Edifici Institut Català de Recerca de l'Aigua

L'Institut Català de Recerca de l’Aigua (ICRA) va ser creat l’octubre de 2006 pel Govern de la Generalitat de Catalunya, en el marc del Programa de centres de recerca de Catalunya (CERCA). L’ICRA és una fundació privada que té com a patrons el Departament d’Innovació, Universitats i Empresa de la Generalitat de Catalunya, la Universitat de Girona i l’Agència Catalana de l’Aigua. L’Edifici H2O és la seu oficial de l’Institut, ubicat al Parc Científic i Tecnològic de la Universitat de Girona. Aquest edifici, en construcció des de 2007, es va acabar el maig de 2009, moment en què l’ICRA inicià el desenvolupament del seu Pla estratègic de recerca i posà en marxa totes les seves perspectives i instal·lacions, amb la incorporació de personal investigador. La investigació en el camp del cicle integral de l’aigua és un dels camps que requereixen i requeriran un esforç investigador i una contribució de solucions tecnològiques i de gestió durant els propers anys. En aquest sentit, s’hauran d’abordar des d’aspectes relacionats amb la qualitat ecològica de mars i rius, passant pel desenvolupament de noves tecnologies de tractament d’aigües residuals o per a consum humà, fins a l’estudi d’estratègies de disponibilitat del recurs que considerin els aspectes de sostenibilitat, percepció social i costos (econòmics i socials) relacionats

Micro (Nano) plastic analysis: a green and sustainable perspective

Within the last years aspects such as green, eco-friendly and sustainable are making their way into analytical chemistry. The field has changed with the introduction of these concepts. Information on the consumption of toxic solvents and energy is now a part of everyday life. This green analytical chemistry could be playing a pioneering role in the analysis of micro(nano)plastics in the environment. We discuss the roles of green analytical and sustainability within micro(nano) plastics determination and its possible applications. We explain its many advantages, like their function to preserve the environment and operator health or their role in the so-called eco-friendly methodologies, but we also highlight points such as an efficiency in the determination that should be viewed critically. Finally, we describe how micro(nano)plastics analysis is implementing the green analytical chemistry and the challenges faced

How to measure uncertainties in environmental risk assassment

Environmental risk assessment is an essential element in any decision-making process in order to minimize the effects of human activities on the environment. Unfortunately, often environmental data tends to be vague and imprecise, so uncertainty is associated with any study related with these kind of data. Essentially, uncertainty in risk assessment may have two origins – randomness and incompleteness. There are two main ways to deal with these uncertainties – probability theory and fuzzy logic. Probability theory is based on a stochastic approach, using probability functions to describe random variability in environmental parameters. Fuzzy logic uses membership functions and linguistic parameters to express vagueness in environmental issues. We discuss the best way to deal with uncertainties in the environmental field and give examples of probabilistic and fuzzy-logic approaches applied to environmental risk assessment.Peer ReviewedPostprint (published version

Environmental risk assassment of presistent organic pollutants in river-basins though fuzzy logic

Postprint (published version

Emerging organic contaminants in aquatic environments: state-of-the-art and recent scientific contributions

Els contaminants emergents són contaminants prèviament desconeguts o no reconeguts com a tals, la presència dels quals en el medi ambient no és necessàriament nova, però sí la preocupació pels possibles efectes perillosos sobre la salut humana i la dels ecosistemes. A causa de llur recent descobriment o reconeixement com a contaminants, la informació que se'n disposa sobre la presència, el destí i la toxicitat en ambients aquàtics, i sobre els mètodes analítics per a detectar- los en diverses matrius ambientals és escassa. En els darrers anys, el grup liderat pel professor d'investigació Damià Barceló Cullerès ha participat intensament en l'estudi de nombroses classes de contaminants emergents (estrògens, fàrmacs, drogues, nanopartícules, plaguicides polars, etc.). Aquest article repassa les contribucions més recents fetes pel grup en aquest camp dels contaminants emergents en les línies de desenvolupament de mètodes analítics, programes de vigilància ambiental i estudis de biodisponibilitat, degradació i toxicitat.Emerging contaminants are previously unknown or unrecognized contaminants whose presence in the environment is not necessarily new but which raise concern due to their potentially dangerous effects on the ecosystem and on human health. Due to their recent discovery or recognition as contaminants, information about the occurrence, fate, and toxicity of these compounds in the aquatic environment, as well as analytical methods for their detection in various environmental matrices, is scarce. We have intensively studied many of these classes of emerging contaminants (estrogens, pharmaceuticals, illicit drugs, nanoparticles, polar pesticides, etc.). This article reviews the most recent contributions made by our group to the field of emerging contaminants with respect to the development of analytical methods, monitoring studies, and bioavailability, degradation, and toxicity studies

Multiple stressors in Mediterranean freshwater ecosystems: The Llobregat River as a paradigm

Hydrological modifications drive other ecological stressors of freshwater ecosystems and interact with them. The present paper examines the relevance of hydrological disturbances resulting from global change by presenting the case of the Llobregat River, a highly disturbed system in NE Spain. The Llobregat is a clear example of a Mediterranean river suffering from multiple stressors. Both the distribution and abundance of organisms and ecosystem functioning as a whole are greatly determined by water scarcity, water salinity, nutrient concentration, and organic (and inorganic) pollution. Structural drought exacerbates these problems, as the capacity to dilute pollutants is compromised. Controlling water abstraction and limiting nutrient and pollutant inputs downstream are essential to the structural and functional recovery of biological communities and to maximizing the ecosystem services provided by the Llobregat River. [Contrib Sci 10:161-169 (2014)

Utilització del microscopi electrònic de rastreig per a l'estudi de la distribució de la fase líquida sobre diferents tipus de suports en cromatografia de gasos

The use of scanning electron microscopy to study the distribution of the stationary liquid phase on the solid support surface in gas chromatography is described. The coating of different amounts of Ethofat 60/25, Squalane and Fractonitril VI on porous polymers Chromosorb 101 and Chromosorb 102 has been discussed and a new model of liquid phase distribution on the solid support for these coated porous polymers is postulated