Reviews of Environmental Contamination and Toxicology attempts to provide concise, critical reviews of timely advances, philosophy and significant areas of accomplished or needed endeavor in the total field of xenobiotics, in any segment of the environment, as well as toxicological implications.

Papers presented at the 11th International Conference on Sustainable Water Resources Management are included in this volume. These research works highlight recent technological and scientific developments associated with the management of surface and sub-surface water resources and as well as river basin management methodologies. Water is essential for sustaining life on our planet and its uneven distribution is a source of permanent conflict. The growth of human population combined with the irregularity in precipitation and water availability may restrict even further the access to water in certain regions of the world. This problem is made more severe by anthropogenic activities that affect its quality. River Basin Management includes all aspects of Hydrology, Ecology, Environmental Management, Flood Plains and Wetlands. Riverine systems are coming under increasing pressure due to anthropological and natural causes. Prominent amongst the problems affecting them is water scarcity and quality, which requires the development of improved methods for better river management. This volume features research from professionals involved in sustainable water resources management and provides an insight into the state of the art in the current technology, techniques and solutions in that field as they have been developed and applied in different countries.

This volume offers an overview of the occurrence of emerging organic contaminants in Mediterranean rivers and their relevance to their chemical and ecological quality under water scarcity. With chapters covering the effects under multiple stress conditions of pharmaceuticals, polar pesticides, personal care products, and industrial chemicals, the observations presented can be applicable to other parts of the world where water scarcity is an issue . It is of interest to environmental chemists, ecologists, environmental engineers, and ecotoxicologists, as well as water managers and decision-makers.

The management of a water supply network can be substantially improved defining permanent sectors or districts that enhances simpler water loss detection and pressure management. However, the water network partitioning may compromise water system performance, since some pipes are usually closed to delimit districts in order not to have too many metering stations, to decrease costs and simplify water balance. This may reduce the reliability of the whole system and not guarantee the delivery of water at the different network nodes. In practical applications, the design of districts or sectors is generally based on empirical approaches or on limited field experiences. The book proposes a design support methodology, based on graph theory principles and tested on real case study. The described methodology can help water utilities, professionals and researchers to define the optimal districts or sectors of a water supply network.

This book summarizes the current state of knowledge regarding antibiotics and antibiotics resistance genes (ARGs) in the soil environment. It covers a wide range of topics to help readers understand antibiotics and ARGs in soils, the risks they pose for the environment, and options for effective control. In addition, it presents a range of essential tools and methodologies that can be used to address antibiotics and ARGs in a consistent, efficient, and cost-effective manner. Gathering contributions by international experts, the book addresses both theoretical aspects and practical applications.The topics discussed include antibiotics-producing microorganisms; the routes of entry and fate of antibiotics and resistance genes; biomonitoring approaches; dissemination of ARGs in soils; risk assessment; the impact of antibiotics and ARGs on the soil microbial community and other biota; bioremediation and biodegradation approaches; and soil management strategies for antibiotics and ARG-contaminated soils.As such, the book will be of interest to students, researchers and scholars in environmental science and engineering, toxicology, the medical and pharmaceutical sciences, environmental biotechnology, soil sciences, microbial ecology and plant biotechnology. Readers and Journals: 1. This new volume on antibiotics and antibiotics resistance genes (ARGs) in the soil environment will be of interest to students, researchers and scholars in environmental science and engineering, toxicology, the medical and pharmaceutical sciences, environmental biotechnology, soil sciences,microbial ecology and plant biotechnology. 2. The book will provide government authorities all over the world with effective strategies for the management of antibiotics and antibiotics resistance genes (ARG)- contaminated soil. 3. Gathering contributions by international experts,the book addresses both theoretical aspects and practical applications.

