Overlooked risk of antibiotic resistance genes in typical landfill plumes and their influencing factors.

Landfills are one of the primary reservoirs of antibiotic resistance genes (ARGs). Previous studies always focus on the distribution of ARGs in landfill leachate, while the distribution of ARGs in groundwater around the landfill and the corresponding influencing factors are always overlooked. In this study, seven groundwater samples and one leachate sample were collected from a typical landfill in Yueqing, China.

Transport of antibiotic resistance genes in the landfill plume: Experiment and numerical modeling.

Antibiotic resistance genes (ARGs) in the landfill site would potentially seep into groundwater by leachate infiltration, which poses great threat of ARGs dissemination through groundwater flow. However, the transport characteristics of ARGs in the landfill plume are still unclear, impeding the risk management and remediation of landfill sites. This study carried out a series of column experiments to investigate the transport of various ARGs in the landfill plume and its influencing factors.

Investigating the co-transport and combined toxicity effect of micro-/nano-plastics and PAHs in ryegrass.

The potential for micro-/nano-plastics (MNPs) to translocate from environmental matrices into organisms has been increasingly substantiated. However, the mechanisms underlying the co-transport and combined toxicity of MNPs in conjunction with organic pollutants in organisms remain inadequately understood. This study investigated the transport mechanisms and toxicity responses of ryegrass (Lolium perenne L.

Potential impact and mechanism of aged polyethylene microplastics on nitrogen assimilation of Lactuca sativa L.

Nitrogen (N) is the driving factor for crop yield and quality, and more research is needed on the mechanisms of aged micro/nano plastics (MNPs) on N assimilation in edible crops. In this study, pot experiments were conducted to investigate the potential effect of aged polyethylene (PE) microplastic addition (particle sizes: 20 and 0.1 µm, addition levels: 0.

The synchronized dynamic release behavior of microplastics during farmland soil erosion process.

Microplastics (MPs) are widespread in farmland soil. However, the risks associated with their loss through soil erosion remain unknown. This study investigates the occurrence and behavior of MPs in farmland soil in a southeastern coastal area of China, focusing on their synchronized dynamic release during soil erosion scenarios.

Characteristics and release potential of microplastics in municipal solid waste incineration bottom ash.

Incineration is an effective method for reducing and safely treating municipal solid waste. However, microplastics (MPs) inevitably remain in the bottom ash, potentially introducing new pollution risks during subsequent treatment processes. This study conducted an analysis of the accumulation and release potential of MPs in bottom ash samples collected from 4 municipal solid waste incineration plants in Zhejiang, China.

Enhanced removal of toluene in heterogeneous aquifers through injecting encapsulated ozone micro-nano bubble water.

Organic contaminants have a tendency to accumulate in low-permeability aquifers, making their removal challenging and creating a bottleneck in groundwater remediation efforts. The use of ozone micro-nano bubbles, due to their smaller size compared to traditional macrobubbles, shows potential for efficient penetration into the low-permeability aquifer and effective oxidization of contaminants. This study conducted batch experiments, column studies, and 2D tank experiments to systematically investigate the remediation efficiency of toluene in a heterogeneous aquifer using ozonated water (OW), ozone micro-bubble water (OMBW), and encapsulated ozone micro-nano bubble water (EOMBW) with rhamnolipid.

Microplastic release and sulfate reduction response in the early stage of a simulated landfill.

Landfills are essential facilities for treating and disposing municipal solid waste. They emit sulfur-containing odors and serve as an important sink for a new type of pollutant called microplastics (MPs). This study focused on the initial stage of anaerobic degradation to establish the relationship between the release of MPs and odor generation.

Microplastic, a possible trigger of landfill sulfate reduction process.

The environmental impact of microplastics (MPs) formed from landfill has not been gained enough attention. This research investigated the characteristics of the MPs occurrence in landfills through field sampling. It shows that the MPs abundance in the landfill surface soil and non-landfill areas can reach 3573 items·g and 3041 items·g, respectively.

