ABSTRACT
Wastewater surveillance has been widely used to track the prevalence of SARS-CoV-2 in communities. Although some studies have investigated the decay of SARS-CoV-2 RNA in wastewater, understanding about its fate during wastewater transport in real sewers is still limited. This study aims to assess the impact of sewer biofilms on the dynamics of SARS-CoV-2 RNA concentration in naturally contaminated real wastewater (raw influent wastewater without extra SARS-CoV-2 virus/gene seeding) using a simulated laboratory-scale sewer system. The results indicated that, with the sewer biofilms, a 90% concentration reduction of the SARS-CoV-2 RNA was observed within 2 h both in wastewater of gravity (GS, gravity-driven sewers) and rising main (RM, pressurized sewers) sewer reactors. In contrast, the 90% reduction time was 8–26 h in control reactors without biofilms. The concentration reduction of SARS-CoV-2 RNA in wastewater was significantly more in the presence of sewer biofilms. In addition, an accumulation of c.a. 260 and 110 genome copies/cm2 of the SARS-CoV-2 E gene was observed in the sewer biofilm samples from RM and GS reactors within 12 h, respectively. These results confirmed that the in-sewer concentration reduction of SARS-CoV-2 RNA in wastewater was likely caused by the partition to sewer biofilms. The need to investigate the in-sewer dynamic of SARS-CoV-2 RNA, such as the variation of RNA concentration in influent wastewater caused by biofilm attachment and detachment, was highlighted by the significantly enhanced reduction rate of SARS-CoV-2 RNA in wastewater of sewer biofilm reactors and the accumulation of SARS-CoV-2 RNA in sewer biofilms. Further research should be conducted to investigate the in-sewer transportation of SARS-CoV-2 and their RNA and evaluate the role of sewer biofilms in leading to underestimates of COVID-19 prevalence in communities.
ABSTRACT
Correlation between the BOD/COD ratio and Partition coefficient of octanol/ water (Pow) on a single organic substance shows that the Pow value is directly proportional to the toxicity level and inversely proportional to BOD/COD ratio. This research examined the correlation to a mixture of organic substances. The objective is to obtain a varied range of substances, as well as determining the quality of wastewater discharging to fresh waters. Need for analysis of organic substances used as antiseptics during the Covid-19 pandemic. In addition, organic substances from the organophosphate pesticide class, diazinon, were used. BOD5, COD, Pow, and LC50-96h toxicity tests using Daphnia magna were used. Six types of the mixture of organic substances included diazinon-formaldehyde-isopropyl alcohol, ethanol-oxalic acid-formaldehyde, isopropyl alcohol-glycerol-lactose, acetic acid-isopropyl alcohol-formaldehyde, sucrose-glycerol-acetic acid, and oxalic acid-formaldehyde-diazinon, with 3 different concentrations of 10, 100, and 1000 mg/L, three repetitions. The lowest BOD/COD ratio (<0.2) and the highest Pow value (>4) are found in diazinon-formaldehyde-IPA. Its toxicity in D. magna also showed the lowest LC-50 (11.82 mg/L). Whereas, sucrose-glycerol-acetic acid had the highest BOD/COD ratio (>0.7) and lowest Pow (<0.7) with the highest LC-50 (567.88 mg/L). Other organic substances mixtures have characteristics in the range of these mixtures. Pow variability and the BOD/COD ratio have a negative correlation. A mixture of organic matter is more biodegradable making it has a higher tendency to dissolve in water.Copyright © 2022 Informatics Publishing Limited and The Society of Toxicology. All rights reserved.