This volume provides a comprehensive perspective on geomorphic approaches to management of lowland alluvial rivers in North America and Europe. Many lowland rivers have been heavily managed for flood control and navigation for decades or centuries, resulting in engineered channels and embanked floodplains with substantially altered sediment loads and geomorphic processes. Over the past decade, floodplain management of many lowland rivers has taken on new importance because of concerns about the potential for global environmental change to alter floodplain processes, necessitating revised management strategies that minimize flood risk while enhancing environmental attributes of floodplains influenced by local embankments and upstream dams. Recognition of the failure of old perspectives on river management and the need to enhance environmental sustainability has stimulated a new approach to river management. The manner that river restoration and integrated management are implemented, however, requires a case study approach that takes into account the impact of historic human impacts to the system, especially engineering. The river basins examined in this volume provide a representative coverage of the drainage of North America and Europe, taking into account a range of climatic and physiographic provinces. They include the 1) Sacramento (California, USA), 2) San Joaquin (California), 3) Missouri (Missouri, USA), 4) Red (Manitoba, Canada and Minnesota, USA), 5) Mississippi (Louisiana, USA), 6) Kissimmee (Florida, USA), 7) Ebro (Spain), 8) Rhone (France), 9) Rhine (Netherlands), 10) Danube (Romania), and 11) Volga (Russian Federation) Rivers. The case studies covered in these chapters span a range of fluvial modes of adjustment, including sediment, channel, hydrologic regime, floodplains, as well as ecosystem and environmental associations.

This book analyses the state of the natural environment and the causes of its degradation using the biosphere approach. Further, those issues that must be resolved immediately on the global level are identified following the ideas defined by V.I. Vernadsky, and new principles of Man-Nature interaction are pursued. The modern world currently faces three global trends inducing biosphere degradation and the aggravation of ecological hazards, namely: a) rapid and uncontrolled growth of human population on the Earth and insufficient natural resources to sustain it; (b) technogenesis development; and (c) global climate change and the aggravation of natural disasters. Ecological safety and military security are becoming the crucial conditions for the survival of modern civilization. To mitigate the ecological strain on the Earth, the technogenesis strategy should be changed and many other pressing issues must be resolved. These problems should be addressed using the biosphere approach, because the individual human being is the biosphere constituent, and his or her safety cannot be provided without maintaining the entire natural system on our planet.

The use of water for industrial purposes is of foremost importance. It is used as a coolant and industrial activities dealing with power generation, steel and iron, paper and pulp and oil require very large amounts of water. The industry, therefore, resorts to large scale abstraction of water from natural water bodies. This water is often treated with chemicals to combat operational problems like biofouling and corrosion. Such withdrawal and subsequent discharge of large amounts of water have the potential to impart significant impact on the recipient water body. The organisms drawn along with the cooling water, as well as those residing at the discharge zone, are subjected to a combination of mechanical, thermal and chemical stress on a continuous basis.

The world is facing a drinking water crisis. Besides continuous population growth, uneven distribution of water resources and periodic droughts have forced scientists to search for new and effective water treatment, remediation and recycling technologies. Therefore, there is a great need for the development of suitable, inexpensive and rapid wastewater treatment and reuse or conservation methods. This title discusses different types of wastewater treatment, remediation and recycling techniques, like adsorption, membrane filtration and reverse osmosis. It alsoprovides guidance for the selection of the appropriate technologies or their combinations for specific applications so that one can select the exact and accurate technology without any problem. The book comprises detailed discussion on the application of various technologies for water treatment, remediation and recycling technologies and provides an update on the development in water treatment, detailed analysis of their features and economic analysis, bridging the current existing information gap. Each chapteris also documented by references and updated citations.
Provides guidance for the selection of the appropriate technologies to industrialists and government authorities for the selection of exact, inexpensive technologies for specific problem solvingDiscusses the developments of inexpensive and rapid wastewater treatment, remediation and recyclingGives information on the application of analytical techniques, such as GC, LC, IR, and XRF for analysing and measuring waterProvides an updated development in water treatment technologies, detailed analysis of their features and economic analysis, enabling to choose a problem-specific solutionCompletely updates the current knowledge in this field, bridging the current existing information gap"

The 2nd International Conference on Sustainable Innovation emphasizes on natural resources technology and management to support the sustainability of mankind. The main theme of ICoSI 2014 "Technology and innovation challenges in natural resources and built environment management for humanity and sustainability " reflects the needs of immediate action from scientists with different fields and different geographical background to face the global issue on world's change.

