Search results for " Sustainable"

BIOREMOVAL 0F SULPHATE LAYER FROM A 15TH CENTURY POLYCHROME MARBLE ARTIFACT

2015

This case study shows the application of viable bacterial cells for removing undesired deposits from the surface of a stone polychrome bas-relief, exhibited at the Interdisciplinary Gallery of Sicily Palazzo Abatellis (Palermo). Diagnostic studies carried out during the restoration were aimed at characterizing the technique of execution and understanding the degradation processes. The results of the XRF and FTIR investigations showed that on large areas of the artifact’s surface, stratified deposits with a significant presence of sulfates were present. For bioremoval of the deposits, viable bacterial cells belonging to the species Desulfovibrio vulgaris, were utilized in gelled solution for…

The role of environmental education in Sicilian Marine Protected Areas

2017

Today, more than ever, we need to be care for our common home: the Earth. The global financial and economical crisis has made evident the inner relationship between environmental degradation, the consequences of the new shift in the geopolitical order, and the cultural conflicts confronting the world. In this contest, the Italian Ministry of the Environment and Protection of Land and Sea (MATTM) promotes Education for Sustainable Development and Environmental Education to empower citizen to live sustainably and in an environmentally conscious manner. From a citizenship perspective, ecological viewpoints play a role in the public debate about land use, large scale fishing, sustainability, cl…

The role of sustainable agroforestry practices and food consumption to prevent tropical deforestation and increase ecosystem services

2022

Tropical forests harbor most of global terrestrial biodiversity and provide essential ecosystem services, although they have been largely replaced by agricultural activities. Amazon is the largest tropical forest remaining, and cattle ranching and soybean cultivation are by far the greater drivers of deforestation, that together with other few commodities constitutes the main products responsible for the imported deforestation caused by European countries. Agroforestry systems and sustainable intensification are pointed out as solutions to conciliate food production with environmental conservation, thus reviewing the results of studies comparing these practices against conventional ones are…

Could cattle ranching and soybean cultivation be sustainable? A systematic review and a meta-analysis for the Amazon

2021

Abstract: Tropical forests are being destroyed to make space for agricultural activities with the assumption that they are required to feed the growing global population. Consequently, more sustainable practices are needed to guarantee food security and environmental protection of highly threatened natural biodiversity hotspots like the Amazon rainforest. Cattle ranching and soybean cultivation are by far the greater drivers of land use change and deforestation in the Amazon region. We performed a systematic review of papers related to these two main drivers and a meta-analysis on the effects of sustainable practices on different ecosystem services. The results of the review highlight a lar…

SWEET IONIC LIQUIDS BASED MATERIALS FOR ENVIRONMENTAL APPLICATIONS

Enhanced Sewage Sludge Drying with a Modified Solar Greenhouse

2022

This work reports the results obtained with an innovative configuration of a closed-static solar greenhouse for sludge drying. The novelty of the solar greenhouse configuration consisted in using a forced ventilation system to provide hot air for sludge drying and the utilization of solar irradiation for energy supply. Wet sewage sludge (97% humidity) was successfully dried up to a residual humidity close to 5% after 25 days during wintertime. The increase of the airflow rate supplied under the sludge bed improved the sludge drying rate. Moreover, the fraction of volatile suspended solids decreased from 70% to 41% after 13 days, indicating that air supply promoted the simultaneous stabiliza…

Infrastructure, Tariff and Legal Action: How to Achieve a Climate-Friendly Transport System

2011

Transportation absorbs about 70% of oil consumption in EU countries. The fuels that burn in the field of transport are composed of 96% of oil. Energy efficiency of road and air traffic must also be improved. But transport environmental impacts reductions should be made necessarily through a transfer of traffic from the car, lorries and aircraft to train, ship, and non motorized two-wheelers into the EU cities. In fact the former are large producers of greenhouse gases, while the latter are more environmentally friendly means of transport in climate. Reaching an annual increase of 1% of the modal split in favour of more sustainable means of transport on the environment must be set as a goal …

PARKING PRICING FOR A SUSTAINABLE TRANSPORT SYSTEM

2014

The purpose of this study has been to develop a model to designing an efficient parking pricing policy. The aim is an intelligent control and management system of parking pricing integrated with a redefinition of the circulation scheme to define a limited traffic zone in the central business district of Palermo. The transport demand over the entire area of the town has been studied in order to design various parking pricing scenarios with the application of an additional cost on parking inside the selected area of the CBD. This area attracts most of the private vehicular traffic and it is characterized by university faculties, schools, hospitals, offices and commercial areas. The optimal ho…

Sistemi di trasporto pubblico urbano via mare. Un modo per rilanciare il waterfront di Palermo

2011

New sea transport terminals can be major people movers and main centres for various urban activities and functions, determining strong social output. The city of Palermo qualifies as a prominent research territory, due to its densely urbanized and populated waterfront areas, associated with a lack of transport infrastructures and efficient transit systems to meet the mobility demand of residents and commuters. A new waterfront arrangement can improve the city image and opens the way to new urban public transport systems by sea, like ferries and hydrofoils, as an alternative to the conventional land transit systems already affected by unavoidable congestion. Plans to link by sea different de…

A SOLUTION FOR QUARRY LIMESTONE DUST RECYCLING

2019

Quarry dust is a product of the extracting process. In quarrying activities, the rock is extracted and transformed into various sizes: as a waste, a fine aggregate generally useless to be disposed of and able to produce environmental pollution is produced. The disposal of this type of waste is a further cost of the extracting process, further it is a risk especially for subsoil reserves of wa-ter that can be easily reached during rainfalls and for the sea when quarries are close to the coast. The productive use of quarry dust with the double aim of disposal and protection of the environment seems a right strategy. The Italian-Maltese extracting industry covers a great segment in the world w…