Environmental Management最新文献

Cyanobacteria blooms are a widespread challenge, causing significant negative impacts on freshwater ecosystems. Utilizing chemicals that leave no harmful residues and selectively target cyanobacteria offers a promising, environmentally friendly strategy to control these blooms. This study investigates the effects of hydrogen peroxide (H₂O₂) application on controlling cyanobacteria proliferation and evaluates its impact on prokaryotic communities. The findings revealed that applying H₂O₂ at 2 mg L^-1 selectively suppressed Planktothrix agardhii blooms with no notable adverse effects on non-targeted phytoplankton. H₂O₂ degraded significantly within the first 4 h of the experiment, and no traces were detected after 24 h. Following treatment, chlorophyll-a levels decreased significantly, by ~55% within 1 h and ~ 90% within 2 h, compared to the initial measurements. The bacterial community composition also changed notably after H₂O₂ addition. Rheinheimera dominated the prokaryotic community on day 3, representing 40.3%, but diminished to about 1% by the end of the experiment. In contrast, H₂O₂ application triggered Noviherbaspirillum species, their abundance gradually increased over time. The results highlight the potential of the H₂O₂ application to control P. agardhii blooms effectively, though further research at larger scales, such as mesocosm experiments or whole-ecosystem trials, are needed to fully understand its usage in bloom mitigation.

Moving bed biofilm reactor (MBBR) is a promising and cost-effective treatment technology for efficient nutrient removal. In this study, a pilot-scale novel MBBR-based hybrid biofilm system, integrating suspended and attached growth biomass, was operated to treat real domestic wastewater. The system included a reactive primary sedimentation step designed to capture particulate organic matter and redirect both sludge and effluent through distinct treatment pathways to enhance overall nutrient and micropollutant removal. The patented hybrid system was operated for 6 months, and 79, 84, and 90% removal efficiencies were achieved for chemical oxygen demand (COD), total nitrogen (TN), and total phosphorus (TP), respectively. Except diclofenac (32%), naproxen, ibuprofen, ketoprofen, and mefenamic acid (70%, 96%, 70% and 75%) were efficiently removed. Specifically, ketoprofen and mefenamic acid removals were markedly improved in the hybrid biofilm system compared to the full-scale conventional Biological Nutrient Removal (BNR) plant. The population dynamics were also monitored via molecular analysis on the sludge samples, differentiating the microbial community in MBBR and conventional BNR. Results showed that an abundance shift in the community structure at the species level between the two sludge structures of MBBR and conventional BNR. Acinetobacter sp. (35%) and uncultured Arcobacteraceae sp (22%) were found to be the dominant species in the hybrid system.

Riparian buffer zones are essential nature-based solutions for protecting freshwater ecosystems globally, yet their implementation faces challenges in balancing ecological, agricultural, and social needs. In the Santa Lucía River Basin (SLRB) in Uruguay, these buffers are critical for improving water quality but face issues like low compliance and limited awareness of the policy in place. We explored stakeholder perspectives on riparian buffer implementation through 24 semi-structured interviews with government institutions, researchers, producer unions, producers, NGOs, and locals. Our aim was to identify perceptions of current and desired ecosystem services, buffer characteristics, and barriers and opportunities to successful implementation. Our results show that stakeholders acknowledge key ecosystem services such as pollution retention and erosion reduction, but they desire additional services like enhanced agricultural productivity and recreational opportunities. Stakeholders identified native vegetation and the spatial dimensions of buffer zones as important physical characteristics of buffer zones. Preferred management practices included no-tillage and extensive agricultural management practices, while policy should aim to adapt buffer zones to the specific conditions of the area they are located in instead of a “one-size-fits-all” policy design. Barriers such as producer cooperation, communication gaps, and economic costs hinder progress. To address these barriers, potential solutions include improving stakeholder collaboration, emphasizing the multifunctional benefits of riparian buffers, strengthening compliance monitoring, exploring opportunities to provide technical support to farmers, and adopting integrated environmental management approaches. By addressing these interconnected challenges, riparian buffers can become resilient, multifunctional solutions that enhance ecosystem services, benefiting both biodiversity and human well-being in the SLRB.

