Near-Roadway Air Pollution: Evaluation of Fine Particulate Matter (PM2.5) and Ultrafine Particulate Matter (PM0.1) in Interior Alaska

This report presents a study of fine (PM2.5) and ultrafine (PM0.1) particles in the Fairbanks North Star Borough (FNSB) in Interior Alaska, with specific emphasis on the relationship of ultrafine particles (UFPs) to vehicular traffic. Chapter 1 provides a summary of published literature on particulates in air from vehicular emissions. Chapter 2 provides a novel and robust GIS-based data analysis approach to PM2.5 data collected by the FNSB. This analysis approach is convenient for identifying hotspots, as well as locations where PM2.5 changes either abruptly or continuously or does not change at all. The results reveal that average on-roadway PM2.5 concentrations are higher in North Pole than in Fairbanks, and mean levels are higher in stationary background monitoring data than in mobile monitoring on-roadway data. Not surprisingly, significant negative correlations were found between temperature and PM2.5. Chapter 3 presents the results from the data collection campaign to measure UFPs at roadside locations in Fairbanks and North Pole and investigate the relationship of UFPs with traffic and meteorological parameters. Multilinear predictive models were developed for estimation of UFPs and PM2.5 based on weather and traffic parameters. Overall, this study improves our understanding of on- and near-roadway particulates in a cold-climate region.Alaska Department of Environmental Conservation Center for Environmentally Sustainable Transportation in Cold Climate

Near-Roadway Air Pollution: Evaluation of Fine Particulate Matter (PM2.5) and Ultrafine Particulate Matter (PM0.1) in Interior Alaska

This report presents a study of fine (PM2.5) and ultrafine (PM0.1) particles in the Fairbanks North Star Borough (FNSB) in Interior Alaska, with specific emphasis on the relationship of ultrafine particles (UFPs) to vehicular traffic. Chapter 1 provides a summary of published literature on particulates in air from vehicular emissions. Chapter 2 provides a novel and robust GIS-based data analysis approach to PM2.5 data collected by the FNSB. This analysis approach is convenient for identifying hotspots, as well as locations where PM2.5 changes either abruptly or continuously or does not change at all. The results reveal that average on-roadway PM2.5 concentrations are higher in North Pole than in Fairbanks, and mean levels are higher in stationary background monitoring data than in mobile monitoring on-roadway data. Not surprisingly, significant negative correlations were found between temperature and PM2.5. Chapter 3 presents the results from the data collection campaign to measure UFPs at roadside locations in Fairbanks and North Pole and investigate the relationship of UFPs with traffic and meteorological parameters. Multilinear predictive models were developed for estimation of UFPs and PM2.5 based on weather and traffic parameters. Overall, this study improves our understanding of on- and near-roadway particulates in a cold-climate region

Monkeypox Outbreak: Wastewater and Environmental Surveillance Perspective

Monkeypox disease (MPXD), a viral disease caused by monkeypox virus (MPXV), is an emerging zoonotic disease endemic in some countries of Central and Western Africa but seldom reported outside the affected region. Since May 2022, MPXD has been reported at least in 74 countries globally, prompting the World Health Organization to declare the MPXD outbreak a Public Health Emergency of International Concern. As of July 24, 2022, 92% (68/74) of the countries with reported MPXD cases had no historical MPXD case reports. From the One Health perspective, the spread of MPXV in the environment poses a risk not only to humans but also to small mammals and may, ultimately, spread to potent novel host populations. Wastewater-based surveillance (WBS), has been extensively utilized for monitoring communicable diseases, particularly during the ongoing coronavirus disease, the COVID-19 pandemic It helped to monitor infectious disease caseloads as well as specific viral variants circulating in communities. The detection of MPXV DNA in various body fluids, including respiratory and nasal secretions, saliva, urine, feces, and semen of infected individuals, supports the possibility of using WBS as an early proxy for the detection of MPXV infections. WBS of MPXV DNA can be used to monitor MPXV activity/trends in sewerage network areas even before detecting laboratory-confirmed clinical cases within a community. However, several factors affect the detection of MPXV in wastewater including, but not limited to, routes and duration time of virus shedding by infected individuals, infection rates in the relevant affected population, environmental persistence, the processes and analytical sensitivity of the used methods. Further research is needed to identify the key factors that impact the detection of MPXV biomarkers in wastewater and improve the utility of WBS of MPXV as an early warning and monitoring tool for safeguarding human health. In this review, we shortly summarize aspects of MPXV outbreak relevant to wastewater monitoring and discuss the challenges associated with WBS.Peer reviewe

