Integrated Environmental Assessment and Management最新文献

Gold mining in Mali contributes significantly to the country's socio-economic growth, employing hundreds of people and generating considerable export revenues and income. At the same time, gold mining still has a bad reputation in public opinion due to the environmental and socio-economic challenges it poses. It is therefore important to integrate Mali's gold mining sector into a framework of social responsibility, using the Social Life Cycle Assessment (S-LCA) approach to identify and understand social opportunities and challenges. This study focuses on an application of the S-LCA approach to assess the social performance of industrial gold mining in Mali. Primary data were collected from company representative, workers and local communities. The results of the study show that in 85.2% of ratings, the company has at least good performance and poor performance in 14.8% of ratings. The results show also that the excessive working hours, corruption, sexual harassment and discrimination are identified as social hotspots in the gold mine in Mali. This paper provides a useful literature on the application of S-LCA and for political and administrative decision-makers in the sector to promote fact-driven policies for socially profitable gold mining. Further research would be useful to address the hotspots identified, particularly with regard to the effective management of labor and the prevention of corruption and sexual harassment.

Pesticides are widely used around the world and have demonstrated benefits to crop production. However, pesticides have also been associated with negative impacts to nontarget organisms, including pollinators. Here, we combined pesticide usage and toxicity data to create a toxicity index, which shows that pesticide hazard to honeybees (Apis mellifera) has changed substantially in U.S. maize (Zea mays) and soybean (Glycine max) production between 1998 and 2020. To reduce potential risks to honeybees and increase the eco-efficiency of crop production, efforts should be made to refine management strategies for pests that contribute most to the honeybee toxicity index. In maize, Coleoptera and Lepidoptera pests drive pesticide usage most responsible for hazard to honeybees, although the relative hazard from targeting those pests has decreased over time. In soybean, hemipteran pests were the largest relative contributor to insecticide honeybee hazard. Specific pests that contributed to honeybee toxicity hazard included corn rootworm species (Diabrotica spp.), silk-eating insects, and cutworms in maize, and stink bugs (family Pentatomidae) and aphid species (Family Aphididae) in soybean. We combined crop yield data with the toxicity index to quantify the eco-efficiency, a measure of crop yield per unit of toxicity hazard. While crop yield for both maize and soybean increased steadily throughout the study period, eco-efficiency decreased in both crops between 2012 and 2020, suggesting increases in crop yield have failed to keep pace with increases in insecticide hazard to honeybees.

Soybean is a versatile crop that can be used as an oilseed or food crop. Increasing soybean production is beneficial to agricultural economies, but significant concerns have been raised about its environmental impacts. This study evaluates the environmental footprint of soybean production using life cycle assessment (LCA) within the "cradle-to-gate" system in Madhya Pradesh (central India) for the first time. The analysis demonstrated that untreated residue on the ground increases the global warming potential by 19.78 kg CO2 eq ha-1 and land use emissions by 3.61 m2a crop eq ha-1. Additionally, burning residue significantly increases global warming potential by 210.80 kg CO2 eq. ha-1. Furthermore, the potential for aquatic eutrophication ranges between 0.38 and 0.80 kg N eq. and between 0.16 and 0.21 kg P eq ha-1 for marine and freshwater systems, respectively. This assessment reinforces that global warming potential, fossil resource scarcity, acidification, and land use emissions are the primary environmental concerns linked to soybean cultivation. These issues predominantly arise from fuel combustion in agricultural machinery and the application of soil nutrients throughout the production process. This investigation provides a basis for informed decision-making and the development of sustainable practices to balance the agricultural significance of soybean with environmental considerations.