There has been mucilage problem in the Marmara Sea, mainly caused by nutrient loads from point and diffuse sources. Total nitrogen from point sources accounts for 74% of the nutrient load, while total phosphorus contributes 22%. Preventing nitrogen loads from urban wastewater is particularly important for the Marmara Sea. Therefore, achieving discharge limits is largely related to the current choices in processes and technologies. More than half of the existing advanced biological wastewater treatment plants use the anaerobic-anoxic-oxic (A²O) process configuration. Due to stringent limitations on nitrogen and phosphorus discharges enforced by new EU directive, it is necessary to revise the existing wastewater treatment plants and apply different process configurations/technologies for newly planned treatment plants. In this study, among the applicable technologies, A²O and Bardenpho processes were evaluated with simulation studies in comparison to novel hybrid Biofilm-Contact Denitrification process. For this purpose, representative wastewater characteristics and reference process kinetics were determined by evaluating the existing seven large scale wastewater treatment plants in the Marmara Region. SUMO^© process simulation results showed that Bardenpho and Biofilm-Contact Denitrification process complied with the new stringent EU discharge limits.

Forests are degrading and declining rapidly, and an urgent need to take protective action has been recognised in several recent international initiatives. Successful conservation of forests depends on the participation of those living in their proximity. We evaluate the impact of education, income, and recent wildlife-related losses on the stated preferences of rural landowners bordering Bandipur and Nagarahole National Parks in India. We assess their preferences to live besides a forest, and the associated perceived benefits and costs. We find a majority prefer to live beside the forest. The top reported reasons being “forest provides a pleasant surrounding”, a cultural benefit and “forest regulates climate and rainfall”, a regulatory benefit. However, landowners with higher education have a lower preference of living beside the forest; even though they perceive a higher cultural benefit from it. We also find that landowners from higher income brackets have a higher perception of forest regulatory services. As expected, experiences of wildlife-related losses are associated with a lower preference to live beside a forest, and a lower perception of cultural services. Our findings suggest that, while education and income may improve the awareness of intangible ecosystem services, limited economic opportunities for the educated may discourage them from wanting to live close to forests. Access to livelihoods linked to forest conservation, and wildlife conflict mitigation may be necessary to strengthen local support for conservation. We believe the insights have wider applicability, particularly for tropical nations aiming for forest landscape conservation to achieve international targets.

Cumulative effects result incrementally from a series of actions over time. On their own, the causative actions behind cumulative effects may be one-off and minor but become significant when they aggregate. Drawing on a practice example from Aotearoa New Zealand—the widespread expansion of irrigation over thirty years and associated land use changes—this paper extends our understanding of cumulative effects in several ways. First, the example shows that in Aotearoa New Zealand, the institutional and practice aspects of cumulative effects assessment are poorly developed, despite being required in legislation and recognized in case law. Part of the problem, we argue, is an unclear mandate for strategic environmental assessment that has limited the development of consistent cumulative effects assessment theory and practice. The “practice” element to improve, we suggest, is an integrated assessment of accumulating impact pathways, with particular implications for the conduct of social impact assessments. The key “institutional” improvement needed is a stronger role for strategic environmental assessment that incorporates social impact assessment, to address the social impacts of cumulative effects in advance, as well as for monitoring actual effects.

