Sources of Drinking Water and Agricultural Chemical Use in Maine

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Evaluating And Optimizing Sustainable Drainage Design To Maximize Multiple Benefits: Case Studies In China

In the past, the focus of drainage design was on sizing pipes and storages in order to provide sufficient network capacity. This traditional approach, together with computer software and technical guidance, had been successful for many years. However, due to rapid population growth and urbanisation, the requirements of a “good” drainage design have also changed significantly. In addition to water management, other aspects such as environmental impacts, amenity values and carbon footprint have to be considered during the design process. Going forward, we need to address the key sustainability issues carefully and practically. The key challenge of moving from simple objectives (e.g. capacity and costs) to complicated objectives (e.g. capacity, flood risk, environment, amenity etc) is the difficulty to strike a balance between various objectives and to justify potential benefits and compromises. In order to assist decision makers, we developed a new decision support system for drainage design. The system consists of two main components – a multi-criteria evaluation framework for drainage systems and a multi-objective optimisation tool. The evaluation framework is used for the quantification of performance, life-cycle costs and benefits of different drainage systems. The optimisation tool can search for feasible combinations of design parameters such as the sizes, order and type of drainage components that maximise multiple benefits. In this paper, we will discuss real-world application of the decision support system. A number of case studies have been developed based on recent drainage projects in China. We will use the case studies to illustrate how the evaluation framework highlights and compares the pros and cons of various design options. We will also discuss how the design parameters can be optimised based on the preferences of decision makers. The work described here is the output of an EngD project funded by EPSRC and XP Solutions.

Extinction, pollution, and the sustainable use of exhaustible and renewable resources

Single ownership of natural resources is conunon in many developing countries and socialist economies. The sole owner is usually the .state or society at large, and governments are responsible for either distributing exploitation rights or engaging in exploitation through their own corporations. • Under this circumstance, the notion of externality may not fully explain pollution problems existent in these nations. This paper studies the case where a single agent owns both exhaustible and renewable resources, and attempts to maximize its welfare. The resources are either perfect or imperfect substitutes. Initially, exhaustible resource extraction does not affect the renewable resource, and sustainable growth is attainable. A lactor of pollution flowing from the extraction of the nc.nrenewable resource into the growth of the renewable resource is introduced. The continuous exploitation of the exhaustible resource leads to the " optimal " extinction of the renewable resource, and sustainable growth is no longer reached. Regulation from a supra governmental agency such as an multinational institution may prove to be of utmost importance, if sustainability is to be achieved. The paper is divided into five sections. Section two provides a brief survey of the relevant literature. Section three presents the model without pollution. This factor is introduced in section four. The final section discusses some possible approaches for attaining sustainable growth, and contains the concluding remarks .

The use of mechanical aeration and its effects on water mass

Conselho Nacional de Desenvolvimento Científico e Tecnológico (CNPq)

Candida parapsilosis complex water isolates from a haemodialysis unit: biofilm production and in vitro evaluation of the use of clinical antifungals

Coordenação de Aperfeiçoamento de Pessoal de Nível Superior (CAPES)

Water beetles in mountainous regions in southeastern Brazil

Fundação de Amparo à Pesquisa do Estado de São Paulo (FAPESP)

Interspecific fish hybrids in Brazil: management of genetic resources for sustainable use

Fundação de Amparo à Pesquisa do Estado de São Paulo (FAPESP)

Use of the freshwater crab Trichodactylus fluviatilis to biomonitoring Al and Mn contamination in river water.

Determinations of Al and Mn concentrations in the tissues (gills, hepatopancreas and muscle) of the freshwater crab Trichodactylus fluviatilis and water samples, both collected from sites on tributaries of the Corumbatai River (São Paulo, Brazil) were performed. The Bioaccumulation Factor (BAF), calculated for different sites with respect to the water concentration, ranged from 173-555 for Al and from 636 - 921 for Mn. Dissolved concentrations of Al and Mn in water samples (collected in different sites) were related to the accumulation of these metals in crabs, suggesting that T. fluviatilis is good biomonitor for Al and Mn pollution in aquatic ecosystem.

Application of MALDI-MS analysis of Rainforest chemodiversity: a keystone for biodiversity conservation and sustainable use

Fundação de Amparo à Pesquisa do Estado de São Paulo (FAPESP)

Study of the enthalpy-entropy mechanism from water sorption of orange seeds (C. sinensis cv. Brazilian) for the use of agro-industrial residues as a possible source of vegetable oil production

Fundação de Amparo à Pesquisa do Estado de São Paulo (FAPESP)

Anticoccidial effects of coumestans from Eclipta alba for sustainable control of Eimeria tenella parasitosis in poultry production

The aim of this study was to evaluate the anticoccidial efficacy of a product containing coumestans from Eclipta alba. Experimental conditions were set up as to reproduce the environment conditions for husbandry adopted in commercial broiler farms. Broilers were raised in broiler chicken shed provided with feeders, drinkers, illumination and temperature control systems and floor covering to afford an adequate nourishing environment. Male Cobb broilers (240) were assigned to four experimental groups being each experimental group set apart in rice straw-covered shed isolated with wire mesh. One-day-old broilers were reared in a coccidian-free environment with ad libitum supply of filtered water and freely available standard feed, from the 1st to the 35th day of life. The T1 group received standard feed (negative control); T2 was treated with standard feed supplemented with 66 ppm of salinomycin (positive control); groups T3 and T4 had standard feed supplemented with the ethyl acetate fraction from methanolic extract of E. alba aerial parts, which contains the coumestans WL and DWL (120 and 180 ppm, respectively). The chicken broilers were individually infected with 2 x 104 oocysts of Eimeria tenella when they were 14 days old and were monitored weekly to evaluate zootechnical parameters such as weight gain and food conversion ratio. Counting of coccidial oocyst in chiken feces was assessed from random samples, from the 21st to 28th days of life, which corresponded to 7-14 days after the infection. Five chickens selected at random from each experimental group were subsequently euthanized at 21, 28 or 35 days of life to determine the lesion score in the cecal region and to excise a cecum portion for histopathological evaluation. The group treated with coumestans from E. alba presented an average weight gain and food conversion ratio higher than the negative control group and similar to the mean value of the positive control group. Coumestan-treated groups showed a significant decrease in the oocyst counting since the 21th day of life and displayed a reduced number of macroscopic lesions. Histopathological evaluations of cecum fragments showed that both treatments induced the migration of defense cells at the site of infection. A severe destruction of the cecal lining was found in the intestinal tract of broilers fed with a coumestans dose of 180 ppm. Overall, our results validate the use of a phytotherapy containing E. alba coumestans at a dose of 120 ppm as a therapeutic or prophylactic agent against avian coccidiosis. (C) 2010 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.

Use of levoglucosan, potassium, and water-soluble organic carbon to characterize the origins of biomass-burning aerosols

Fundação de Amparo à Pesquisa do Estado de São Paulo (FAPESP)