ABSTRACT
Spread prevention actions (SPAs) during Coronavirus pandemic period, such as increased hand-washing, temporary lock-downs, preventions in transportation, and the reduction of recreational and industrial activities may change the routines in social behaviors. Accordingly, SPAs can be effective on the quality and quantity of raw municipal wastewater. This research evaluates the aforementioned hypothesis and recommends solutions for the proper operation of wastewater treatment plants (WWTPs). Methods: For this purpose, the quantity and quality of sewage in 23 municipal WWTPs in Isfahan province, as the study area, were surveyed and compared from 2015 to 2020. SPSS software (version 23) was used for statistical analysis. Results: Results indicated that the annual growth rate of sewage discharged in the spring and summer of 2020 (period of SPAs) in the study area is 24% more than the average of annual growth rate in long-term (2015-2019). This increase is 45% in small WWTPs, while it is only 5% in large WWTPs. Results also revealed that the concentration of chemical oxidation demand (COD) of sewage was reduced 24% on average in this period. In addition, the biodegradability of wastewater is increased in large WWTPs mainly due to the decrease of industrial activities. Conclusion: Therefore, SPAs in the pandemic period of Coronavirus could increase the quantity of municipal wastewater and reduce its COD concentrations. These variations may provide more appropriate operational conditions for waste stabilization ponds rather than activated sludge units.
ABSTRACT
Benzalkonium chloride (BAC) is a key ingredient in many cleaning and disinfectant products due to it being an effective antiviral and biocidal agent. Because of its prolific use, especially following the recent global COVID pandemic, increased levels of BAC have been found in the environment, in particular, in wastewater, where it has negative impacts due to its toxicity. This necessitates an effective treatment for BAC in wastewater to reduce its toxicity. In this work, electrochemical oxidation of BAC on a boron-doped diamond anode was studied to successfully remove BAC. The electrochemical measurements performed at different current densities confirmed that BAC was completely oxidized within 20 min of treatment at 50 mA/cm2. However, chemical oxygen demand (COD) measurements showed that around 50% of the initial BAC was completely mineralized after 1 h of degradation at 50 mA/cm2, while the remaining electrooxidation of BAC resulted in the production of transformation products. © 2023 Canadian Society for Chemical Engineering.
ABSTRACT
While Rwanda is aiming at environmental pollution resilience and green growth, some industries are still discharging untreated effluent into the environment. This study gives a general overview of the compliance level of industrial effluent discharge in Rwanda and the linked negative environmental impacts. It comprises qualitative and quantitative analyses of data obtained from wastewater samples collected from five selected industries in Rwanda. The selected industries had previously been audited and monitored by the Rwanda Environment Management Authority (REMA), due to complains from neighboring residents. The study found that the effluent discharge from wastewater treatment plants (WWTP) for all concerned industries failed to comply with (i) oil and grease (O&G) national and international tolerable parameter limits or the (ii) fecal coliforms national standard. In addition, a compliance level of 66.7% was observed for key water quality monitoring parameters (pH, dissolved oxygen (DO), biochemical oxygen demand (BOD), chemical oxygen demand (COD), total suspended solids (TSS), and heavy metals (i.e., lead (Pb), cadmium (Cd), and chromium (Cr)). Following these study findings, one industry was closed by the REMA for deliberately discharging untreated effluent into an adjacent river. This study recommends the adoption of the best available technology for effluent treatment, installation or renovation of existing WWTPs, and the relocation to industrial zones of industries adjacent to fragile environments.