Potential risks of organic contaminated soil after persulfate remediation: Harmful gaseous sulfur release.

Persulfate is considered a convenient and efficient remediation agent for organic contaminated soil. However, the potential risk of sulfur into the soil remediation by persulfate remains ignored. In this study, glass bottles with different persulfate dosages and groundwater tables were set up to simulate persulfate remediation of organic pollutants (aniline).

Bioaccessibility and reliable human health risk assessment of heavy metals in typical abandoned industrial sites of southeastern China.

Heavy metal pollution caused by a large number of abandoned industrial sites cannot be underestimated, but its human health risks have not been accurately assessed. This study investigated the pollution of heavy metals in soils of the typical abandoned industrial sites in southeastern China. Based on the bioaccessibility of different heavy metals (Pb, Ni, Cu, Zn, Cd, Cr) in the industrial soils, the human health risks were accurately evaluated, and the controlling factors were quantitatively assessed.

Effect of dissolved organic matter on selective oxidation of toluene by ozone micro-nano bubble water.

The oxidation capacity of ozone micro-nano bubble water (OMBW) was always higher than ozonated water due to enhanced contact by bubble interface, while the effect of coexisted dissolved organic matter (DOM) on the oxidation efficiency was still unclear. In this paper, batch experiments were carried out to investigate the selective oxidation of toluene by both OMBW and ozonated water (OW) with coexisted DOM in water. Five types of background solutions were applied in this study, including humic acid solution, fulvic acid solution and three types of diluted landfill leachates at the same content of total organic carbon.

Disturbance and restoration of soil microbial communities after in-situ thermal desorption in a chlorinated hydrocarbon contaminated site.

Thermal desorption technology has been widely used for the remediation of organic contaminated soil, but the heating process may alter the soil properties and its safety reutilization. After thermal remediation, the target pollutants including chloroform, 1,2-dichloroethane, 1,1,2-trichloroethane, 1,2,3-trichloropropane and vinyl chloride in the chlorinated hydrocarbon contaminated site were reduced significantly. The soil microbial α-diversity was also reduced by more than half.

In Vitro Bioaccessibility and Health Risk Assessment of Arsenic and Zinc Contaminated Soil Stabilized by Ferrous Sulfate: Effect of Different Dietary Components.

Iron-based materials have good stability in reducing the mobility and toxicity of heavy metals, but the behavior and human health risks of heavy metals could be affected by dietary components. This study investigated the effect of typical diets (lettuce, cooked rice and apples) on the bioaccessibility and morphological changes of arsenic (As) and zinc (Zn) in contaminated site after stabilization by ferrous sulfate (FeSO4). The results showed that the bioaccessibility of As and Zn were increased in a co-digestion system of food.

Maternal exposure to chiral triazole fungicide tebuconazole induces enantioselective thyroid disruption in zebrafish offspring.

Pesticides could induce long-term impacts on aquatic ecosystem via transgenerational toxicity. However, for many chiral pesticides, the potential enantioselectivity of transgenerational toxicity has yet to be fully understood. In this study, we used zebrafish as models to evaluate the maternal transfer risk of tebuconazole (TEB), which is a chiral triazole fungicide currently used worldwide and has been frequently detected in surface waters.

Dynamic processes in conjunction with microbial response to unveil the attenuation mechanisms of tris (2-chloroethyl) phosphate (TCEP) in non-sanitary landfill soils.

Although the environmental and health risks of chlorinated organophosphate esters (OPEs-Cl) have drawn much attention, its environmental behaviors have been insufficiently characterized. As a notable sink of this emerging contaminant, non-sanitary landfills, which may decompose/accumulate OPEs-Cl, is of particular concern. In the present study, the dynamic processes of the typical OPEs-Cl, tris(2-chloroethyl) phosphate (TCEP), in non-sanitary landfill soils were analyzed under anaerobic condition, and the microbial taxa involved in these processes were explored.

