Gli organismi geneticamente modificati e il loro inquadramento normativo

Il volume nasce nell’ambito di un accordo di collaborazione stipulato tra il Ministero dell’Ambiente e della Tutela del Territorio e del Mare (MATTM) e il Consiglio Nazionale delle Ricerche, Dipartimento di Scienze Bio-Agroalimentari (CNR-DiSBA) e fornisce una panoramica sulla normativa internazionale in materia di Organismi Geneticamente Modificati (OGM) e dimostrare come il quadro normativo venga costantemente adeguato al continuo sviluppo scientifico nel campo delle biotecnologie

Survey of persistent organic pollutants (POPs) and polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) in the atmosphere of rural, urban and industrial areas of Concepción, Chile, using passive air samplers

Passive air samplers (PAS) consisting of polyurethane foam (PUF) disks were used to assess air concentrations of polychlorinated biphenyl (PCBs), polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs), organochlorine pesticides (OCPs) and polybrominated diphenyl ethers (PBDEs) in rural, urban, and industrial sites in Concepcion, Chile during a two-month deployment in the summer of 2007. Results for PCBs and PAHs showed a clear rural-urban-industrial gradient. PCB air concentrations (pg m(-3)) ranged from similar to 30 to similar to 350 and were similar to 2 to 5 times higher at industrial sites compared to rural sites. For PAHs, air concentrations (ng m(-3)) ranged from 26 to 230 and were 4 to 8 times higher at industrial sites. The PCB congener profile was dominated by high molecular weight PCBs at urban and industrial sites. The PAH profile was dominated by 3- and 4-ring PAHs accounting for more than 90% of the Sigma(15)PAH, and dominated by phenanthrene (similar to 40%). Of the HCH isomers, only gamma-HCH was detected with air concentrations ranging from 5 to 120 pg m(-3). While for DDT isomers, p,p'-DDE was the only compound detected, ranging from below detection limit (BDL) to 360 pg m(-3). Other OCPs (chlordanes, heptachlor and Dieldrin) showed low air concentrations (pg m(-3)) on the order of similar to 1 - 3. Endosulfan, which is a newly listed persistent organic pollutant (POP) under the Stockholm Convention (SC) on POPs, ranged from 14 to 20 pg m(-3). Polybrominated diphenyl ethers (PBDEs) also newly listed under the SC, were relatively uniform across the transect with air concentrations (pg m(-3)) in the range of similar to 5 to 10. This study represents one of the first efforts to characterize the POPs composition in ambient air for urban and industrial areas of Chile

Nitrogen Oxides (NOx) in the Arctic Troposphere at Ny-Ålesund (Svalbard Islands): Effects of Anthropogenic Pollution Sources

Atmospheric measurements of nitrogen oxides (NOx = NO + NO2), ozone (O3) and other constituents were carried out during three field campaigns (29 March–30 April 2010, 1–26 April 2011, 18 May–8 October 2015) at Ny-Ålesund. The study focused on the variability of important O3 precursors, such as NOx, in the Arctic troposphere, and on the impact from anthropogenic sources on their measured concentrations: higher NO and NO2 levels were mostly associated with the lowest wind speeds and northern directions, indicating local pollution. Long-range transported sources from Russia and Europe were also identified with an occurrence of high NOx levels. Several ozone depletion events were observed and associated to winds blowing from the north-west direction (Arctic Ocean). Most of these events were connected to the lower NO and NO2 concentrations. Measurements of halogen and low molecular weight carbonyl compounds in 2010 and 2011, respectively, showed variable effects during the ozone depletion events. Other data, such as high time-resolved radon progeny measurements, were used in 2015 to identify source tracking and transport of air masses, local effects and atmospheric stability dynamics that could influence the NOx concentrations at Ny-Ålesund

A New Testing Facility to Investigate the Removal Processes of Indoor Air Contaminants with Different Cleaning Technologies and to Better Assess and Exploit Their Performances

Residential air cleaners exploiting different technologies re commonly used today to remove air contaminants from indoor environments. Different methods have been developed in the USA and Europe to test their efficiency. The one used in the USA provides a more comprehensive view of indoor processes, because testing is performed in a large simulation chamber (28.5 m3), using anthropogenic emissions, such as cigarette smoke, to generate pollution. Testing rooms are also important to investigate new removal technologies, or to improve them. Since no such testing facilities exist in Italy, one of 12.4 m3 was built in which cigarette smoke, resuspended dust from agricultural soil and, for the first time, diesel exhaust emissions were used to generate indoor pollution. Performances were tested with two air cleaning systems, exploiting completely different removal technologies. Accurate values of decay rates of indoor pollutants were obtained using a suite of on-line and out-of-line monitors for the measurement of particulate matter, volatile organic compounds (VOCs) and some inorganic gases. Proton-transfer mass spectrometry (PTR-MS) provided an almost real-time detection of several VOCs and H2S, at trace levels (0.01 ppbv). A method using a common in vitro bioassay was developed to assess the ability of air cleaners to remove indoor toxic substances