ABSTRACT
Purpose: Decision to transplant organs from SARS-CoV-2 NAT+ donors(N+D) balances risk of donor-derived infection with the scarcity of available organs to meet the needs of waitlisted candidates. Method(s): OPTN Ad Hoc Disease Transmission Advisory Committee (DTAC) reports on the use of organs from N+D from the onset of required SARS-CoV-2 lower respiratory tract(LRT) testing for lung donors (May 27, 2021) through August 31, 2021. OPTN data were analyzed for donors with a positive LRT or upper respiratory tract (URT) test reported in DonorNet discrete data fields (N+D), compared with donors who did not have positive LRT or URT in the discrete data fields (N-D). Result(s): Organs were recovered from 120 N+D (all OPTN Regions and 40/57 OPOs (70%)). Median donor age was 42 (IQR: 32-52) for N+D and 43 (30-56) for N-D. There was a greater proportion of DCD N+D than N-D (37.5% vs 28.3%, p=0.04). Underlying COD of anoxia and other were different (N+D 31.7%, 16.7% vs N-D 48%, 2.7%, respectively). Transplanted N+D and N-D did not differ by KDPI, LDRI or LVEF for kidney(KT), liver(LT) or heart(HT), respectively (Table 1). Median time from donor admission to first reported test (any result) was 0 and 4 days for URT and LRT, respectively. N+D recovery occurred a median of 2 (IQR: 1-6) days from last positive test. 246 organs (152KT, 50LT, 22HT, 22other) were transplanted from 107 N+D compared to 8969 organs from 3348 N-D. Recipients from N+D and N-D were similar in age, MELD/PELD (LT) and medical urgency status (HT). Median time from listing to transplant similar for N+D for all organs. The match run sequence number for final acceptor was higher for N+D for all organ types (Table 2). Median length of stay was similar for N+D and N-D for KT and LT (5d and 12-13d, respectively). For HT, median stay was shorter for N+D (30 vs 34d). For N+D, 3 of 50 LT died within 30d of transplant. During this timeframe, no PDDTEs were reported for any N+D at the time of transplant. Conclusion(s): N+D and N-D were similar in terms organ quality characteristics. Recipients receiving organs from N+D had higher match run sequence numbers, suggesting use of organs from N+D is not widespread across centers;however, with small numbers, this data will need to be verified. We cannot assess the relatedness of the three early mortality events in N+D recipients to donor or recipient characteristics. However, these data highlight the importance of ongoing outcome review of N+D recipients. (Figure Presented).
ABSTRACT
Covid-19 was first identified in China at the end of 2019 and in Turkey the first cases started to be seen in March 2020. In pandemic, excessive and unconscious use of disinfectants with chemical or organic cleaning products had various different negative effects on wastewater. In this study, changes in chemical parameter data in treated and raw wastewater taken from the advanced biological wastewater treatment plant in Zonguldak province before and after the Covid-19 pandemic were examined. When the graphs obtained are examined, after the pandemic, it has seen that chemical oxygen need (COD) decreased by 4.85% and biological oxygen demand (BOD5) diminished by 2.47%. There was an increase of 11.22% in the quantity of total suspended solids (TSS), 21.12% in the quantity of biological sludge and 6.28% in the return sludge. In addition to all these, a decrease of 4.48% in pH value and 41.54% in dissolved oxygen amount (DO) was determined after the pandemic. The effect of the pandemic on all parameters was examined by matrix diagram and ANOVA analysis. It is thought that the amount of BOD5 and COD decreased as the population density decreased as a result of the restrictions and the tendency towards the distance learning activities in pandemic conditions and in addition to this unconscious use of cleaning products is thought to cause an increase in TSS and sludge amount. Considering all of these, if this study is evaluated together with microbiological parameters, it is thought that it can support future studies that may determine the change in the city's Covid-19 data. © 2022 Gheorghe Asachi Technical University of Iasi, Romania. All rights reserved.
ABSTRACT
The risk assessment of water environments provides important references for water environment risk management. In this paper, the water environment risk of the upper rivers of the Baiyangdian Lake is assessed, considering both cumulative and sudden environmental risk. For the cumulative environmental risk assessment of the rivers, the characteristics of pollution transmissibility and accumulation in rivers was considered firstly. Furthermore, suggestions for the control of water environment pollution in the Baiyangdian Basin are given. The results indicate that the cumulative water environment risks of the Xiaoyi River—Dingzhou County, Xiaoyi River—Anguo County, Xiaoyi River—Boye County, and Xiaoyi River—Li County are high. The amount of fertilizer applied per unit of cultivated area, water quality, rate of water quality above the standard in water function zoning, and the ratio of environmental investment to gross domestic product (GDP) are important factors influencing the cumulative water environment risk. For sudden water environment assessments, the Xiaoyi River—Boye County is high. In the future, reducing the intensity of fertilizer application, strengthening the water quality control of the rivers, as well as upgrading the industry, should be carried out to protect the water environment in the Baiyangdian Basin.