This book explores the use of recent advanced multiple stage conversion technologies. These applications combine conventional fluidised bed systems with new plasma technologies to efficiently generate different energy outputs from waste materials with minimum cleaning effort. Using a mix of modelling and experimental approaches, the author provides fundamental insights into how the key operating variables of the two-stage process may impact the final quality of syngas. This thesis serves as a useful reference guide on the modelling and design of single and multiple-stage systems for thermal waste treatment. Its extended section on plant configuration and operation of waste gasification plants identifies the main technical challenges, and is of use to researchers entering the field.

With pressure increasing to utilise wastes and residues effectively and sustainably, the production of biogas represents one of the most important routes towards reaching national and international renewable energy targets. The biogas handbook: Science, production and applications provides a comprehensive and systematic guide to the development and deployment of biogas supply chains and technology.
Following a concise overview of biogas as an energy option, part one explores biomass resources and fundamental science and engineering of biogas production, including feedstock characterisation, storage and pre-treatment, and yield optimisation. Plant design, engineering, process optimisation and digestate utilisation are the focus of part two. Topics considered include the engineering and process control of biogas plants, methane emissions in biogas production, and biogas digestate quality, utilisation and land application. Finally, part three discusses international experience and best practice in biogas utilisation. Biogas cleaning and upgrading to biomethane, biomethane use as transport fuel and the generation of heat and power from biogas for stationery applications are all discussed. The book concludes with a review of market development and biomethane certification schemes.
With its distinguished editors and international team of expert contributors, The biogas handbook: Science, production and applications is a practical reference to biogas technology for process engineers, manufacturers, industrial chemists and biochemists, scientists, researchers and academics working in this field.
Provides a concise overview of biogas as an energy optionExplores biomass resources for productionExamines plant design and engineering and process optimisation

This book presents a range of nanocatalysts, together with their primary environmental applications and use in chemical production processes. In addition, it describes the nanomaterials used for catalysts and details their performance. The book introduces readers to the fundamentals and applications of nanocatalysis, synthesis, characterization, modification and application. Further topics include: landfill organic pollutant photodegradation; magnetic photocatalysis; synergistic effects on hydrogenated TiO2; and photoinduced fusion of gold-semiconductor nanoparticles. A detailed explanation of the chemistry of nanostructures and the ability to control materials at the nano-scale rounds out the coverage. Given the central importance of research in nanotechnology and nanoscience for the development of new catalysts, the book offers a valuable source of information for researchers and academics alike. It will also benefit industrial engineers and production managers who wish to understand the environmental impact of nanocatalysts.

Pollution has no borders. This popular 70's saying from early ecologists is surprisingly still true nowadays despite overwhelming scientific evidence and public awareness of the occurrence of artificial toxic substances in water, food, air, living organisms and the environment. This book presents advanced reviews on pollutant occurrence, transfer, toxicity and remediation. The chapter on school air quality by Dambruoso et al. highlights the overlooked health issue of airborne pollutants in buildings. Children are particularly threatened because they spend 90% of their time indoors, even in summer. The chapter on industrial wastewater pollutants by Dsikowitzky and Schwarzbauer reviews pollutants from textile, petrochemical, paper, tire, chemical and pharmaceutical plants. The authors describe advanced analytical methods and ecotoxicity tests. Industrial pollutants include dioxins and furans that are also reviewed in the chapter by Mudhoo et al. The chapter on fly ash by Gianoncelli et al. presents many techniques to treat fly ash and, in turn, decrease pollutant concentrations. The authors also explain that fly ash can be recycled in agriculture, buildings and geopolymers. The chapter on antifouling paints used for ship protection, by Sousa et al., highlights the occurrence of toxic organotins in human organs such as heart, liver and breast milk. The chapter on surfactants by Rebello et al. focuses on safety concerns for humans and the ecosystems. Remediation techniques and green surfactants are presented. The chapters on toxic metals by Nava-Ruiz and Mendez-Armenta, Abarikwu and Ristic et al. describe sources, monitoring and diseases induced by lead, mercury, cadmium and thallium. The chapter on carcinogenic nitrosamines by Li et al. presents techniques and materials such as zeolites to remediate liquids and smoke containing nitrosamines.