Globally, a positive shift to renewable and sustainable bioenergy usage has been witnessed over the years. An ideal resource should contribute equally to bioeconomy, circular economy and sustainable development. One such less explored resource is an aquatic weed, Pontederia crassipes, commonly known as water hyacinth, which is documented as one of the major invasive aquatic weeds due to its rapid reproduction, capacity to deplete nutrients from water bodies, and adaptation to new habitats. In particular, water hyacinths, which are abundant in India, are a rich source of nutrients and lignocellulosic biomass that may be utilized as a precursor for producing bioenergy and biofuel. At present all management and control strategies lack sustainable use of water hyacinth and in turn harm the surrounding ecosystem. This abundant source of biomass is underutilized, undermanaged, and difficult to collect. Tapping into management and harvesting strategies with efficient biomass conversion from water hyacinth, could lead to solutions for multi-level problems of current circular bioeconomic challenges in India. In this review, we critically discuss water hyacinth issues and management strategies and their potential use as a circular bioeconomic resource using relevant business models and case studies. To efficiently harvest, we present unique weed mining methodologies for the successful collection, treatment, and long-term utilization of the aforementioned bioresource. As a direct result, there may be a feasible answer to the growing need for biomass and bioenergy. Using water hyacinth, an invasive weed by nature, in a circular bioeconomic manner would also significantly advance numerous UN sustainable development objectives.

Graphical Abstract

The stabilization of coastal sand dunes in the 20th century led to an expansion of vegetation cover, which is considered detrimental in the United Kingdom due to the loss of habitat for native species that depend on mobile dunes. Coastal managers have recognized this as a growing concern. However, conservation priorities must be identified to manage the situation effectively. Therefore, this study aims to identify potential conservation priorities for dune habitats at Culbin (Scotland), Kenfig (Wales) and the Sefton coast (England) by undertaking a SWOT (Strengths, Weaknesses, Opportunities, and Threats) analysis for each site. Variables for the analysis were identified in the context of the latest paradigm of dune management approach, which focuses on the reclamation of active dunes to enhance habitats for native biodiversity. Data was obtained from literature; analysis of environmental, demographic, land use and economic data; and satellite images. The main challenges that emerged include historical overstabilization, the spread of invasive species, the lack of bare sand areas to sustain native biodiversity, unsustainable land use (unplanned urbanization and agricultural activities), coastal erosion due to storm surges, and sea-level rise in this century. Accordingly, potential conservation priorities were determined by classifying variables of each site. These include increasing the area of bare sand, increasing the width of the beach using sand nourishments, removing invasive species, minimizing human activities to reduce dune fragmentation, minimizing coastal erosion due to storm surge and sea-level rise using nature-based solutions. Thus, an integrated sustainable dune management plan is required to implement these conservation priorities, particularly for Culbin dunes as the Cumulative SWOT Score shows that the weaknesses and threats to dunes outweigh strength and opportunities. The study approach demonstrates its robustness as a decision-making tool for sustainable dune management for restoring active dunes at each site. Thus, it can be extended to other dune sites in the UK and elsewhere to identify long-term dune management concerns and conservation priorities.

As infrastructure systems face growing challenges from threats and increasing complexity, resilience has become a critical focus in sustaining essential services and managing risks. However, existing frameworks for assessing resilience are often impractical for owner-operators of critical infrastructure like dams and watersheds due to their complexity, extensive data requirements, and high costs. The failure of the Oroville Dam spillway in 2017, which resulted in mass evacuations and extensive damages, underscores the urgency for practical assessment strategies. This perspectives piece highlights the development of a streamlined resilience assessment approach co-developed with the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers’ Savannah District. Unlike traditional assessments that often become “one-and-done” exercises, our framework leverages simplified metrics, expert elicitation, and existing data to create adaptable and reproducible measures. By using a modified Analytical Hierarchy Process (AHP) to align resilience metrics with stakeholder priorities, this approach balances the need for comprehensive data with operational feasibility. Key insights suggest that streamlined assessments are integral to bridging the gap between resilience theory and practice, making it easier for decision-makers to evaluate and improve baselines consistently. Future efforts should emphasize metrics that are interpretable, prioritizable, and replicable to foster a culture of continuous improvement in resilience planning.