Agricultural landscapes in Brazil provide habitat to various bird species, which may be exposed to pesticide-treated seeds that have not been incorporated into the soil during drilling. Understanding the dynamics and interactions between birds and drilled fields is crucial for developing sustainable farming practices that balance agricultural food production with wildlife conservation. This study focused on the attractivity of freshly drilled onion and carrot fields to birds and the potential exposure of birds to the pesticide-treated onion and carrot seeds available on the soil surface after drilling in Minas Gerais, Brazil. Bird surveys were conducted using scan sampling and point count methods to assess diversity and behavior before, on the day of drilling, and after drilling. Carrot fields showed a decrease in observed species and individuals on the day of drilling, with an increase in bird sightings after drilling. Similar trends were observed in onion fields, with the species composition changing after drilling and a significant decrease in abundance on the day of drilling. None of the species found foraging in the field after drilling were granivorous or omnivorous. Seed exposure was assessed by counting available seeds on the soil surface at different time points after drilling. Seed exposure was higher in the field border than in the field center. These findings indicate that carrot and onion fields offer limited food sources for granivore bird species probably due to low seed availability and intensive seedbed preparation. The research also suggests that freshly drilled carrot and onion crops are unattractive to foraging birds, with low seed exposure and a reduced likelihood of contact with pesticides applied as a seed treatment.

Industrialization and urbanization have significantly escalated the discharge of heavy metals into aquatic environments, posing serious ecological and public health risks. This study explores the global research landscape of bacterial biosorption for heavy metal removal, emphasizing advancements in methodologies and technologies that have redefined this field. A bibliometric analysis of 298 publications (1987-2024) was conducted to identify key trends, collaboration networks, and innovations. Notable advancements include the integration of nanotechnology, which has enhanced adsorption efficiency and selectivity for specific metals, and genetic engineering approaches that optimize bacterial strains for higher adsorption capacity. Furthermore, these developments have transformed traditional remediation strategies by providing cost-effective, sustainable, and scalable solutions for industries such as textiles, mining, and energy production. This study underscores the practical relevance of bacterial biosorption in wastewater treatment, achieving removal efficiencies exceeding 99% in some cases, as demonstrated by Aspergillus versicolor and Shewanella oneidensis MR-1. By bridging scientific innovation with environmental sustainability, this research highlights bacterial biosorption as a pivotal green technology, offering actionable insights for industrial applications and global sustainability goals.

Population modeling, field studies, and monitoring approaches have all been proposed for assessing the relevance of adverse effects of endocrine disrupting chemicals (EDCs) at the population level for nontarget (wild) vertebrates, but how these approaches should be used in the regulatory hazard assessment is unclear and not detailed in the relevant European Guidance Document. A literature review focused on identifying published approaches assessing the population relevance of adverse effects from EDCs was performed, and, subsequently, 47 primary research papers were evaluated. By extracting from these sources, a novel approach was developed with guiding principles for assessing adverse effects of EDCs at the population level considering (i) choice of focal species, scenarios (and models), (ii) the individual level apical endpoints to be considered, (iii) the magnitude of effect to be imposed, (iv) for what duration effects should be imposed, (v) whether individuals repairing the damage from exposure should be included, (vi) the population-level endpoints to be considered, and (vii) what threshold to set for defining an adverse effect at this level. Recommendations for modeling and field and monitoring studies are included. Case studies are also presented to demonstrate how the proposed approach might be implemented. Although some aspects (e.g., choice of focal species, model/experimental scenario, monitoring study assessment) require further consideration, this should not prevent the use of this approach in a regulatory EDC assessment context. As such, we propose that the approach be used immediately to implement population modeling and perform field studies within this regulatory context. We envisage that consistent application of these principles will encourage regulatory developments in this critical area to provide a much needed level of clarity in the EDC assessment for all stakeholders.

