Lake Balaton hydrology and climate change

Situated in the western part of Hungary, Lake Balaton is the second largest shallow lake in the European Union after Lake Peipus and the largest one laying entirely within the borders of the EU. Despite of its large surface area of some 600 km2, its average depth is only 352 cm. Lake Balaton is an exorheic lake on multiannual basis, but dry spells in the last 2 decades resulted in a 64-month period without outflow. Studies by the authors and others proved that human impacts of global and local nature resulted in the significant decrease of the natural water balance (NWB) in the last 3-4 decades. Climate change is already manifested in the reduction of the discharge of most of the tributaries including the largest one, Zala river. The statistically significant decrease in the last 3 decades of the discharge of Zala river and Kiskomáromi-canal corresponds to a deficit of 67 lake mm/year. The impact of further human interventions including reconstruction of Balaton Minor, a vast wetland and mining resulted in a further deficit of 119 to 154 lake mm/year. The average of the annual NWB of the last 30 years is only 63% of the long-term average. In addition to the decrease in the average discharges and NWB, variability of these values increased considerably. Some of these phenomena can be attributed to climate change. Future impacts of climate change are evaluated and it is concluded that the Lake Balaton watershed may turn into an endorheic basin in the second half of the 21st century. Lake Balaton, human impact, climate change, water balance, future trend

An unsustainability issue: the antagonism between fossil energy use and public health in China

The environmental pollution and human health damages in China reached the point, when the country's policy has to change direction by developing new strategies to substantially increase the share of renewable energy sources in their energy mix and reduce environmental pollution. This research will try to identify the potential variables of the antagonistic conflict regarding the constantly growing energy consumption vs. human health damages and environmental pollution in China. The identification of variables will be carried out through the lens of Sustainable Development Theory. This paper tries to weight the interactions among variables, find the most reactive and influential ones in order to give suggestions to changes in the policy. The interaction among variables will be measured by using the Multi-Attribute Utility Theory and Cross-impact Matrix. Finally, the social vulnerability of the society will be discussed, where serious public health problems occur in case of world health crises such as the COVID-19 pandemic, which is particularly dangerous for those groups, which suffer from respiratory and cardiovascular diseases and immuno-deficiency problems

Legislation on land protection in Slovakia

Agricultural land is a natural heritage of each country; therefore the land protection is required. The agricultural land protection is a complex role where the interests of agriculture, industry, housing, transport and the environment should be taken into account. Moreover, it is necessary to consider also the EU legislation because the national laws have to be in harmony with the EU legal acts. Therefore, it is a very hard role to meet all entitled interests together with the requirements of the EU law. Therefore, the adoption of a legal measure should be accompanied by the complex analysis of how the measure would affect the land protection. The Slovak lawmaker has adopted some legislative acts with special measures for the land protection, but they are a focus of regular and frequent amendments

India in a changing Arctic: an appraisal

In the complex undercurrents of evolving new great power politics, the scheme of Arctic affairs make for a low key affair. India in Arctic is a theme which is so inconsequential that it fails to even grab a mention. The performance of observer states in the Arctic affairs has varied substantially during these years but Indian attempts have remained short of the promise. There is immense possibility for India to build on her non hegemonic, non intrusive foreign policy approach to obtain a greater role in the in this strategically vital and economically lucrative region

Control of ectoparasitosis in carp (Cyprinus carpio) induced by Gyrodactylus elegans (Monogenea) with garlic (Allium sativum) and onion (Allium cepa) extracts

One of the constraints in fish disease management in aquaponic systems is related to undesired effects of chemicals on fish, plants and beneficial bacteria. Plant-derived compounds with nontoxic features to fish, plants, and microflora provide an alternative treatment strategy against the harmful pathogens in the aquaponic system. The present study assessed the antiparasitic activity of garlic (Allium sativum) and onion (A. cepa) extracts against Gyrodactylus elegans (Monogenea) in vivo and in vitro, and physiological stress responses in carp, Cyprinus carpio, treated with these extracts in an aquaponics system. Garlic and onion extracts exhibited in vitro antiparasitic activity against G. elegans. The mean survival time of G. elegans in vitro ranged from 30 sec to 6 min depending on the concentration and exposure time both for garlic and onion extracts. For garlic extract EC50 (median effective concentration) was 8.37±4.75 mg/mL in 3 min exposure and for onion extract 4.72±7.10 mg/mL. These concentrations were in vivo tested in carp heavily infected with G. elegans as a single application for 3 min. In vivo treatment of carp with garlic and onion extracts reduced G. elegans found on the skin by 14.4% and 19.8%, respectively. In both treatment groups, the physiological stress response of carp was mild based on the alterations in the secondary stress indicators (hematocrit, plasma glucose, and lactate). The stress indicators of carp returned to normal levels after an hour recovery in freshwater. The antiparasitic potential of onion and garlic extracts may be considered as an alternative treatment to reduce Monogenean infections in aquaponic systems

