Ecotoxicological and human health risk in a petrochemical district of southern Italy

An ecotoxicological investigation has been carried in the petrochemical district of Priolo (Sicily, Italy), one of the largest in Europe. Results indicated a severe mercury contamination in sediments sampled near a chloro-alkali plant. A clear bioavailability of this element was demonstrated in mussels Mytilus galloprovincialis (both native and translocated) and the benthic fish Mullus barbatus, which also exhibited marked genotoxic damages. The elevated mercury concentrations in marine organisms are a serious concern for human health; according to the national average fish consumption, the provisional tolerable weekly intake (PTWI) of Hg would be easily exceeded by at least 4 to 12 fold. Such toxicological risk is of particular importance for pregnant women, being possibly involved in the elevated frequency of neonatal malformations.     

Back to the Future? Privatisation and the domestication of water in the Copperbelt Province of Zambia, 1900-2000

In Zambia’s Copperbelt as in most of the developing world, the water sector is undergoing reforms targeted at promoting an active participation of the private sector. Conventional wisdom suggests that the private sector will be better able to achieve universal access as opposed to the public sector which hitherto has failed to deliver. Using archival materials from the Copperbelt Province, this paper however argues that in countries like Zambia where economic enterprise was driven by private capital, access to water has always been tied to an active involvement of the private sector. The full story of failure to provide universal access to potable water cannot be told without examining this historical role of the private sector and its relationship with the public sector. At the same time, contemporary policy debates can benefit from the resonance of historical debates around economic efficiency, demand management, health and access in the production and consumption of water.     

Sediment dynamics in an upland temperate catchment: changing sediment sources,rates and deposition

We examine sediment dynamics in an upland, temperate lake system, Lake Bassenthwaite (NW England), in the context of changing climate and land use, using magnetic and physical core properties. Dating and analysis of the sedimentary records of nine recovered cores identify spatially variable sedimentation rates across the deep lake basin. Mineral magnetic techniques, supported by independent geochemical analyses, identify significant variations both in sediment source and flux over the last ∼2100 years. Between ∼100 years BC and ∼1700 AD, sediment fluxes to the lake were low and dominated by material sourced from within the River Derwent sub-catchment (providing 80% of the hydraulic load at the present day). Post-1700 AD, the lake sediments became dominantly sourced from Newlands Beck (presently providing ∼10% of the lake’s hydraulic load). Three successive, major pulses of erosion and increased sediment flux appear linked to specific activities within the catchment, specifically: mining activities and associated deforestation in the mid-late nineteenth century; agricultural intensification in the mid-twentieth century and, within the last decade, the additional possible impact of climate change. These results are important for all upland areas as modifications in climate become progressively superimposed upon the effects of previous and/or ongoing anthropogenic catchment disturbance.     

Solubility of Fe-ettringite (Ca6[Fe(OH)6]2(SO4)3 · 26H2O)

The solubility of Fe-ettringite (Ca₆[Fe(OH)₆]₂(SO₄)₃ · 26H₂O) was measured in a series of precipitation and dissolution experiments at 20 °C and at pH-values between 11.0 and 14.0 using synthesised material. A time-series study showed that equilibrium was reached within 180 days of ageing. After equilibrating, the solid phases were analysed by XRD and TGA while the aqueous solutions were analysed by ICP-OES (calcium, sulphur) and ICP-MS (iron). Fe-ettringite was found to be stable up to pH 13.0. At higher pH-values Fe-monosulphate (Ca₄[Fe(OH)₆]₂(SO₄) · 6H₂O) and Fe-monocarbonate (Ca₄[Fe(OH)₆]₂(CO₃) · 6H₂O) are formed. The solubilities of these hydrates at 25 °C are:      

Effect of siderophores on the light-induced dissolution of colloidal iron(III) (hydr)oxides

Siderophores play an important role in biological iron acquisition in iron-limited aquatic systems. While it is widely accepted that the solubilization of iron-bearing mineral phases is a key function of siderophores, the mechanism of siderophore-promoted mineral dissolution in aquatic systems is largely unknown. In this study, we investigated the effect of siderophores (desferrioxamine B (DFOB) and aerobactin) on light-induced dissolution of goethite and lepidocrocite in the presence or absence of oxalate in aerated and deaerated suspensions at pH 6. For the irradiated two-ligand system (oxalate/siderophore), the experimental results suggest that oxalate acts as the electron donor for the formation of surface Fe(II), and the siderophore acts as an efficient shuttle for the transfer of surface Fe(II) into solution. Furthermore, even in the absence of an electron donor such as oxalate, both DFOB and aerobactin accelerated the light-induced dissolution of lepidocrocite as compared to the thermal dissolution. Experiments with dissolved Fe(III)–DFOB and Fe(III)–aerobactin complexes suggest that this enhancing effect is not due to photolysis of corresponding surface complexes but to efficient transfer of reduced surface Fe(II) into solution, where surface Fe(II) may be formed, e.g., through photolysis of surface Fe(III)–hydroxo groups. Based on this study, we conclude that the interplay of light and siderophores may play a key role in the dissolution of colloidal iron(III) (hydr)oxides in marine systems, particularly in the presence of efficient electron donors.     

Integrated monitoring of the hydro-morphodynamics of a beach protected by low crested detached breakwaters

The aim of this paper is to propose an integrated low cost system for monitoring the performance of beach defence works during storms. For this purpose, the site of Igea Marina, Northern Adriatic Sea, Italy, which is protected by low crested detached breakwaters, is selected. The monitoring system is composed by a video installation, for the identification of the shoreline position and of the intertidal bathymetry at high space and time resolution, and a 2DH numerical model, to reconstruct the hydrodynamics induced by coastal defenses. The accuracy of the monitoring system is verified against available measurements of waves and currents performed during a field campaign with acoustic Doppler profilers. Assimilation of data on the shoreline position in 2DH model operatively working is challenging in the improvement of the production of risk maps. These show the current intensities and flooded areas during forecasted storms. First promising results suggest the possibility of setting up an early warning tool.     

A late paleo-Indian/Early archaic water well in Mexico—Possible oldest water-Management feature in the new world

A filled prehistoric water well discovered at the village of San Marcos Necoxtla, Puebla, Mexico, may be the oldest directly dated water-management feature in the Americas. The ∼10 m stratigraphic section exposed at this remarkable site records 18,000+ yr of deposition, erosion, water-table and hydrochemical fluctuations, and ≥10,000 yr of continual occupation. Temporal control is afforded by a multicomponent cultural chronology and radiocarbon assays by conventional and experimental techniques. The ∼10 m wide, ∼5 m deep well was excavated, utilized, maintained, and filled with cultural material between <9863 and ≫5950 yr B.P., a span of ≪3913 yr. Ages of other reported Late Pleistocene(?) to Middle Holocene wells in the New World are based on indirect or questionable dating, or are ≤6600 yr. Because of its age and continuity of occupation, the San Marcos Necoxtla well site may help define the nature of the peopling of the Americas and the advent of New World agriculture. © 1996 John Wiley & Sons, Inc.