Spatial heterogeneity of chemistry of the Small Aral Sea and the Syr Darya River and its impact on plankton communities.

The shrinking of the Aral Sea represents one of the greatest ecological disasters of modern time. The data on the surviving northern part (Small Aral) is scarce and requires an update. This study aimed to analyze the chemistry, phyto- and zooplankton composition, and their relation in the waters of the Small Aral and its tributary, Syr Darya River.

Long-term ice phenology records spanning up to 578 years for 78 lakes around the Northern Hemisphere.

In recent decades, lakes have experienced unprecedented ice loss with widespread ramifications for winter ecological processes. The rapid loss of ice, resurgence of winter biology, and proliferation of remote sensing technologies, presents a unique opportunity to integrate disciplines to further understand the broad spatial and temporal patterns in ice loss and its consequences. Here, we summarize ice phenology records for 78 lakes in 12 countries across North America, Europe, and Asia to permit the inclusion and harmonization of in situ ice phenology observations in future interdisciplinary studies.

Thermal renaturation of rivers in the post-industrial age - An example of the Przemsza River basin (Poland).

This article concerns temperature, which is one of the most important physical properties of surface waters. During the period of climate warming, tendencies of increasing river temperature have been repeatedly identified in the literature. This article discusses the lowering of the river temperature, a phenomenon rarely considered, which is occurring in a heavily industrialised area in the southern part of Poland (Upper Silesia Region), undergoing deep restructuring.

Changes in Water and Sewage Management after Communism: example of the Oder River Basin (Central Europe).

This paper presents changes in water and sewage management in the cross-border Oder River basin in the period since the post-communist political and economic system transformation, including the period after Poland's accession to the European Union. The Oder River basin, with an area of 124,000 km, is the second largest basin in the Baltic Sea Basin, and therefore requires particular protection. It was emphasised that in the years 1989-2017, water withdrawal for production purposes considerably decreased (by 42%), as well as water withdrawal for exploitation of the water supply system (by 33%).

Pollution with trace elements and rare-earth metals in the lower course of Syr Darya River and Small Aral Sea, Kazakhstan.

Over recent decades the Aral Sea has faced a major human-driven regression leading to environmental, economic and health impacts. Previous research has indicated that its region may be highly polluted yet there is little recent data to assess the scale or nature of the pollution. The present study investigated the concentration of elements for which the World Health Organization (WHO) has established guideline levels (Al, As, B, Ba, Cd, Cr, Cu, Ni, Pb, Sb) as well as 16 rare-earth elements (Ce, Eu, Er, Gd, La, Nd, Pr, Sc, Sm, Dy, Ho, Lu, Tb, Tm, Y, Yb) in the Small Aral Sea (SAS) and its inflow, the Syr Darya River (SDR).

Correction to: The chemistry and toxicity of discharge waters from copper mine tailing impoundment in the valley of the Apuseni Mountains in Romania.

The authors would like to correct the error in the "Abstract" section of original publication. The correct sentence should read "The sampled waters were highly acidic (pH 2.1-4.

The chemistry and toxicity of discharge waters from copper mine tailing impoundment in the valley of the Apuseni Mountains in Romania.

Copper mining generates large quantities of waste, tailings, and acid outflows causing long-term environmental impacts and potential threats to human health. Valea Şesei is the largest tailing impoundment in Romania, created by flooding the valley (known as Valea Şesei) of the Metalliferous Mountains (a division of the Apuseni Mountains) with copper mining waste. The present study (i) estimated the total volume of tailings in this area; (ii) screened the concentration of 65 elements (rare earth and platinum group elements, alkali metals and alkali earth metals, transition and post-transition metals and metalloids) and cyanide concentrations in wastewater samples collected from tailing impoundment; (iii) evaluated the toxicity of these water samples using five in vitro bioassays employing human cells isolated from healthy donors and a short-term (1 h) exposure model.