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The purpose of this study is to explore the impact of pollution control on industrial production efficiency in 31 provinces and cities in the Yellow River and Non-Yellow River basins in China from 2013 to 2017, using the methods of the directional distance function (hereinafter referred to as DDF) and the technology gap ratio (hereinafter referred to as TGR) in parallel, while taking the industrial production sector (labor force, total capital formation, energy consumption and industrial water consumption) and the pollution control sector (wastewater treatment funds and waste gas treatment funds) as input variables. Undesirable outputs (total wastewater discharge, lead, SO2 and smoke and dust in wastewater) and an ideal output variable (industrial output value) are taken as output variables. It is found that the total efficiency of DDF in the Non-Yellow River Basin is 0.9793, which is slightly better than 0.9688 in the Yellow River Basin. Among the 17 provinces and cities with a total efficiency of 1, only Shandong and Sichuan are located in the Yellow River Basin. The TGR values of 31 provinces, cities and administrative regions are less than 1, and the average TGR value of the Yellow River Basin is 0.3825, which is lower than the average TGR value of the Non-Yellow River Basin of 0.5234. We can start by improving the allocation of manpower and capital, implementing the use of pollution prevention and control funds, improving the technical level of industrial production, improving pollutant emission, and increasing output value to improve overall efficiency performance. This study uses the parallel method, taking the industrial production department and the pollution control department as inputs, to objectively evaluate the changes in industrial production efficiency and technology gap in the Yellow River and Non-Yellow River basins, which is conducive to mastering the situation of pollution control and industrial production efficiency, and provides the reference for SDG-6- and SDG-9-related policy making.
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Introduction: The urgency of finding effective treatments for severe forms of COVID-19 has necessitated adaptations to clinical trial designs. Almost all of the initial randomized trials had to be open-label and placebo-free. We were able to seize the opportunity to conduct a double-blind placebo-controlled trial by integrating ourselves into an ongoing trial and offer here some lessons from this experience. Material and methods: The CAPE-COD trial (NCT 02517489) sought to show a decrease in day 28 mortality in patients admitted to critical care with community-acquired pneumonia and receiving hydrocortisone compared with placebo. The inclusion of patients with COVID-19 was possible but required urgent responses to several problems: i) choose between subgroup analysis or segregation of COVID patients from others;ii) simultaneously include in both trials or discontinue the parent trial;iii) adapt methods to achieve a rapid response, including changing the primary endpoint;iv) define the maximum size and stopping boundaries of a sequential trial in the absence of solid data on disease progression;v) quickly obtain ethical and regulatory approvals and funding;vi) conduct the trial in overcrowded centers;vii) not jeopardize the rigor of the parent trial despite an interruption in its recruitment [1]. These elements will be discussed orally. Results: 150 patients were included before the DSMB suggested that inclusions be stopped due to the pre-publication of RECOVERY. Hydrocortisone did not significantly reduce the primary endpoint, treatment failure (defined as death or persistent respiratory support) at day 21, but a post-hoc analysis showed that relative mortality at day 21 was 46% lower (14.7 vs. 27.4%) with hydrocortisone compared to placebo, a non-significant difference (p = 0.057) but with an effect size comparable to that observed in RECOVERY. Tolerance was good [2]. Discussion/Conclusion: The rapid response to many methodological problems allowed a trial with low risk of bias to be conducted despite the pandemic pressure.
