Integrating a finantial module in the Web-Ecoyield-SAFE model for bioeconomic assessment of agroforestry systems

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Treatment of Wine Distillery Wastewater: A Review with Emphasis on Anaerobic Membrane Reactors

This review summarises research efforts and case studies in the treatment of wine distillery wastewaters.Experiences in treating wine distillery wastewaters can contribute to the field of oenology, as many oenologists areconcerned with the selection, efficiency and economy of their wastewaters. Characteristics of wastewaters fromdifferent distilleries and various methods for treating these wastes are discussed. Wine distillery wastewaters arestrongly acidic, have a high chemical oxygen demand, high polyphenol content and are highly variable. Primaryattention is focused on the sustainable biological treatment of wine distillery wastewaters, mainly by energyefficientanaerobic digestion in different reactor configurations from bench to pilot and full-scale treatment. Finally,areas where further research and attention are required are identified

Reconstitution of Azotobacter vinelandii ferredoxin I as a {2[4Fe-4S]1+/2+} protein

AbstractAs normally isolated, Azotobacter vinelandii ferredoxin I (Fd I) is a {[4Fe-4S],[3Fe-3S]} protein: (7Fe)Fd I. We report that anaerobic reconstitution of Fd I from its apoprotein yields a protein whose spectra are distinct from those of (7Fe)Fd I and typical of bacterial ferredoxins. We identify this new form of Fd I as a {2[Fe-4S]} protein: (8Fe)Fd I. (8Fe)Fd I is unstable in air and decomposes to give a ∼ 10% yield of (7Fe)Fd I. These results increase the probability that (8Fe)Fd I is the form of Fd I occurring in vivo and that (7Fe)Fd I results from oxidative degradation during purification

Modelling environmental benefits of silvoarable agroforestry in Europe

Increased adoption of silvoarable agroforestry (SAF) systems in Europe, by integrating trees and arable crops on the same land, could offer a range of environmental benefits compared with conventional agricultural systems. Soil erosion, nitrogen leaching, carbon sequestration and landscape biodiversity were chosen as indicators to assess a stratified random sample of 19 landscape test sites in the Mediterranean and Atlantic regions of Europe. At each site, the effect of introducing agroforestry was examined at plot-scale by simulating the growth of one of five tree species (hybrid walnut Juglans spp., wild cherry Prunus avium L., poplar Populus spp., holm oak Quercus ilex L. subsp. ilex and stone pine Pinus pinea L.) at two tree densities (50 and 113 trees ha 1) in combination with up to five crops (wheat Triticum spp., sunflower Helianthus annuus L., oilseed rape Brassica napus L., grain maize and silage maize Zea mays L.). At landscape-scale, the effect of introducing agroforestry on 10 or 50% of the agricultural area, on either the best or worst quality land, was examined. Across the 19 landscape test sites, SAF had a positive impact on the four indicators with the strongest effects when introduced on the best quality land. The computer simulations showed that SAF could significantly reduce erosion by up to 65% when combined with contouring practices at medium (>0.5 and 3 t ha 1 a 1) erosion sites. Nitrogen leaching could be reduced by up to 28% in areas where leaching is currently estimated high (>100 kg N h 1 a 1), but this was dependent on tree density.With agroforestry, predicted mean carbon sequestration through immobilization in trees, over a 60-year period, ranged from 0.1 to 3.0 t C h 1 a 1 (5–179 t C h 1) depending on tree species and location. Landscape biodiversity was increased by introducing SAF by an average factor of 2.6. The implications of this potential for environmental benefits at European-scale are discussed

Selective oxidative destruction of iron-sulfur clusters Ferricyanide oxidation of Azotobacter vinelandii ferredoxin I

AbstractThe destructive oxidation of aerobically isolated 7Fe Azotobacter vinelandii ferredoxin I [(7Fe)FdI] by Fe(CN)63− is examined using low-temperature magnetic circular dichroism (MCD) and EPR. The results demonstrate that oxidation of the [3Fe-3S] cluster occurs only after essentially complete destruction of the [4Fe-4S] cluster. It is therefore feasible by controlled Fe(CN)63− oxidation to obtain a partially metallated form of FdI, (3Fe)FdI, containing only a [3Fe-3S) cluster. The MCD and EPR data demonstrate that the [3Fe-3S] cluster in (3Fe)FdI is essentially identical in structure to that in the native protein

Integrating environmental and economic performance to assess modern silvoarable agroforestry in Europe

AnalysisThe environmental and economic performance of silvoarable agroforestry in Europe is highly variable. Multi-criteria analysis, using the PROMETHEE outranking approach, was used to evaluate the integrated performance of silvoarable agroforestry on hypothetical farms in nineteen landscape test sites in Spain, France, and The Netherlands. The silvoarable scenarios allocated a proportion of the hypothetical farms (10 or 50%) to silvoarable agroforestry at two different tree densities (50 or 113 trees ha−1) on two different qualities of land (best or worst quality land). The status quo (conventional arable farming) was also assessed for comparison. The criteria used in the evaluation (soil erosion, nitrogen leaching, carbon sequestration, landscape biodiversity, and infinite net present value) were assessed at each landscape test site; infinite net present value was assessed under six levels of government support. In France, the analysis showed, assuming equal weighting between environmental and economic performance, that silvoarable agroforestry was preferable to conventional arable farming. The best results were observed when agroforestry was implemented on 50% of the highest quality land on the farm; the effect of tree density (50– 113 trees ha−1) was small. By contrast, in Spain and The Netherlands, the consistently greater profitability of conventional arable agriculture relative to the agroforestry alternatives made overall performance of agroforestry systems dependent on the proportion of the farm planted, and the tree density and land quality used

Financial and economic benefits of integrated crop-livestock-tree systems in Europe

•Agricultural monocultures have societal costs •Role for agroforestry •Introducing AGFORWARD •Two case studies on the financial and economic benefits of agroforestry in EuropeEuropean Union’s Seventh Framework Program for research, technological development and demonstration under grant agreement no 61352

Inactivation Efficacy of Atmospheric Air Plasma and Airborne Acoustic Ultrasound Against Bacterial Bioflms

Bioflms are complex microbial communities that present serious contamination risks to our environment and health. In this study, atmospheric air plasma and airborne acoustic ultrasound technology were applied to inactivate Escherichia coli and Listeria innocua bioflms. Both technologies were efcient in controlling, or completely inactivating, the target bacterial bioflms. Viability and metabolic assays, along with microscopy analysis, revealed that atmospheric air plasma and airborne acoustic ultrasound damaged both the bacterial bioflm cells and its structural integrity. Scanning electron microscopy images highlighted the disruption of the bioflms and pore formation in bacterial cells exposed to both the plasma and acoustic treatments. Elevated reactive oxygen and nitrogen species in bacterial cells treated with atmospheric air plasma, demonstrated their primary role in the observed bacterial inactivation process. Our fndings provide potential antimicrobial strategies to combat bacterial bioflms in the food and healthcare sectors

Using EcoYieldSAFE to compare soil carbon dynamics under future climate in two contrasting agroforestry systems

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Modelling the economics of agroforestry at field- and farm-scale

This report (Deliverable 6.18) assesses the economics of agroforestry systems at field- and farm-scales and compares them with alternative land uses such as arable cropping, pasture and forestry. This analysis is undertaken in terms of financial profitability (e.g. from a farmer perspective) and economic benefits (e.g. from a societal perspective)N/