Solid waste management in Romania

Pollution and health risks generated by improper solid waste management are important issues concerning environmental management in developing countries including Romania. In most cities, the use of open dumps in common for the disposal of wastes, resulting in soil and water resource contamination by leachate in addition to odors and fires. Solid waste management infrastructure and services in developing countries are far from achieving basic standards in term of hygiene and efficient collection and disposal. The paper presents an overview of current solid waste management (SWM) practices in Romania and suggests solutions to some of the major problems. Urban and rural waste management is considered and collection, transport, processing, recycling or disposal of waste materials is discussed relative to the National Waste Management Strategy and the National Plan for Waste Management, as well as European and national legislative framework. It was showed that land disposal will continue to be a disposal option but due to stricter regulation. Local and regional authorities are heavily and increasingly involved in the management of waste. In most cases, they are responsible for developing and implementing municipal waste management plans based on the medium to long term. Due to an increase in population and changes in lifestyle, the quantity and quality of MSW in Romania has changed. Lack of infrastructural, suitable planning and public awareness are the main challenges of MSW management in Romania

Reasons for non-participation in recycling of solid waste in northern Malaysia: A case study

It is widely accepted that public support is vital to the success of most recycling programmes.The actions of householders are paramount to the success of any sustainable waste management policies whether local, regional or national.This paper presents a study of householders' attitudes to recycling of solid wastes in Malaysia, which supports the idea that careful planning and design are critical for the success of a new recycling programme.A postal questionnaire survey was administered to households in Penang state located in north Malaysia. Quantitative analysis of the 417 responses focused on reasons for non participation in current recycling schemes. Statistical analysis showed that many householders refrain from recycling because of their negative perceptions of the distance to the recycling points and the lack of recycling facilities in their neighbourhood

Transcriptional Profiling and Functional Analysis of N1/N2 Neutrophils Reveal an Immunomodulatory Effect of S100A9-Blockade on the Pro-Inflammatory N1 Subpopulation

Neutrophils have been classically viewed as a homogenous population. Recently, neutrophils were phenotypically classified into pro-inflammatory N1 and anti-inflammatory N2 sub-populations, but the functional differences between the two subtypes are not completely understood. We aimed to investigate the phenotypic and functional differences between N1 and N2 neutrophils, and to identify the potential contribution of the S100A9 alarmin in neutrophil polarization. We describe distinct transcriptomic profiles and functional differences between N1 and N2 neutrophils. Compared to N2, the N1 neutrophils exhibited: i) higher levels of ROS and oxidative burst, ii) increased activity of MPO and MMP-9, and iii) enhanced chemotactic response. N1 neutrophils were also characterized by elevated expression of NADPH oxidase subunits, as well as activation of the signaling molecules ERK and the p65 subunit of NF-kB. Moreover, we found that the S100A9 alarmin promotes the chemotactic and enzymatic activity of N1 neutrophils. S100A9 inhibition with a specific small-molecule blocker, reduced CCL2, CCL3 and CCL5 chemokine expression and decreased MPO and MMP-9 activity, by interfering with the NF-kB signaling pathway. Together, these findings reveal that N1 neutrophils are pro-inflammatory effectors of the innate immune response. Pharmacological blockade of S100A9 dampens the function of the pro-inflammatory N1 phenotype, promoting the alarmin as a novel target for therapeutic intervention in inflammatory diseases