ABSTRACT
Due to the pandemic caused by SARS-CoV-2 (severe acute respiratory syndrome corona virus 2) commonly known as COVID-19, a nationwide lockdown came into effect in India from 24th March midnight, 2020, which slowed down the movement of vehicles, operation of industries etc. Due to this reason a drastic change in the environment occurred and it caused the reduction of pollution level in the environment. The study mainly focuses on the positive impacts of lockdown in India. Studies have shown that after the implementation of lockdown, the level of the various major air pollution constituents of such as particulate matter (PM2.5, PM10, etc.), NO2, CO and ozone etc. in the air has reduced substantially. The air quality index data have clearly shown the difference in the level of air pollution between the year 2019 and 2020. The study was mainly focused on the comparison of air quality parameters such as particulate matter, NO2, CO and ozone etc. as well as the water pollution parameters such as Biochemical oxygen demand (BOD), chemical oxygen demand (COD) and dissolved oxygen (DO) for the River Yamuna and it was observed that there was substantial amount of positive change in pollutants after lockdown compared to what was before lockdown. The observations are carried out in atime frame manner such as before lockdown and after lockdown and results have been found with a huge difference in reduction of air pollution as well as water pollution.
ABSTRACT
A substantial volume of primary-treated wastewater from a medical rubber glove factory caused public freshwater to become sewage. The ultrashort hydraulic retention time in constructed wetlands was urgently employed for wastewater remediation. Pilot-scale, aeration, and nonaeration horizontal surface flow constructed wetlands (HSFCWs) with emergent plants were designed, compared, and optimized. Activated carbon, coconut shells, and oyster shells were subsequently transferred into a plastic basket as a substrate layer, while Typha angustifolia L. was used as an emergent plant. The experiments were conducted at a hydraulic retention time of 2, 4, 6, and 8 hr. per effluent recirculation. Sampling data were collected for each of the four effluent recirculations. The removal efficiencies of BOD, COD, FOG, TKN, TSS, TDS, EC, and salinity in the aeration HSFCWs were high—53.25, 67.28, 97.93, 78.93, 95.87, 87.52, 86.36, and 90.38%—at the first effluent recirculation of sampling, respectively, while the removal efficiencies in the nonaeration HSFCWs were also high—55.12, 57.38, 94.62, 83.10, 95.95, 88.09, 89.54, and 93.46%, respectively. Increasing the hydraulic retention time increased removal efficiencies. The removal efficiency of BOD in aerated HSFCWs was higher than in nonaerated HSFCWs in the second effluent recirculation of sampling. This is because the oxygen supplied by aeration in the system increased the organic and inorganic pollutant removal efficiencies. Other pollutants were removed more effectively during the second effluent recirculation. Excluding BOD and COD, Duncan’s multiple test revealed that the number of effluent recirculations for removal efficiencies of FOG, TKN, TSS, TDS, EC, and salinity was nonsignificant at the p≤0.001 level. These findings led to optimization of the medical rubber glove wastewater treatment at an ultrashort hydraulic retention time of 2–4 hr. This process and the control of CWs may be the best industrial wastewater treatment practice and a long-term solution for the industrial sector.
ABSTRACT
Various wastewater treatment technologies are available today and biological processes are predominantly used in these technologies. Increasing wastewater treatment systems produces large amounts of sewage sludge with variable quantities and qualities, which must be properly managed. Anaerobic and aerobic digestion and composting are major strategies to treat this sludge. The main indicators of biological stabilization are volatile fatty acids (VFAs), volatile solids (VS), the carbon/nitrogen (C/N) ratio, humic substances (HS), the total organic carbon (TOC), the carbon dioxide (CO2) evolution rate, the specific oxygen uptake rate (SOUR), and the Dewar test;however, different criteria exist for the same indicators. Although there is no consensus for defining the stability of sewage sludge (biosolids) in the research and regulations reviewed, controlling the biological degradation, vector attraction, and odor determines the biological stabilization of sewage sludge. Because pollutants and pathogens are not completely removed in biological stabilization processes, further treatments to improve the quality of biosolids and to ensure their safe use should be explored.
