Characteristics and trend analysis of absolute and relative temperature extremes indices and related indices of Kolkata

Theoretical and Applied Climatology - An attempt has been made, in this paper, to understand the characteristics and trends of temperatures of Kolkata, India, by using the temperature extremes, as...     

Climate change vulnerability to agrarian ecosystem of small Island: evidence from Sagar Island,India

Theoretical and Applied Climatology - The present study assessed climate change vulnerability in agricultural sector of low-lying Sagar Island of Bay of Bengal. Vulnerability indices were estimated...     

Optimum cross section index (OCI): a new approach for identification of an optimum channel—a case study of the Ichamati River,India

The Ichamati River drains the east and south side of the North 24 Parganas district which belongs to the Ganga-Brahmaputra Delta (GBD), covered by deep Quaternary sediments produced under tropical monsoon climate in India. The district is densely populated. The river has huge impact on its population. In this paper, particular attention has been paid to a new method, named optimum cross section index (OCI), which is a numerical representation of a river cross section with respect to its optimum condition. To establish the validity and reliability of OCI, as circumstantial evidences, we have measured and analyzed the geometric parameters, such as width, depth, hydraulic radius, wetted perimeter, and bank profile at 22 points, and applied the areal difference asymmetric index (ADAI). The paper considers that the changing characters of the geometric form of the cross sections and ADAI stand for the OCI. All the techniques reveal that (1) the area of channel decreases abruptly upstream downward, (2) the upstream channel is more symmetrical than the lower reach, and (3) the area of optimum channel gradually increases upstream downward. Results of the study show that the river is going to be deteriorating from upstream downward. OCI has been constructed based on width and depth, which are relatively easily available data. So, this model may be well assessable to identify the optimum channel for a river management.     

Assessment of heavy metal accumulation in macrophyte, agricultural soil, and crop plants adjacent to discharge zone of sponge iron factory

The present study deals with the characterization of effluent released from sponge iron industries and distribution of heavy metals in soil and macrophytes near to effluent discharge channel. Apart from this, accumulation of heavy metals in nearby soil and vegetation system irrigated with effluent-contaminated water is also the subject of this study. Physico-chemical analysis of effluent reveals that the concentration of total suspended solids (TSS), total hardness (TH), iron (Fe²⁺), and oil and grease are greater than the IS (1981) norms for discharge of water into inland water body. The soil along the sides of the effluent channel also shows higher concentration of heavy metals than the background soil. The enrichment of the heavy metals are in the order of Chromium (Cr) > Iron (Fe) > Manganese (Mn) > Zinc (Zn) > Copper (Cu) > Cadmium (Cd). Macrophytes growing along the sides of the effluent channel also show significant accumulation of heavy metals almost in the same order as accumulated in soil. Higher uptake of heavy metals by these varieties reveals that these species can be used for future phytoremediation. The effluent as well as contaminated water is extensively used for irrigation for growing vegetables like tomato (Lycopersicon esculatum) in the surrounding areas. Heavy metal accumulation in this agricultural soil are in the sequence of Cr > Fe > Mn > Zn > Cu > Cd. More or less similar type of accumulation pattern are also found in tomato plants except Fe and Zn exceeding Cr and Mn. Transfer Factor of heavy metals from soil to tomato plants (TF_S) shows average value of <1, suggesting less uptake of heavy metals from soil. Among the plant parts studied, fruit shows least accumulation. Although tomato plants show some phenotypic changes, the survival of tomato plants as well as least accumulation of metals in fruit reveals their tolerance to heavy metals. Therefore it may be suggested that this plant can be grown successfully in the heavy metal contaminated soil. Further research work on in situ toxicity test will be necessary in order to identify the most resistive variety on this particular type of contaminated site.