A New Testing Facility to Investigate the Removal Processes of Indoor Air Contaminants with Different Cleaning Technologies and to Better Assess and Exploit Their Performances

Residential air cleaners exploiting different technologies re commonly used today to remove air contaminants from indoor environments. Different methods have been developed in the USA and Europe to test their efficiency. The one used in the USA provides a more comprehensive view of indoor processes, because testing is performed in a large simulation chamber (28.5 m3), using anthropogenic emissions, such as cigarette smoke, to generate pollution. Testing rooms are also important to investigate new removal technologies, or to improve them. Since no such testing facilities exist in Italy, one of 12.4 m3 was built in which cigarette smoke, resuspended dust from agricultural soil and, for the first time, diesel exhaust emissions were used to generate indoor pollution. Performances were tested with two air cleaning systems, exploiting completely different removal technologies. Accurate values of decay rates of indoor pollutants were obtained using a suite of on-line and out-of-line monitors for the measurement of particulate matter, volatile organic compounds (VOCs) and some inorganic gases. Proton-transfer mass spectrometry (PTR-MS) provided an almost real-time detection of several VOCs and H2S, at trace levels (0.01 ppbv). A method using a common in vitro bioassay was developed to assess the ability of air cleaners to remove indoor toxic substances

Survey of persistent organic pollutants (POPs) and polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) in the atmosphere of rural, urban and industrial areas of Concepcion, Chile, using passive air samplers

Passive air samplers (PAS) consisting of polyurethane foam (PUF) disks were used to assess air concentrations of polychlorinated biphenyl (PCBs), polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs), organochlorine pesticides (OCPs) and polybrominated diphenyl ethers (PBDEs) in rural, urban, and industrial sites in Concepcion, Chile during a two-month deployment in the summer of 2007. Results for PCBs and PAHs showed a clear rural-urban-industrial gradient. PCB air concentrations (pg m(-3)) ranged from similar to 30 to similar to 350 and were similar to 2 to 5 times higher at industrial sites compared to rural sites. For PAHs, air concentrations (ng m(-3)) ranged from 26 to 230 and were 4 to 8 times higher at industrial sites. The PCB congener profile was dominated by high molecular weight PCBs at urban and industrial sites. The PAH profile was dominated by 3- and 4-ring PAHs accounting for more than 90% of the Sigma(15)PAH, and dominated by phenanthrene (similar to 40%). Of the HCH isomers, only gamma-HCH was detected with air concentrations ranging from 5 to 120 pg m(-3). While for DDT isomers, p,p'-DDE was the only compound detected, ranging from below detection limit (BDL) to 360 pg m(-3). Other OCPs (chlordanes, heptachlor and Dieldrin) showed low air concentrations (pg m(-3)) on the order of similar to 1 - 3. Endosulfan, which is a newly listed persistent organic pollutant (POP) under the Stockholm Convention (SC) on POPs, ranged from 14 to 20 pg m(-3). Polybrominated diphenyl ethers (PBDEs) also newly listed under the SC, were relatively uniform across the transect with air concentrations (pg m(-3)) in the range of similar to 5 to 10. This study represents one of the first efforts to characterize the POPs composition in ambient air for urban and industrial areas of Chile. (C) Author(s) 2012. This work is distributed under the Creative Commons Attribution 3.0 License

Assessment of indoor air quality in office buildings across Europe \u2013 The OFFICAIR study

The European project OFFICAIR aimed to broaden the existing knowledge regarding indoor air quality (IAQ) in modern office buildings, i.e., recently built or refurbished buildings. Thirty-seven office buildings participated in the summer campaign (2012), and thirty-five participated in the winter campaign (2012\ua0 12\ua02013). Four rooms were investigated per building. The target pollutants were twelve volatile organic compounds, seven aldehydes, ozone, nitrogen dioxide and particulate matter with aerodynamic diameter <\ua02.5\ua0\u3bcm (PM2.5). Compared to other studies in office buildings, the benzene, toluene, ethylbenzene, and xylene concentrations were lower in OFFICAIR buildings, while the \u3b1-pinene and D-limonene concentrations were higher, and the aldehyde, nitrogen dioxide and PM2.5 concentrations were of the same order of magnitude. When comparing summer and winter, significantly higher concentrations were measured in summer for formaldehyde and ozone, and in winter for benzene, \u3b1-pinene, D-limonene, and nitrogen dioxide. The terpene and 2-ethylhexanol concentrations showed heterogeneity within buildings regardless of the season. Considering the average of the summer and winter concentrations, the acetaldehyde and hexanal concentrations tended to increase by 4\u20135% on average with every floor level increase, and the nitrogen dioxide concentration tended to decrease by 3% on average with every floor level increase. A preliminary evaluation of IAQ in terms of potential irritative and respiratory health effects was performed. The 5-day median and maximum indoor air concentrations of formaldehyde and ozone did not exceed their respective WHO air quality guidelines, and those of acrolein, \u3b1-pinene, and D-limonene were lower than their estimated thresholds for irritative and respiratory effects. PM2.5 indoor concentrations were higher than the 24-h and annual WHO ambient air quality guidelines