Perfluoroalkyl and polyfluoroalkyl substances (PFAS) and herbicides are important persistent contaminants that require specific management. A variety of herbicides is stored in fluorinated containers in the form of aquatic solutions. In such environments, the simultaneous release of PFAS and herbicides takes place. Nature-based solutions, such as the use of clay materials as possible sorbents, are attractive for the immobilization of such contaminants and environmental protection. Nanotubular clay minerals, such as halloysite and imogolite, are sufficient sorbents for herbicides. Due to their structural morphology, such materials could be efficient sorbents for the simultaneous immobilization of PFAS and herbicides. In this study, the potential sorption of a short chain PFAS, perfluorobutanoic acid (PFBA), sorbent of PFBA, and herbicides (atrazine and diuron) were investigated. Forcefield calculations were used for the classical molecular simulation study. Different distributions, arrangements, and ratios of the investigated molecules were investigated for the complete structural and energy characterization of the systems. Both clay minerals created stable complexes with PFBA as well as with both PFBA and herbicide molecules. Halloysite mineral led to similar total energies of the system with sorbed PFBA molecules alone, herbicides alone, or both of the pollutants. In contrast, imogolite led to lower energies with sorbed herbicides and showed relatively higher energies when interacting with PFBA. The complexes with both of the pollutants presented moderate energies. Electrostatic interactions were dominant in all the investigated complexes.

Fugitive or diffuse methane emissions constitute an important source of damage to the environment, much greater even than CO2 both over a time span of 20 years and over a longer time span of 100. It is therefore of preeminent importance to undertake all the efforts necessary to implement new tools, protocols, and methods that contribute to the identification and measurement of these emissions to implement site-specific actions of mitigation, repair, and conscious management of the emitting plants. Among the remote sensing and leak detection technologies currently used, the tunable diode laser absorption spectroscopy (TDLAS) method plays a relevant role. Thanks to the study and implementation of increasingly high-performance sensors to be equipped on drones, this method is strongly promoted in the unmanned aerial vehicle sector. However, as often happens, the operational performance of a measurement method must be associated with measurement errors, which must be foreseen (where possible), and certainly detailed and corrected. The purpose of this article is to describe the procedure for identifying and processing "false-positive" values recorded by the payload during a survey flight for the measurement of methane concentrations in airborne matrix, with a TDLAS sensor. The methodology contained in this article is based on the study of scientific evidence referable to previous in-depth experiences on false positives and largely on the direct experience gained by the project team of the TALSEF laboratory (University of Bari, Italy) during numerous measurement campaigns in landfills, oil and gas sites, and cattle stables.

SimpleTreat has become a common tool used in ecological risk assessments to estimate the removal efficiency of a chemical from a secondary wastewater treatment plant and hence inform on release to the environment. Organization A, Organization B, and Organization C performed a comparative study of SimpleTreat predictions and parameter selection methodologies across the three organizations. SimpleTreat versions 3.1 and 4.1 were run for a set of 10 chemicals using different settings and different approaches to obtain the inputs needed to run the tool. The impacts of these differences on removal predictions for the set of chemicals were explored, and a unified framework was proposed to guide users in the effective use of SimpleTreat.

Despite the fact that the UN Stockholm Convention on persistent organic pollutants specifically acknowledges that Arctic ecosystems and Indigenous communities are particularly at risk due to biomagnification of contaminants in traditional foods, the bioconcentration factor (BCF) of substances in fish remains the preferred metric for identifying the biomagnification potential of organic substances. The BCF measures uptake of substances from water in water-breathing organisms, but not biomagnification of contaminants from food sources. The purpose of this study is to investigate how the biomagnification factor (BMF) can be used in bioaccumulation assessments. To address this question, data from dietary and aqueous bioaccumulation studies in fish were compiled for a wide range of substances in fish to (i) investigate the potential correlation between the BCF and the BMF for the same substance in the same fish species and (ii) investigate computational methods for deriving both the BMF and BCF from the results of empirical dietary bioaccumulation tests. The analysis concludes that (i) empirical correlations between the BCF and BMF are of limited use for bioaccumulation assessment; (ii) dietary bioaccumulation test results can be used for bioaccumulation screening; and supports the use of both the BMF and the BCF for assessing the bioaccumulation potential of substances in water-breathing organisms.