Treated wastewater irrigation effects on soil hydraulic conductivity and aggregate stability of loamy soils in Israel

The use of treated wastewater (TWW) for agricultural irrigation becomes increasingly important in water stressed regions like the Middle East for substituting fresh water (FW) resources. Due to elevated salt concentrations and organic compounds in TWW this practice has potential adverse effects on soil quality, such as the reduction of hydraulic conductivity (HC) and soil aggregate stability (SAS). To assess the impact of TWW irrigation in comparison to FW irrigation on HC, in-situ infiltration measurements using mini disk infiltrometer were deployed in four different long-term experimental orchard test sites in Israel. Topsoil samples (0-10 cm) were collected for analyzing SAS and determination of selected soil chemical and physical characteristics. The mean HC values decreased at all TWW sites by 42.9% up to 50.8% compared to FW sites. The SAS was 11.3% to 32.4% lower at all TWW sites. Soil electrical conductivity (EC) and exchangeable sodium percentage (ESP) were generally higher at TWW sites. These results indicate the use of TWW for irrigation is a viable, but potentially deleterious option, as it influences soil physical and chemical properties

GIS-gestützte Risikobewertung der Bodeneignung für die Bewässerung mit Abwässern in Israel und dem Westjordanland

Die Forschungsgruppe Abwassermanagement im BMBF-geförderten multilateralen Projektverbund GLOWA Jordan River untersucht unter Federführung der Ruhr-Universität Bochum mittels Geographischer Informationssysteme (GIS) und Vor-Ort-Untersuchungen die Bodenverhältnisse und Bodeneigenschaften im Einzugsgebiet des Jordans (Israel, Jordanien & Westjordanland). Erstmals wurden auf überregionaler Ebene digitale Bodenkarten mit Bodenparametern verschnitten. Verschiedene landwirtschaftlich bedeutende Risiken wurden definiert. Anhand der jeweiligen Standortparameter wurden weitergehend mittels der Anwendung von Standardmethoden sowie eigens entwickelter Ableitungen spezifische bodenbezogene Eignungs- und Risikograde einer Bewässerung mit Abwässern ermittelt und eine Gesamtbewertung der Bodeneignung für die Bewässerung mit Abwässern durchgeführt

GIS-gestützte Risikobewertung der Bodeneignung für die Bewässerung mit Abwässern in Israel und dem Westjordanland

Die Forschungsgruppe Abwassermanagement im BMBF-geförderten multilateralen Projektverbund GLOWA Jordan River untersucht unter Federführung der Ruhr-Universität Bochum mittels Geographischer Informationssysteme (GIS) und Vor-Ort-Untersuchungen die Bodenverhältnisse und Bodeneigenschaften im Einzugsgebiet des Jordans (Israel, Jordanien & Westjordanland). Erstmals wurden auf überregionaler Ebene digitale Bodenkarten mit Bodenparametern verschnitten. Verschiedene landwirtschaftlich bedeutende Risiken wurden definiert. Anhand der jeweiligen Standortparameter wurden weitergehend mittels der Anwendung von Standardmethoden sowie eigens entwickelter Ableitungen spezifische bodenbezogene Eignungs- und Risikograde einer Bewässerung mit Abwässern ermittelt und eine Gesamtbewertung der Bodeneignung für die Bewässerung mit Abwässern durchgeführt

Extent and persistence of soil water repellency induced by pines in different geographic regions

This work was supported by the Slovak Scientific Grant Agency VEGA Project Nos. 2/0054/14 and 2/0009/2015, the Slovak Research and Development Agency Project No. APVV-15-0160, and it results from the project implementation of the “Centre of excellence for integrated flood protection of land” (ITMS 26240120004).Peer reviewedPublisher PD

Non-communicable diseases (NCDs) in developing countries: a symposium report

In recent years, non-communicable diseases (NCDs) have globally shown increasing impact on health status in populations with disproportionately higher rates in developing countries. NCDs are the leading cause of mortality worldwide and a serious public health threat to developing countries. Recognizing the importance and urgency of the issue, a one-day symposium was organized on NCDs in Developing Countries by the CIHLMU Center for International Health, Ludwig-Maximilians-Universität, Munich on 22nd March 2014. The objective of the symposium was to understand the current situation of different NCDs public health programs and the current trends in NCDs research and policy, promote exchange of ideas, encourage scientific debate and foster networking, partnerships and opportunities among experts from different clinical, research, and policy fields. The symposium was attended by more than seventy participants representing scientists, physicians, academics and students from several institutes in Germany and abroad. Seven key note presentations were made at the symposium by experts from Germany, UK, France, Bangladesh and Vietnam. This paper highlights the presentations and discussions during the symposium on different aspects of NCDs in developing countries. The symposium elucidated the dynamics of NCDs in developing countries and invited the participants to learn about evidence-based practices and policies for prevention and management of major NCDs and to debate the way forward

Search for dark matter produced in association with bottom or top quarks in √s = 13 TeV pp collisions with the ATLAS detector

A search for weakly interacting massive particle dark matter produced in association with bottom or top quarks is presented. Final states containing third-generation quarks and miss- ing transverse momentum are considered. The analysis uses 36.1 fb−1 of proton–proton collision data recorded by the ATLAS experiment at √s = 13 TeV in 2015 and 2016. No significant excess of events above the estimated backgrounds is observed. The results are in- terpreted in the framework of simplified models of spin-0 dark-matter mediators. For colour- neutral spin-0 mediators produced in association with top quarks and decaying into a pair of dark-matter particles, mediator masses below 50 GeV are excluded assuming a dark-matter candidate mass of 1 GeV and unitary couplings. For scalar and pseudoscalar mediators produced in association with bottom quarks, the search sets limits on the production cross- section of 300 times the predicted rate for mediators with masses between 10 and 50 GeV and assuming a dark-matter mass of 1 GeV and unitary coupling. Constraints on colour- charged scalar simplified models are also presented. Assuming a dark-matter particle mass of 35 GeV, mediator particles with mass below 1.1 TeV are excluded for couplings yielding a dark-matter relic density consistent with measurements