure and is proportional to total solids (TS) concentration in 1 to 100 g L(-1) suspensions . Added phytase, in effect, increases water-extractable P content of manure and the risk of environmental P dispersion . As the bioavailability and ecological effect of IP6-P appear to be regulated not only by pH-controlled enzyme activity but also by the associated counterions, the differential protective effects of cations influence the accuracy of manure PHP fraction estimates and increase phytate resistance to enzymatic dephosphorylation that may lead to its persistence in manure. J Environ Qual, 2003 Mar-Apr, 32(2), 633 - 41 Phosphorus in runoff assessed by anion exchange resin extraction and an algal assay; Uusitalo R et al.; Eutrophication of surface waters can be accelerated by agricultural inputs of phosphorus (P), provided that P is in a form that can be utilized by aquatic algae . We studied anion exchange resin (AER) extraction and a dual culture algal assay (DCAA) for the determination of potentially algal-available P in water samples without sediment preconcentration . Our material consisted of agricultural and forest runoff and wastewaters . The results obtained by the two methods were essentially equal when the samples contained only small amounts of particulate phosphorus (PP) in relation to dissolved molybdate-reactive phosphorus (DRP) . However, in turbid agricultural runoff, P extracted with AER averaged 72% (n = 17) of the P yield of the 3-wk DCAA (R2 = 0.94) . When the runoff samples were diluted for the AER extraction in the same manner as for the DCAA, the AER-P yield increased to 85% (n = 5) of DCAA-P . The minimum detectable value was greater for the AER test (41 microg L(-1) AER-extractable P) than for the DCAA (7 microg L(-1) DCAA-P) . At concentrations greater than about 50 microg L(-1) AER-P or DCAA-P, the accuracy of the methods was satisfactory, with the coefficient of variation in replicated analyses being less than 10% for the AER test and less than 20% for the DCAA . Other anions competing for the exchange sites of the AER decreased P recovery by 15 to 20% when their equivalent concentration exceeded about 4 mmol, L(-1), and this effect was relatively constant over a large concentration range . We consider that AER extraction is a suitable low-cost method to estimate the algal availability of P in runoff samples. Huan Jing Ke Xue, 2003 Jan, 24(1), 107 - 12 {Catalytic wet oxidation of simulated wastewater succinic acid aqueous solution}; Zhang S et al.; TiO2 supports and Ru-TiO2 catalysts were characterized such as resistance to compression, specific area and crystalline structure . Activities of Ru-TiO2 catalysts in catalytic wet oxidation of succinic acid aqueous solution were studied . When loading same content of Ru on support, the larger of specific area and pore volume of support the higher of catalytic activities . Activities of catalyst made by surface treated support were higher than not treated support(COD removal increased about 10%) . Reaction was greatly influenced by temperature and pH value . When the reaction conditions were 270 degrees C, pH = 11.00, starting pressure 2.3 MPa, reacting pressure 7.1 MPa, 30 min, COD removal was at the range of 67.4%-95.4% . The catalysts remained high activities and stability after 12 times of reaction and kept COD removal great than 99%, NH3-N removal reached to 100% in a month running on a 200 L/d reactor. Huan Jing Ke Xue, 2003 Jan, 24(1), 63 - 9 {Temperature effects on DO and ORP in the wastewater treatment}; Gao D et al.; At present, there are some problems in the study of DO and ORP as control parameters, because the researches are usually developed in the invariable temperature . However, environmental temperature is changing in the wastewater treatment . The effect of environmental temperature on DO and ORP as control parameter was studied specially in some experiments carried on a sequencing batch reactor (SBR) fed with soybean wastewater in this paper . Results show that the law of variation in DO during organism removal were influenced with the environmental temperature, at different experiment condition of aeration intensity, MLSS concentration or inflow nutrition concentration, but the variation in ORP were not influenced with it . The reason that the DO was influenced was also discussed . This paper brought forward that the control parameter using ORP was accurate and reliable when environmental temperature changed . In addition, inflow COD concentration and the time that ORP concave value appeared was connected, and the speed that ORP in curve ascended related with the COD concentration during the degradation . So the end point of degradation may be estimated by applying ORP derivative . United ORP concave value and its derivative, it can be made on-line control of aeration intensity and aeration time. Biosens Bioelectron, 2003 May, 18(5-6), 529 - 40 New highly sensitive and selective catalytic DNA biosensors for metal ions; Lu Y et al.; While remarkable progress has been made in developing sensors for metal ions such as Ca(II) and Zn(II), designing and synthesizing sensitive and selective metal ion sensors remains a significant challenge . Perhaps the biggest challenge is the design and synthesis of a sensor capable of specific and strong metal binding . Since our knowledge about the construction of metal-binding sites in general is limited, searching for sensors in a combinatorial way is of significant value . Therefore, we have been able to use a combinatorial method called in vitro selection to obtain catalytic DNA that can bind a metal ion of choice strongly and specifically . The metal ion selectivity of the catalytic DNA was further improved using a 'negative selection' strategy where catalytic DNA that are selective for competing metal ions are discarded in the in vitro selection processes . By labeling the resulting catalytic DNA with a fluorophore/quencher pair, we have made a new class of metal ion fluorescent sensors that are the first examples of catalytic DNA biosensors for metal ions . The sensors combine the high selectivity of catalytic DNA with the high sensitivity of fluorescent detection, and can