Soil heterogeneity influence on the distribution of heavy metals in soil during acid rain infiltration: Experimental and numerical modeling.

Acid rain is a global environmental problem that mobilizes heavy metals in soils, while the distribution and geochemical fraction of heavy metals during acid rain infiltration in heterogeneous soils are still unclear. In this study, we performed column experiments to investigate the distribution and geochemical fraction of Cu, Pb, Ni and Cd in heterogeneously layered soils during continuous acid rain infiltration. Chloride ion used as a conservative tracer was found to be uniformly distributed during acid rain infiltration, showing insignificant preferential flow effects in the column.

Water quality assessment of east Tiaoxi River, China, based on a comprehensive water quality index model and Monte-Carlo simulation.

The comprehensive water quality index (CWQI) reflects the comprehensive pollution status of rivers through mathematical statistics of several water quality indicators. Using computational mathematical simulations, high-confidence CWQI predictions can be obtained based on limited water quality monitoring samples. At present, most of the CWQI reported in the literature are based on conventional indicators such as nitrogen and phosphorus levels, and do not include the petroleum hydrocarbons levels.

Attachment and detachment of large microplastics in saturated porous media and its influencing factors.

Groundwater contamination by microplastics (MPs) has been gradually regarded as a potential human health risk, which calls for detailed investigation of MPs transport behavior in saturated zone. In this study, a series of sand column experiments were carried out to investigate the transport characteristics of large MPs with its diameter of 10-20 μm in porous media, in which the effects of different hydrological conditions and MPs characteristics were examined. Experimental results showed that the increase of water flow rate from 2.

Integrated survey on the heavy metal distribution, sources and risk assessment of soil in a commonly developed industrial area.

The Jiangzhe Area was relatively common area that rely on industrial process for rapid development with serious heavy metals contamination. This study investigated the spatial, vertical and speciation distribution, correlation of heavy metals, as well as assessed pollution and health risks in three representative contamination industries at Jingjiang (electroplating site), Taizhou (e-waste recycling site) and Wenzhou (leather production site) in the Jiangzhe Area. The results indicated that the Cr(VI) pollution was serious in all three sites and there was a tendency to gradually decrease with depth.

Effect of site hydrological conditions and soil aggregate sizes on the stabilization of heavy metals (Cu, Ni, Pb, Zn) by biochar.

Biochar is a popular material that would effectively immobilize heavy metals in soil, which can greatly decrease the health risk of heavy metals. Although many previous studies have studied the immobilization of heavy metals by biochar, the influence of hydrological conditions on the immobilization effect is still not clear. This paper carried out column experiments to study the effect of fluctuating groundwater table on Cu, Ni, Pb, Zn distribution and speciation with the addition of biochar from pyrolysis of swine manure.

A deep insight into the suppression mechanism of Sedum alfredii root exudates on Pseudomonas aeruginosa based on quorum sensing.

Quorum sensing (QS) plays an important role in the intensive communication between plants and microbes in the rhizosphere during the phytoremediation. This study explored the influence of the root exudates of hyperaccumulator Sedum alfredii on Pseudomonas aeruginosa based on QS. The effects of the components of root exudates, genes expression and transcription regulation of QS system (especially the las system) in Pseudomonas aeruginosa wild-type strain (WT) and rhl system mutant strain (ΔrhlI) were systematically analyzed and discussed.

Abscisic acid (ABA)-importing transporter 1 (AIT1) contributes to the inhibition of Cd accumulation via exogenous ABA application in Arabidopsis.

Soil cadmium (Cd) accumulation presents risks to crop safety and productivity. However, through an exogenous application of abscisic acid (ABA), its accumulation in plants can be reduced and its toxicity mitigated, thereby providing an alternative strategy to counteract Cd contamination of arable soil. In the present study, we demonstrated that exogenous ABA application alleviates Cd-induced growth inhibition and photosynthetic damage in wild-type (Col-0) Arabidopsis plants.