Search results for "Environmental Biotechnology"

Assessing dye-tracer technique for rill flow velocity measurements

2018

Abstract Rill erosion is considered one of the most important processes affecting soil because of the large amount of soil loss. The rill network acts as sediment source and is able to transport both rill flow-detached particles and those delivered from the interrill areas. Small flow depth in a rill and steep slope values of its bed affect significantly flow hydraulics. When rill flow velocity is measured using a dye-tracing method, the mean velocity is calculated by multiplying the measured surface velocity of the leading edge of the tracer plume by a correction factor. The main uncertainty of the dye-tracing technique stands in the relationship between mean and surface flow velocity. In …

Using LIDAR topography data for determination of morphology and terrace levels of the River Ogre Valley in Middle Latvia Lowland [abstract].

2016

A Soil Water Assessment Tool (SWAT) Modeling Approach to Prioritize Soil Conservation Management in River Basin Critical Areas Coupled With Future Cl…

2021

About 44% of the Indian landmass experiences the adverse impact of land degradation. This loss of sediments caused by soil erosion reduces the water quality of local water bodies and decreases agricultural land productivity. Therefore, decision-makers must formulate policies and management practices for sustainable management of basins that are cost-effective and environment friendly. Application of the best management practices (BMPs) to properly manage river basins is difficult and time-consuming. Its implication under various climate change scenarios makes it more complicated but necessary to achieve sustainable development. In this study, the soil and water assessment tool (SWAT) model…

Experiments for testing soil texture effects on flow resistance in mobile bed rills

2018

Abstract In this paper a recently theoretically deduced rill flow resistance equation, based on a power-velocity profile, was tested experimentally on plots of varying slopes and soil texture in which mobile bed rills are incised. Measurements of flow velocity, water depth, cross section area, wetted perimeter and bed slope conducted in rill reaches incised on experimental plots, having different slope values (9, 14, 22, 24 and 26%) and soil texture (clay fraction ranging from 42 to 73%), and literature data were used to calibrate the flow resistance equation. In particular, the relationship between the velocity profile parameter Γ, the channel slope, the flow Froude number and texture frac…

The use of constructed wetlands for the treatment of agro-industrial wastewater – A case study in a dairy-cattle farm in Sicily (Italy)

2017

Wastewaters generated by agro-industrial operations often represent an unsustainable cost for farms due to high wastewater-treatment management costs. The wastewater produced by dairies, wineries or oil mills may vary in quantity and in quality depending on the time of the year, making the use of a conventional treatment system less efficient and more costly. Constructed wetland systems (CWs) provide low-cost technology and an efficient solution in the treatment of a number of wastewaters from agriculture. They are simple to build, have low maintenance costs and are sustainable compared to conventional treatment methods. This paper shows a case study that was carried out on a dairy-cattle f…

2017

Abstract. The aim of this study is to present a framework that provides new ways to characterize the spatio-temporal variability of lateral exchanges for water flow and solute transport in a karst conduit network during flood events, treating both the diffusive wave equation and the advection–diffusion equation with the same mathematical approach, assuming uniform lateral flow and solute transport. A solution to the inverse problem for the advection–diffusion equations is then applied to data from two successive gauging stations to simulate flows and solute exchange dynamics after recharge. The study site is the karst conduit network of the Fourbanne aquifer in the French Jura Mountains, wh…

Environmental mitigation hierarchy and biodiversity offsets revisited through habitat connectivity modelling.

2020

International audience; Biodiversity loss is accelerating because of unceasing human activity and land clearing for development projects (urbanisation, transport infrastructure, mining and quarrying …). Environmental policy-makers and managers in different countries worldwide have proposed the mitigation hierarchy to ensure the goal of “no net loss (NNL) of biodiversity” and have included this principle in environmental impact assessment processes. However, spatial configuration is hardly ever taken into account in the mitigation hierarchy even though it would greatly benefit from recent developments in habitat connectivity modelling incorporating landscape graphs. Meanwhile, national, Euro…

Twenty-three unsolved problems in hydrology (UPH) – a community perspective

2019

Publisher's version (útgefin grein)

Improving soil and water conservation and ecosystem services by sustainable soil management practices: From a global to an Italian soil partnership

2020

The UN Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) identify the need to restore degraded soils in order to improve productivity and the provision of ecosystem services. The aim is to support food production, store and supply clean water, conserve biodiversity, sequester carbon, and improve soil resilience in a context of climate change. Within this framework, in order to achieve the SDGs and to correct land management in the long-term, soil management is considered mandatory. The reduction of land degradation should be based on various sustainable soil management practices that improve and maintain soil organic matter levels, increase water infiltration, and improve soil water management. This tec…

Nitrous oxide emissions in a membrane bioreactor treating saline wastewater contaminated by hydrocarbons

2016

The joint effect of wastewater salinity and hydrocarbons on nitrous oxide emission was investigated. The membrane bioreactor pilot plant was operated with two phases: i. biomass acclimation by increasing salinity from 10 gNaCl L−1 to 20 gNaCl L−1 (Phase I); ii. hydrocarbons dosing at 20 mg L−1 with a constant salt concentration of 20 gNaCl L−1 (Phase II). The Phase I revealed a relationship between nitrous oxide emissions and salinity. During the end of the Phase I, the activity of nitrifiers started to recover, indicating a partial acclimatization. During the Phase II, the hydrocarbon shock induced a temporary inhibition of the biomass with the suppression of nitrous oxide emissions. The r…