Effects of coal microparticles on marine organisms: A review.

Coal dust is a source of pollution not only for atmospheric air but also for the marine environment. In places of storage and handling of coal near water bodies, visible pollution of the water area can be observed. Coal, despite its natural origin, can be referred to as anthropogenic sources of pollution.

Monitoring of environmental persistent organic pollutants in hair samples collected from wild terrestrial mammals of Primorsky Krai, Russia.

Persistent organic pollutants (POPs) constitute a wide range of chemicals. Their release into the environment has raised great concern due to their potentially harmful impact in humans and wildlife species. The aim of this current study was to detect selected POPs in hair samples of wild terrestrial mammals from Primorsky Krai, Russia, so as to assess potential environmental exposure.

Investigation of biomass production, crude protein and starch content in laboratory wastewater treatment systems planted with and .

The use of duckweed-based wastewater treatment systems for producing biomass with high crude protein and starch content was investigated in the current study. For this reason, three lab-scale systems were used; System 1 was planted with , System 2 with L and System 3 with the combination of the two duckweeds. The studied duckweeds were cultivated using secondary treated wastewater as substrate (Phase A), in the presence of excess NH-N (Phase B) and using water with no nutrients (Phase C).

Fate of antimicrobials in duckweed Lemna minor wastewater treatment systems.

The fate of four antimicrobials (cefadroxil, CFD; metronidazole, METRO; trimethoprim, TRI; sulfamethoxazole, SMX) was studied in Lemna minor systems and the role of different mechanisms on their removal was evaluated. All micropollutants were significantly removed in batch experiments with active Lemna minor; the highest removal was observed for CFD (100% in 14 d), followed by METRO (96%), SMX (73%) and TRI (59%) during 24 d of the experiment. Calculation of kinetic constants for hydrolysis, photodegradation, sorption to biomass and plant uptake revealed significant differences depending on the compound and the studied mechanism.

Consumption-based approach for predicting environmental risk in Greece due to the presence of antimicrobials in domestic wastewater.

The main objective of the current study was to estimate the potential environmental risks associated with human consumption of antimicrobials in Greece. Consumption data was collected for the 24 most often used antimicrobials for the years 2008-2010, and their predicted environmental concentrations (PECs) in raw and treated wastewater were calculated using mass balances and literature data on human excretion and elimination efficiency during wastewater treatment. The ecotoxicological risk was estimated by calculating the ratio of PEC to predicted no-effect concentration (PNEC) for three categories of aquatic organisms (algae, daphnids, and fish).

Assessing single and joint toxicity of three phenylurea herbicides using Lemna minor and Vibrio fischeri bioassays.

Single and joint toxicity of three substituted urea herbicides, namely monolinuron [3-(4-chlorophenyl)-1-methoxy-1-methylurea], linuron [3-(3,4-dichlorophenyl)-1-methoxy-1-methylurea] and diuron [1-(3,4 dichlorophenyl)-3,3 dimethyl urea], were studied. The duckweed Lemna minor and the luminescent bacterium Vibrio fischeri were used for the toxicity assessment and they were exposed to various concentrations of the herbicides, individually and in binary mixtures. The exposure time was 7d for the duckweed and 30 min for the bacterium.

Investigation of photodegradation and hydrolysis of selected substituted urea and organophosphate pesticides in water.

Introduction: Photodegradation and hydrolysis of two substituted urea herbicides, monolinuron [3-(4-chlorophenyl)-1-methoxy-1-methylurea] and linuron [3-(3,4-dichlorophenyl)-1-methoxy-1-methylurea], and one organophosphorous insecticide, phoxim [2-(diethoxyphosphinothioyloxyimino)-2-phenylacetonitrile], were studied using buffered sterilized distilled water (pH 4, 7 and 9).

Methods: Experiments were performed in the absence and presence of light (320-740 nm), while the effect of nitrates and humic acids on photodegradation was investigated for all pH values. An analytical method was developed and validated for the determination of target compounds in water samples using liquid chromatography positive ion electrospray-mass spectrometry.