Geochemical and radioactivity mapping in Poland

In 1990 the Polish Geological Institute initiated geochemical mapping of the country aimed at determining the actual conditions of chemistry in the Earth's surficial environments (soils, water sediments, and surficial waters as well) and sea-floor deposits in the Polish economic sector of the Baltic Sea. The geochemical mapping on different scales covered the entire area of the country and selected more important urban agglomerations and industrial districts. Approximately 15,100 samples of soils, 16,200 samples of fresh water sediments, 14,600 samples of surface waters and 467 samples of marine deposits were collected and analysed. A list of geochemical atlases published by the Polish Geological Institute is presented. Investigation of the distribution of radionuclides (natural and artificial) has been done since 1992. Concentrations of U, Th, K, post-Chernobyl Cs and γ dose rate were measured. Approximately 20,000 points covering the whole country were measured. More detailed mappings were executed in the areas polluted by Cs.     

Fungal air contamination in distinct sites within a municipal landfill area

Municipal wastes collected in landfills are a significant source of air contamination and frequently characterize by elevated concentrations of different fungi. Posing a serious health threat to landfill workers and local residents, the fungal aerosol has to be monitored with respect to its quantity and quality. In this study, concentrations of airborne fungi, their particle size distribution, species composition and the presence of cytotoxic strains of Aspergillus fumigatus were assessed in different sites within the landfill area. The quantitative and qualitative changes in the fungal aerosol were determined with respect to a season and landfill activity level (i.e. exploitation or standstill periods). Within the landfill area, particular sites were grouped with regard to airborne fungi concentrations and similarities in species composition. The qualitative analysis indicated that 43 species were shared during both sampling times, and only nine species were characteristic for the standstill period. Among fungal isolates, 21 strains of A. fumigatus revealed cytotoxic activity expressed at different levels, depending on the fungal extract concentrations used in the MTT assay. The results suggested that exposure (especially in summer) to small airborne particles, containing distinct species, may occur not only in the active sector but also in close vicinity to the landfill. Hence, microbial monitoring of the landfill and surrounding area should be carried out taking into account both quantitative aspect supplemented by size distribution analysis and qualitative features, especially of those strains possessing cytotoxic activity.     

Characteristics of airborne bacteria and fungi in some Polish wastewater treatment plants

The aim of this study was to characterize both the viable airborne bacteria and fungi collected in different types of wastewater treatment plants in Poland. Bacterial and fungal aerosols in five different wastewater treatment plants in Poland were studied, including the pioneering antibiotic resistance testing of airborne bacteria. Concentration level was measured using the six-stage Andersen impactor. After incubation, bioaerosol particles captured on nutrient media on Petri dishes were quantitatively evaluated and qualitatively identified. It was found that the concentration levels of both airborne bacteria and fungi ranged from 10² to 10³ colony-forming units/m³, in all stages of the wastewater treatment plants. The patterns of size distributions of airborne bacteria and fungi were very similar, showing dominant peaks typically in the size range between 3.3 and 4.7 μm. The majority fraction of small bacterial and fungal particles (less than 4.7 μm) in the studied areas indicates that the bioaerosol is relatively fresh, and mostly of local origin. The Gram-positive cocci and nonsporing Gram-positive rods were the dominating forms in the studied wastewater treatment plants environment. The existing differences in the concentration levels between sampling sites enabled identification of the main bioaerosol sources. The highest concentration of bacterial aerosol appeared in sections, where activated sludge post-processing and mechanical purifying are conducted. The most frequently occurring species in the sampled bacterial aerosol were Gram-positive cocci and nonsporing Gram-positive rods. Multi-antibiotic resistance testing showed that among the isolated airborne bacteria, the most antibiotic-resistant features were present among Bacillus species (especially Bacillus mycoides).     

The human impact on the transformation of juniper forest landscape in the western part of the Pamir-Alay range (Tajikistan)