The book presents the state-of-the-art document describing the knowledge, data, cost-effectiveness and technologies employed to manage the waste in several countries such as Morocco, Tunisia, Egypt, Jordon, Syria, Palestine, Lebanon, and Yemen. It covers diverse topics including the status of the waste in the region, solid waste management, solid waste recovery and disposal, the use of the agricultural waste in feeding poultry, sludge disposal and management, wastewater treatment and energy production. Also, the book explains how waste management systems are becoming more complex in many countries with the move from landfill-based to resource recovery-based solutions following the setting of international and national targets to divert waste from landfill and to increase recycling and recovery rates. Besides, this book also evaluates the environmental legislation in the selected countries and suggests new performance enhancements. This book is of interest to environmental professionals including scientists and policymakers in the Middle East, North Africa, and areas with similar features.

The book examines how the absence of insurance in the past led to some special maritime liability law principles such as 'general average' (i.e., losses or expenses shared by all the parties to a maritime adventure) and the limitation of shipowners' liability. In the absence of insurance, these principles served the function of insurance mostly for shipowners. As commercial marine insurance is now widely available, these principles have lost their justification and may in fact interfere with the most important goal of liability law i.e., deterrence from negligence. The work thus recommends their abolition. It further argues that when insurance is easily available and affordable to the both parties to a liability claim, the main goal of liability law should be deterrence as opposed to compensation. This is exactly the case with the maritime cargo liability claims where both cargo owners and shipowners are invariably insured. As a result, the sole focus of cargo liability law should be and to a great extent, is deterrence. On the other hand in the vessel-source oil pollution liability setting, pollution victims are not usually insured. Therefore oil pollution liability law has to cater both for compensation and deterrence, the two traditional goals of liability law. The final question the work addresses is whether the deterrent effect of liability law is affected by the availability of liability insurance. Contrary to the popular belief the work attempts to prove that the presence of liability insurance is not necessarily a hindrance but can be a complementary force towards the realization of deterrent goal of liability law.

The coastal and ocean ecosystem is a significant feature of our planet and provides a source of food for much of life on Earth. Millions of species have been, and are still being discovered in the world's oceans. Among these zooplankton serve as secondary producers and are significant as they form pelagic food links and act as indicators of water masses. They constitute the largest and most reliable source of protein for most of the ocean's fishes. As such, their absence or depletion often affects fishery. In many countries, the decline in fishery has been attributed to reduced plankton populations. Furthermore, trillions of tiny copepods produce countless faecal pellets contributing greatly to the marine snow and therefore accelerating the flow of nutrients and minerals from the surface waters to the seabed. They are phylogenetically highly successful groups in terms of phylogenetic age, number of living species and success of adaptive radiation. A study of the basic and applied aspects of zooplankton would provide an index of the fishery potential and applications, offering insights into ocean ecology to safeguard food supplies and livelihoods of the millions of people living in coastal areas. For this reason, we need to understand all the facets of zooplankton as well as their interactions with atmosphere and other life forms, including human. In this context, this book discusses the basic and applied aspects of zooplankton, especially taxonomy, mosquitocidal activity, culture, analysis of nutritional, pigments and enzyme profile, preservation of copepods eggs, bioenrichment of zooplankton and application of zooplankton in sustainable aquaculture production, focusing on novel biofloc-copefloc technologies, and the impact of acidification and microplastics on zooplankton. Offering a comprehensive overview of the current issues and developments in the field of environmental and commercial applications, this book is a valuable resource for researchers, aquaculturists, environmental mangers wanting to understand the importance of zooplankton and develop technologies for the sustainable production of fish and other commodities to provide food and livelihoods for mankind.