Collection, cultivation and processing of medical plants, herbs and spices in the Balaton Ecomuseum – herbal medicine as intangible cultural heritage

The Balaton Ecomuseum, which is being continuously developed since 2017, will have a holistic approach, where the objectives of the ecomuseum embrace the whole cultural landscape of Lake Balaton as one unit with several thematic routes in one system and shall not be restricted to one particular subject area or a part of local heritage. One of these thematic routes is the recently developing Herbs and Spices Network, led by Zánka Herb Valley Visitor and Training Centre based on the collection, cultivation and processing of medicinal plants, herbs and spices. The place of herbs and spices in the diet needs to be considered in reviewing health benefits, including definitions of the food category and the way in which benefits might be viewed, and therefore researched. Here we describe the already established system of the Zánka Herb Valley Visitor and Training Centre, the potential of the Balaton Region in the development of herbal medicine illustrated by the scientific presentation of the 30 most collected herbs in the region and examples of other herbal centres, which are intended to become a part of the network. Herbal medicine, as an important part of the intangible cultural heritage, with hundreds of years old recipes for herbal concoctions has been known since ancient times before science related to modern medicine developed and continues to be used for generations until now. Furthermore, the medical effects of many agricultural crops should be better understood, such as the grapevine, which is being investigated for its medical compounds or the medicinal properties of other fruits and vegetables not sufficiently known to the general public. In this study we present a new system of the culture and interactive education of the collection, cultivation and use of medicinal plants, herbs and spices applying a learning by doing approach and a network embracing the whole area of the Balaton Ecomuseum

Construction materials flows and stocks in Paris region: an overview

Mankind’s most-used materials, construction materials pose major environmental challenges, mainly related to the increasing scarcity of certain primary resources. Using secondary resources, i.e. materials extracted from buildings and networks, is one response to these challenges. However, powerful constraints confront this kind of use. Paris region is studied as an example of an urban area in which secondary resources for construction offer strong potential. Possible courses of action to meet these challenges are outlined in the conclusion

Wine tourism destination competitiveness: The case of Georgia

Being a highly competitive tourism destination means contributing to the better standard of living for the local community while having sustainability in focus. This paper aims to discuss the most important factors which make Georgia a competitive wine tourism destination. Georgia is often referred to as the birthplace of wine and has its culture and traditions deeply connected to it. The country has authentic food and wine heritage which is a central point for its renowned hospitality. Ancient wine culture attracts present-day curious visitors. The study overviews the academic literature on the key concepts and analyses the wine tourism industry in Georgia. The research summarizes that the country as a wine tourism destination has great opportunities to be competitive. Its history, traditions, hospitality, nature, and other qualities are inherited resources that can attract high-spending visitors and hence contribute to the well-being of the local community. On the other hand, there are some issues and threats that must be tackled for long-term success. The paper suggests that learning the topic with empirical methods is necessary

The transition from sustainable to regenerative development

There is an international consensus that our generation is facing a convergence of multiple crises and that the same mindset that has created this convergence is incapable of solving it.  Paradigms evolve and shift when the prevailing frameworks are unable to explain and address new anomalies in development processes. For some, the sustainability concept fails to offer guidance on how to arbitrate between the conflicting drivers of economic growth, planetary boundaries and social justice. The concept of nine Planetary Boundaries (PB) involving Earth system processes which humanity should aim to operate safely, include global biogeochemical cycles (nitrogen, phosphorus, carbon and water), the major physical circulation systems of the planet (the climate, stratosphere and ocean systems), marine and terrestrial biodiversity and anthropogenic forcing (aerosol loading and chemical pollution). According to recent research, four of the nine planetary boundaries had been crossed due to the adverse impacts of human activities. The solution is the regenerative concept manifested in the Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), which implies locally adaptable, resource conserving policies, activities and products, carefully tailored to the biocultural uniqueness of each location. Regenerative design is grounded in a deep understanding of the integral and interdependent nature of living systems, providing viable management solutions for economies in order to not exceed the environmental, social and economic carrying capacity of ecosystems

Why is SARS-CoV-2 so successful for outbreak? An ecotoxicological perspective

Synanthropic primary hosts carrying viruses may burden new dangers for humanity. The SARS-CoV-2 virus causing the COVID-19 pandemic presently infected near 2 million humans. Virus characteristics resulted in a successful outbreak due to various reasons: (i) patient are infectious before experiencing symptoms; (ii) carrying hosts might be symptomless, disease outcome in ill patients depends on underlying conditions, age and sex; (iii) intermediate hosts, acting as reservoirs living close contact with humans (e.g., livestock, pets); (iv) possible virus mutations from animal/person to person/person transmission; (v) the virus can spread through the air; (vi) the half-life of the virus is long, reaching some days, thus feces and street dust increase the hazard, and contact spread is also turned into critical