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Overall lockdown limitations toward the start of the year 2020 are credited to the annihilation and fatalities worldwide because of COVID-19. Most of the nations revealed rapid growth of COVID-19 cases and subsequently declared lockdown in several stages. Because of these lockdowns, industries had to stop producing goods other than the actual merchandise needed to survive. The air quality and natural water quality witnessed a noticeable improvement from limited human activity. This paper presents an investigation demonstrating this improvement under various lockdown periods, specifically for the Indian subcontinent. The rivers and atmosphere of Indian settings have been utilized here as a contextual analysis associated with industrial pollution. This work aims to study the associations and interrelationships between lockdowns during COVID-19 and their effect on air and water quality. The paper presents then and now an analysis of the Indian atmosphere based on various particulate matters and river health based on the biological oxygen demand, chemical oxygen demand, and dissolved oxygen. The study indicated a significant dip in air and water pollution levels and a significant improvement in the atmosphere and rivers’ quality during this period. Significant water bodies witnessed the pH level of 7.5 amidst lockdown, which is a good indicator of improved water health since the pH level of drinkable water is 7. The analysis carried out in this paper can also be mapped to other countries and landscapes of the world.
ABSTRACT
At a low COD:TN ratio (≤5) in influent, maintaining a longer HRT (≥9 h) and longer SRT (≥30 d) are suggested to improve higher N removal efficiency in case of operation at low DO (Dissolved oxygen) level (0.9 ± 0.2 mg-O2/L). However, in case of operation at high DO level (4.0 ± 0.5 mg-O2/L), short HRT (1 h) and typical SRT (17 d) make it possible to achieve nitrogen removal. On the other hand, at a high COD:TN ratio (≥8.4), a typical HRT (9–15 h), SRT (12–19 d), and DO level (1.3–2.6 mg-O2/L) would be applied. Microbial distribution analysis showed an abundance of AOA (Ammonia-oxidizing archaea) under conditions of low DO (≤0.9 mg-O2/L). Nitrosomonas sp. are mostly found in the all investigated water resource recovery facilities (WRRFs). Nitrosospira sp. are only found under operating conditions of longer SRT for WRRFs with a low COD:TN ratio. In comparison between abundances of Nitrobacter sp. and Nitrospira sp., abundances of Nitrobacter sp. are proportional to low DO concentration rather than abundance of Nitrospira sp. A predominance of nosZ-type denitrifiers were found at low DO level. Abundance of denitrifiers by using nirS genes showed an over-abundance of denitrifiers by using nirK genes at low and high COD:TN ratios.
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Based on provincial panel data for the past 15 years in China, the SBM-ML index method was used to measure agricultural productivity under the environmental-constraint perspective with agricultural surface source pollution as the non-desired output. A dynamic panel regression model was used to empirically analyze the factors influencing agricultural productivity to provide a reference for formulating policies to alleviate the conflict between economic development and environmental pollution. The results show that the green total factor productivity of Chinese agriculture exhibits a slow, incremental trend year by year. The growth of green total factor productivity in agriculture mainly comes from the increase in the rate of green technological progress. In terms of geographical disparity, the eastern, central, and western regions show a high-to-low gradient of agricultural green total factor productivity. Agricultural green total factor productivity showed a significant positive spatial correlation in some years. As for the influencing factors, foreign trade in agricultural products is conducive to enhancing green total factor productivity in agriculture, whereas foreign direct investment in agriculture and agricultural technology input inhibit the growth of green total factor productivity in agriculture. This research also found a significant U-shaped relationship between environmental management inputs and green total factor productivity in agriculture. Accordingly, suggestions are provided to optimize the international trade structure of agricultural products, selectively introduce high-quality green foreign investment projects, drive the efficiency of R&D investment through digital technology, and increase investment in special funds for agricultural pollution control.