Detailed analyses were conducted of human impact on juniper forest landscapes occurring within the Zarafshan Range (Pamir-Alay). Juniperus seravschanica and J. semiglobosa belong to forest-forming species in Central Asia. At present, juniper forests all over Tajikistan are seriously threatened as a result of excessive logging and cattle grazing. The aim of this paper is to present juniper forest transformation as a result of human activities as well as the diversity of soil properties in the organic and humus horizons in the altitudinal system of soil zonation. Three groups of phytocoenoses were distinguished: those with a dominant share of Juniperus seravschanica; those with a dominant share of J. semiglobosa; and mixed. Associations with Juniperus seravschanica and J. semiglobosa feature several variants of phytocoenoses with dominant species: Artemisia lehmanniana, A. dracunculus, Eremurus olgae, Festuca sulcata, Ligularia thomsonii, Stipa turkestanica, Thymus seravschanicus, and Ziziphora pamiroalaica. The collected soil samples differ in their granulometric composition. Gravelly cobble fractions >2 mm are dominant; the share of sandy particles <2 mm is much lower (about 10–20%). Fraction 0.5–0.05 attains 35% on average. The Corg content of the soil varied from 0.26 to 11.40% in the humus horizon (A) and from 4.3 to 25% in the organic (O). Similar relationships were reported in the case of Ntot concentration. A clear relationship can be observed between concentrations of Corg and Ntot. Soil pH varied, ranging from very low acidic (pH 5.5) to neutral (pH 8.5). The content of available P varied; high concentrations were noted in organic (O) (40.46–211 mg kg^?1) and mixed horizons (OA) (2.61–119 mg kg^?1). Maximum accumulations of Pavail (1739.6 mg kg^?1) and Ptot (9696 mg kg^?1) were observed at a site heavily affected by intense grazing. Concentrations of Mgavail varied from 116 to 964 mg kg^?1. Most of the analysed soil profiles lacked an organic horizon; only thin humus occurred.     

Changes in water chemistry along the newly formed High Arctic fluvial–lacustrine system of the Brattegg Valley (SW Spitsbergen,Svalbard)

Changes in water chemistry along the High Arctic fluvial–lacustrine system located in Wedel Jarlsberg Land in the SW Spitsbergen (Svalbard) were investigated during the summer season of 2010 and 2011. The newly formed river–lake system consists of three lakes connected with the Brattegg River. The first bathymetric measurements of these lakes were made by the authors in 2010. The Brattegg River catchment represents a partly glaciered Arctic water system. The studied lakes are characterized by low mineralization and temperature of water. The value of the electrolytic conductivity (EC) ranges from 30.2 to 50.5 μS cm^?1 and the temperature of surface water from 1.5 to 7.8 °C. The temperature increase takes place downstream starting from Upper Lake to the outflow from Myrktjørna Lake. The waters of lakes have higher temperatures than the stream. The predominant ions are HCO₃ ^? (up to 16.5 mg L^?1), Cl^? (6.66–8.53 mg L^?1), Ca²⁺ (2.40–4.45 mg L^?1) and Na⁺ (2.65–3.36 mg L^?1). The highest values of ammonium and DOC found in the lowest Myrktjørna Lake seem to be related to the presence of aquatic organisms and also birds. From the group of 10 analyzed microelements, increased concentrations of aluminum, up to almost 500 μg L^?1, are present in the lakes’ water. Water isotopic composition ranges for δ¹⁸O and δ²H, from ?10.6 to ?10.9‰ and from ?70.8 to ?72.3‰, respectively. The vertical zonality of lake waters is manifested in a decrease in the temperature and increase in EC and chemical elements concentrations.     

Semiannual and annual oscillations of sea level and their impact on asymmetry between El Niño and La Niña episodes

The purpose of this paper is twofold. First, we demonstrate that the asymmetry between El Niño and La Niña events recorded in sea level variation occurs only during extreme episodes of El Niño/Southern Oscillation. Second, we explain that the asymmetry is controlled by certain regular cycles which have time-variable amplitudes. Gridded maps of sea level anomaly that form a spatial-temporal time series (spatial resolution: 1° × 1°, sampling interval: 1 week) spanning the time interval from 14/10/1993 to 18/04/2012 were used. We examined those time series and found that certain regular harmonic signals (periods: 365, 182, 120, 90 and 62 days) are dominant terms of their temporal variability. By subtracting those oscillations from sea level anomaly data, residuals were determined. Using skewness and kurtosis as measures of asymmetry and nonlinearity — after adopting 10-year moving window — we found that the extreme El Niño 1997/1998 has been a dominant driving force of the asymmetry and nonlinearity of El Niño/Southern Oscillation since the end of 1993. In order to detect residual signals that are responsible for the asymmetry, we applied the Fourier Transform Band Pass Filter and found that there are two important oscillations remaining in the residual sea level anomaly data, i.e. the annual and semiannual ones with time-varying amplitudes. We hypothesize that temporarily uneven amplitudes have meaningful impact on the aforementioned asymmetry.