This book is intended to support the forestry institutions in the tropical countries in the planning, assessment and systematic observation of forests required to fulfill their obligations as laid in international conventions such as the CBD and UNFCCC. Following the Rio Conference, a number of countries, donors and international organizations have implemented capacity-building projects with varying degrees of success. One main reason for the varying success rates seems to lie in the design of technical assistance programs, which have been formulated on the traditional lines of mainly generating forest resources information or transferring technology; whereas Agenda 21 requires fundamental changes in countries' institutions and approaches to planning and implementing the conservation and sustainable development of forests through a process of continuing research and analysis. The book is intended to serve the basic needs of national planning strategies and international and donor support.

Integrating information from several areas of engineering geology, hydrogeology, geotechnical engineering, this book addresses the general field of groundwater from an engineering perspective. It covers geological engineering as well as hydrogeological and environmental geological problems caused by groundwater engineering. It includes 10 chapters, i.e., basic groundwater theory, parameter calculation in hydrogeology, prevention of geological problem caused by groundwater, construction dewatering, wellpoint dewatering methods, dewatering wells and drilling, groundwater dewatering in foundation-pit engineering, groundwater engineering in bedrock areas, numerical simulation in groundwater engineering, groundwater corrosion on concrete and steel. Based on up-to-date literature, it describes recent developments and presents several case studies with examples and problems. It is an essential reference source for industrial and academic researchers working in the groundwater field and can also serve as lecture-based course material providing fundamental information and practical tools for both senior undergraduate and postgraduate students in fields of geology engineering, hydrogeology, geotechnical engineering or to conduct related research.

The sea is steadily rising, presently at ~3.4 mm/y, already costing Billions in Venice, on the Thames River and in New York City, to counter sea-level-related surges. Experts anticipate an accelerated rise, and credible predictions for sea level rise by the year 2100 range from 12 inches to above 6 feet. Study of the Earth's geologic history, through ice-core samples, links sea level rise to temperature rise. Since the lifetime of carbon dioxide in the atmosphere is measured in centuries, and it has upset the balance of incoming and outgoing energy, the Earth's temperature will continue to rise, even if carbon burning ceases. Engineering the Earth's solar input appears increasingly attractive and practical as a means to lower Earth's temperature, and thus, to lower sea level. The cost of engineering the climate appears small, comparable, even, to the already-incurred costs of sea level rise represented by civil engineering projects in London, Venice and New York City. Feasible deployment of geoengineering, accompanied by some reduction in carbon burning, is predicted to lower the sea level by the order of one foot by 2100 AD, negating the expected rise, to provide an immense economic benefit. The accompanying lower global temperature would reduce the severity of extreme weather, and restore habitability to lethally hot parts of the world. This book is primarily conceived to aid and inform the educated citizen: aspects may also interest climate workers.

This book investigates geological CO2 storage and its role in greenhouse gas emissions reduction, enhanced oil recovery, and environmentally responsible use of fossil fuels. Written for energy/environmental regulators at every level of government (federal, state, etc.), scientists/academics, representatives from the power and fossil energy sectors, NGOs, and other interested parties, this book uses the characterization of the Rock Springs Uplift site in Wyoming as an integrated case study to illustrate the application of geological CO2 storage science, principles, and theory in a real-world scenario.

This book provides new insights on the study of global environmental changes using the ecoinformatics tools and the adaptive-evolutionary technology of geoinformation monitoring. The main advantage of this book is that it gathers and presents extensive interdisciplinary expertise in the parameterization of global biogeochemical cycles and other environmental processes in the context of globalization and sustainable development. In this regard, the crucial global problems concerning the dynamics of the nature-society system are considered and the key problems of ensuring the system's sustainable development are studied. A new approach to the numerical modeling of the nature-society system is proposed and results are provided on modeling the dynamics of the system's characteristics with regard to scenarios of anthropogenic impacts on biogeochemical cycles, land ecosystems and oceans. The main purpose of this book is to develop a universal guide to information-modeling technologies for assessing the function of environmental subsystems under various climatic and anthropogenic conditions.