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In rapidly growing urban areas, such as Tijuana, Mexico, the presence of urban green spaces (UGSs) can help stem soil erosion, improve infiltration, slow runoff, decrease flooding, reduce air pollution, and mitigate climate change. In many water-scarce parts of the world, where centralized wastewater treatment is not accessible or practical, decentralized wastewater treatment systems (DEWATSs) have the potential to supply the water needed for irrigating UGSs. Here, we first review UGS systems supported by DEWATSs and the water quality guidelines and challenges associated with implementing DEWATSs for urban greening in different countries, including Mexico. We also critically examine the linkages between the lack of UGSs in Tijuana, Mexico, extensive soil erosion, and failing sanitation infrastructure that has led to the infamously poor water quality in the Tijuana River. Tijuana’s Ecoparque Wastewater Treatment Facility, a low-energy, aerobic DEWATS, which collects, treats, and discharges residential sewage for localized landscape irrigation, demonstrates how DEWATSs can meet the water demands for urban greening in rapidly urbanizing cities. The aerobic decentralized treatment using a gravity-fed trickling biofilter resulted in a >85% removal of chemical oxygen demand and dissolved organic carbon. Prior to treatment facility upgrades, there was a ~2 log reduction in total coliform and Escherichia coli and a <20% decrease in ammonia from the influent to final effluent. After the addition of a maturation pond in 2020, the effluent met Mexico standards for irrigation reuse, with a ~4 log reduction in fecal coliforms from the influent to final effluent. Case study results demonstrated the potential for decentralized wastewater treatment to meet effluent standards for landscape irrigation, provide water for urban greening, and prevent pollution in the Tijuana River and other urban waterways.
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This study utilized MIKE 11 to quantify the spatio-temporal dynamics of water quality parameters (Biochemical Oxygen Demand (BOD5), Dissolved Oxygen (DO) and temperature) in the Long Xuyen Quadrangle area of the Vietnamese Mekong Delta. Calibrated for the year of 2019 and validated for the year of 2020, the developed model showed a significant agreement between the observed and simulated values of water quality parameters. Locations near to cage culture areas exhibited higher BOD5 values than sites close to pond/lagoon culture areas due to the effects of numerous point sources of pollution, including upstream wastewater and out-fluxes from residential and tourism activities in the surrounding areas, all of which had a direct impact on the quality of the surface water used for aquaculture. Moreover, as aquacultural effluents have intensified and dispersed over time, water quality in the surrounding water bodies has degraded. The findings suggest that the effective planning, assessment and management of rapidly expanding aquaculture sites should be improved, including more rigorous water quality monitoring, to ensure the long-term sustainable expansion and development of the aquacultural sector in the Long Xuyen Quadrangle in particular, and the Vietnamese Mekong Delta as a whole.
ABSTRACT
Cemeteries are sites for the final disposal of human bodies that constitute a source of contamination of soil and water as a result of the cadaveric decomposition generated. The current research performed an initial study on the contamination of soil and water due to the influence of cemeteries and verified compliance with the legislation regulating land use and occupation of Central Ecuador (PUGS) with the aim of proposing an environmental and territorial solution to the problems generated by the mismanagement of cemeteries, through the physicochemical analysis of soil and water and studies of land use compatibility. The results indicate the tendency of contamination caused by the studied cemeteries, since the samples taken in both the rainy and dry season for the measurement of parameters BOD5, COD, DO, pH and electrical conductivity fail to meet the established requirements of the Ecuadorian and international environmental regulations. In addition, land use conflicts were encountered in the cemetery grounds. It is concluded that the existing cemeteries should be subjected to more detailed environmental analysis and subsequently should be treated as security landfills in the closure and post-closure stage. Also, it has been concluded that the cemeteries should not be located in urban or peri-urban areas.