Life Cycle Assessment as a Tool to Implement Sustainable Development in the Bioeconomy and Circular Economy

In this chapter, the life cycle assessment was presented as a tool to implement sustainable development in the bioeconomy and circular economy. Bulky waste includes large items such as furniture, doors, flooring and mattresses. The management of bulky waste is a serious problem for European countries. The URBANREC project proposed a solution to this problem through the use of new technologies for the bulky waste processing. The aim of the URBANREC project is to implement an eco-innovative, integrated system of bulky waste management and demonstrate its effectiveness in various regions of Europe. The project has received funding from the European Union. In this chapter, the LCA environmental analysis was performed for the technology of grinding bulky waste using a water jet by the Ecofrag company. The calculations were carried out using SimaPro 8.5.2.0. The LCA analysis shows that the reuse of foams and mattresses contributes to the avoidance of their targeted production, which is related with the reduction of greenhouse gas emission and consumption of fossil raw materials

Chapter Life Cycle Assessment as a Tool to Implement Sustainable Development in the Bioeconomy and Circular Economy

In this chapter, the life cycle assessment was presented as a tool to implement sustainable development in the bioeconomy and circular economy. Bulky waste includes large items such as furniture, doors, flooring and mattresses. The management of bulky waste is a serious problem for European countries. The URBANREC project proposed a solution to this problem through the use of new technologies for the bulky waste processing. The aim of the URBANREC project is to implement an eco-innovative, integrated system of bulky waste management and demonstrate its effectiveness in various regions of Europe. The project has received funding from the European Union. In this chapter, the LCA environmental analysis was performed for the technology of grinding bulky waste using a water jet by the Ecofrag company. The calculations were carried out using SimaPro 8.5.2.0. The LCA analysis shows that the reuse of foams and mattresses contributes to the avoidance of their targeted production, which is related with the reduction of greenhouse gas emission and consumption of fossil raw materials

Effect of salt stress in urban conditions on two Acer species with different sensitivity

Background. The benefits of trees in urban areas include the following: an increase in ecosystem health, an increase in human health, the mitigation of the effects of heat and drought at microclimate level, the storage and sequestration of carbon, and a reduction in air pollution and noise. These ecosystem services can be provided only by trees that are in good health. The main cause of salt stress in urban environments is the use of deicing salts on the streets in winter. Salt stress is a complex process that includes changes in plants on the physiological, histological, cellular and molecular levels, leading to limitations in nutrient uptake, disrupting the ionic balance of trees and resulting in the death of roadside trees. In response to salinity, trees have developed a variety of defence mechanisms that allow them to minimize the effects of stress and maintain homeostasis. Methodology. The reactions of two species Acer species: A. platanoides and A. campestre, which have different sensitivities to the unfavourable conditions of the urban environments (mainly salt stress), were investigated. The research included two experiments: a field experiment with city trees and a controlled pot experiment with young trees treated with increasing doses of salt. In both experiments, the following were performed: an assessment of the health condition of the trees and the content of macroelements as well as the Cl and Na in leaves and a qualitative and quantitative analysis of polyprenols. Results. A. campestre had a more specific strategy than A. platanoides for dealing with Na and Cl, which resulted in undamaged leaves. Under the same conditions, A. platanoides leaves contained more Cl and Na and were severely damaged. The disruption of the ion balance due to salt stress was lower in A. campestre than in A. platanoides. Compared with A. platanoides, A. campestre synthesized more polyprenols in the field experiment. This ability was acquired during the process of acclimation, because it occurred only in the mature trees in the field experiment and not in the young trees in the pot experiment. Conclusions. The use of two experimental methods (i.e., the field and pot experiments) allowed for a more complete assessment of tree strategies to mitigate salt stress. A. campestre displayed a more specific strategy than A. platanoides. This strategy was based on several elements. A. campestre limited Cl and Na transport to the leaves, which resulted in a lack of damage to those organs. Under the same conditions, A. platanoides individuals contained more Cl and Na in their leaves and were seriously damaged. A. campestre synthesized larger amounts of polyprenols, which probably have the ability to mitigate salt stress. This ability was acquired during the process of acclimation, because it occurred only in the mature trees in the field experiment and was not observed in the young trees in the pot experiment

Impact of the Municipal Solid Waste Łubna Landfill on Environmental Pollution by Heavy Metals

Landfills have been identified as potential sources of heavy metal pollution of the environment. The municipal solid waste Łubna landfill is one of the largest landfills in Poland. Its impact on heavy metal pollution (Cd, Pb, Zn, Cu, and Cr) of groundwater, soil and plants has been thoroughly evaluated. Elevated levels of contamination have not been recorded in the vicinity of the landfill. The concentrations of heavy metals in soil from the vicinity of the landfill were similar to the geochemical background levels for the forest and farming soils of central Poland. The concentrations of heavy metals in European goldenrod (Solidago virgaurea L.) and grasses (Poaceae) did not exceed the baseline concentrations and did not indicate environmental pollution by heavy metals. The levels of the metal concentration in groundwater did not exceed the standards established for water intended for consumption

Surface horizons of forest soils for the diagnosis of soil environment contamination and toxicity caused by polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs).

Polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) are persistent organic pollutants that are released into soils primarily from the air, with wet and dry deposition. To assess the contamination of the forest soil environment, soil samples were collected from organic and mineral horizons from three study areas representing a gradient of pollution across Poland (the 'pollution transect'). The soils examined varied in PAH contents, generally from 124.3 μg·kg-1 dw in the areas deemed to be the background zone to 9165.5 μk·kg-1 dw in industrial areas in the O horizon and from 12.6 μk·kg-1 dw to 4454.6 μk·kg-1 dw in the A horizon. The PAH toxicities oscillated from 20.0-2670.8 μg TEQ·kg-1 dw in the O horizon and from 1.73-694.7 μg TEQ·kg-1 dw in the A horizon. The enrichment factor values point to a more intensive accumulation of PAHs with relatively high molecular weights along the pollution transect. The PAH diagnostic ratio values indicated that the main PAH emission sources were from coal and wood combustion

Influence of former industrial waste landfill in central Poland on PCBs content in the environment

The aim of this study was to investigate the impact of industrial waste landfill on the release of polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs) on the environment with reference to water flow directions. 10 study plots were designated around the landfill site. Soil samples were taken from different soil layers. Plants: Solidago canadensis (leaves, stem), Quercus L. (leaves), and Poaceae were tested on PCBs contents. Groundwater samples were taken from piezometers. PCBs in the samples were determined by gas chromatography with an electron capture detector (GC/ECD). The highest accumulation of PCBs congeners was observed in the topsoil layers and decreased with the sampling depth. The dominant PCBs congeners in soil were PCB 28 and PCB 138, in plants PCB 28 and PCB 52. The most significant PCBs accumulation in the topsoil layer occurred in the research area on which the largest amount of waste was deposited and was equal to 14.2 ng/g. The largest sum of determined PCBs congeners was found in Solidago canadensis leaves – 3.26 ng/g and Quercus L. leaves – 3.32 ng/g. PCB 28 and PCB 52 were capable of translocation from soil to plants. It was found that the water flow direction did not affect PCB content in soils

Impact of municipal and industrial waste incinerators on PCBs content in the environment.

Polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs) have been withdrawn from the market due to their toxicity, bioaccumulation capacity, and persistence. PCBs have been observed to potentially form in combustion processes under appropriate conditions and in the presence of precursors containing chlorine. The study covered a municipal waste incineration plant and an industrial waste incineration plant. The objective of the study was to assess the effect of these objects on PCB accumulation in soil and plants taking into account the distance from the emission object and wind direction. Soil samples were collected from layers: 0-5, 5-10, 10-20, and 20-30 cm. Test plants were collected from the same areas as the soil samples. The highest accumulation of PCBs was found in plants with large leaf area. Around the municipal waste incineration plant, these were Tanacetum vulgare leaves (12.45 ng/g), and around the industrial waste incineration plant-grasses (4.3 ng/g). In the case of soils, the accumulation of PCBs for both kind waste incinerators was similar, reaching approximately 3 ng/g. As the distance from the municipal waste incinerator and industrial waste incinerator increased, the accumulation of PCBs in the soil decreased. For municipal waste incinerator, no effect of wind direction on PCB accumulation in the soil was observed. In the majority of cases, the accumulation of PCBs in soils taken from the leeward side of the industrial waste incinerator was higher than that in soils from the windward side. In soils around the municipal waste incinerator, PCB compounds moved deep into the soil and reached the highest accumulation in the soil layer of 10-20 cm or 20-30 cm. In soils around the industrial waste incinerator, the highest accumulation of PCBs occurred in the soil layer of 0-5 cm

Experimental methods of evaluating measurement uncertainty resulting from sample collection and preparation for analysis in chemical laboratories / Niepewność pomiaru wynikająca z poboru i przygotowania próbek do badań w laboratorium chemicznym oszacowana metodą doświadczalną

W artykule przedstawiono metodę doświadczalną szacowania niepewności wyniku pomiaru związanej z poborem i przygotowaniem próbek do badań w laboratorium chemicznym. Szacowania niepewności wyników pomiaru zawartości pierwiastków w próbkach rzeczywistych dokonano metodą oznaczania precyzji z użyciem analizy wariancji ROBUST ANOVA. Przykładowe badania próbek gleby prowadzone były w Laboratorium Instytutu Ochrony Środowiska - Państwowego Instytutu Badawczego. Metoda doświadczalna szacowania niepewności wyników pomiaru pozwala na szybkie i stosunkowo proste szacowanie wszystkich źródeł niepewności dotyczących pobierania i przygotowania próbek do badań w laboratorium chemicznym

The relation between polyaromatic hydrocarbon concentration in sewage sludge and its uptake by plants: Phragmites communis, Polygonum persicaria and Bidens tripartita.

The aim of the study was to define the relationship between the concentration of PAHs in sewage sludge at a particular location and their amount in various plant materials growing on it. The credibility of the results is enhanced by the fact that sewage sludge from two separate sewage-treatment plants were selected for their influence on the content of PAHs in three plant species growing on them. The investigations were carried out for a period of three years. The results demonstrated unequivocally that the uptake of PAHs by a plant depended on polyaromatic hydrocarbon concentration in the sewage sludge. The correlation between accumulation coefficient of PAH in a plant and the content of the same PAH in the sewage sludge had for three-, four- and five-ring hydrocarbons an exponential character and for six-ring hydrocarbons was of a linear character. The accumulation coefficients calculated for three-ring aromatics were several times higher than for four-ring PAHs; further the coefficient values calculated for five-ring PAHs were several times lower than for four-ring hydrocarbons. Finally, the accumulation coefficient values of six-ring PAHs were the lowest in the series of studied polyaromatic hydrocarbons