Monkeypox outbreak : Wastewater and environmental surveillance perspective

Monkeypox disease (MPXD), a viral disease caused by the monkeypox virus (MPXV), is an emerging zoonotic disease endemic in some countries of Central and Western Africa but seldom reported outside the affected region. Since May 2022, MPXD has been reported at least in 74 countries globally, prompting the World Health Organization to declare the MPXD outbreak a Public Health Emergency of International Concern. As of July 24, 2022; 92 % (68/74) of the countries with reported MPXD cases had no historical MPXD case reports. From the One Health perspective, the spread of MPXV in the environment poses a risk not only to humans but also to small mammals and may, ultimately, spread to potent novel host populations. Wastewater-based surveillance (WBS) has been extensively utilized to monitor communicable diseases, particularly during the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic. It helped in monitoring infectious disease caseloads as well as specific viral variants circulating in communities. The detection of MPXV DNA in lesion materials (e.g. skin, vesicle fluid, crusts), skin rashes, and various body fluids, including respiratory and nasal secretions, saliva, urine, feces, and semen of infected individuals, supports the possibility of using WBS as an early proxy for the detection of MPXV infections. WBS of MPXV DNA can be used to monitor MPXV activity/trends in sewerage network areas even before detecting laboratory-confirmed clinical cases within a community. However, several factors affect the detection of MPXV in wastewater including, but not limited to, routes and duration time of virus shedding by infected individuals, infection rates in the relevant affected population, environmental persistence, the processes and analytical sensitivity of the used methods. Further research is needed to identify the key factors that impact the detection of MPXV biomarkers in wastewater and improve the utility of WBS of MPXV as an early warning and monitoring tool for safeguarding human health. In this review, we shortly summarize aspects of the MPXV outbreak relevant to wastewater monitoring and discuss the challenges associated with WBS.publishedVersionPeer reviewe

Emerging Themes and Future Directions of Multi-Sector Nexus Research and Implementation

Water, energy, and food are all essential components of human societies. Collectively, their respective resource systems are interconnected in what is called the “nexus”. There is growing consensus that a holistic understanding of the interdependencies and trade-offs between these sectors and other related systems is critical to solving many of the global challenges they present. While nexus research has grown exponentially since 2011, there is no unified, overarching approach, and the implementation of concepts remains hampered by the lack of clear case studies. Here, we present the results of a collaborative thought exercise involving 75 scientists and summarize them into 10 key recommendations covering: the most critical nexus issues of today, emerging themes, and where future efforts should be directed. We conclude that a nexus community of practice to promote open communication among researchers, to maintain and share standardized datasets, and to develop applied case studies will facilitate transparent comparisons of models and encourage the adoption of nexus approaches in practice

Emerging Themes and Future Directions of Multi-Sector Nexus Research and Implementation

Water, energy, and food are all essential components of human societies. Collectively, their respective resource systems are interconnected in what is called the “nexus”. There is growing consensus that a holistic understanding of the interdependencies and trade-offs between these sectors and other related systems is critical to solving many of the global challenges they present. While nexus research has grown exponentially since 2011, there is no unified, overarching approach, and the implementation of concepts remains hampered by the lack of clear case studies. Here, we present the results of a collaborative thought exercise involving 75 scientists and summarize them into 10 key recommendations covering: the most critical nexus issues of today, emerging themes, and where future efforts should be directed. We conclude that a nexus community of practice to promote open communication among researchers, to maintain and share standardized datasets, and to develop applied case studies will facilitate transparent comparisons of models and encourage the adoption of nexus approaches in practice

An Evaluation of MODIS-Retrieved Aerosol Optical Depth over AERONET Sites in Alaska

The air quality monitoring network in Alaska is currently limited to ground-based observations in urban areas and national parks, leaving a large proportion of the state unmonitored. The use of Moderate Resolution Imaging Spectroradiometer MODIS aerosol optical depth (AOD) to estimate ground-level particulate pollution concentrations has been successfully demonstrated around the world and could potentially be used in Alaska. In this work, MODIS AOD measurements at 550 nm were validated against AOD derived from two ground-based Aerosol Robotic Network (AERONET) sunphotometers in Alaska, located at Utqiagvik (previously known as Barrow) and Bonanza Creek, to determine if MODIS AOD from the Terra and Aqua satellites could be used to estimate ground-level particulate pollution concentrations. The MODIS AOD was obtained from MODIS collection 6 using the dark target Land and Ocean algorithms from years 2000 to 2014. MODIS data could only be obtained between the months of April and October; therefore, it was only evaluated for those months. Individual and combined Terra and Aqua MODIS data were considered. The results showed that MODIS collection 6 products at 10-km resolution for Terra and Aqua combined are not valid over land but are valid over the ocean. Note that the individual Terra and Aqua MODIS collection 6 AOD products at 10-km resolution are valid over land individually but not when combined. Results also suggest the MODIS collection 6 AOD products at 3-km resolution are valid over land and ocean and perform better over land than the 10-km product. These findings indicate that MODIS collection 6 AOD products can be used quantitatively in air quality applications in Alaska during the summer months

Factors impacting the interactions of engineered nanoparticles with bacterial cells and biofilms: Mechanistic insights and state of knowledge

Since their advent a few decades ago, engineered nanoparticles (ENPs) have been extensively used in consumer products and industrial applications and their use is expected to continue at the rate of thousands of tons per year in the next decade. The widespread use of ENPs poses a potential risk of large scale environmental proliferation of ENPs which can impact and endanger environmental health and safety. Recent studies have shown that microbial biofilms can serve as an important biotic component for partitioning and perhaps storage of ENPs released into aqueous systems. Considering that biofilms can be one of the major sinks for ENPs in the environment, and that the field of biofilms itself is only three to four decades old, there is a recent and growing body of literature investigating the ENP-biofilm interactions. While looking at biofilms, it is imperative to consider the interactions of ENPs with the planktonic microbial cells inhabiting the bulk systems in the vicinity of surface-attached biofilms. In this review article, we attempt to establish the state of current knowledge regarding the interactions of ENPs with bacterial cells and biofilms, identifying key governing factors and interaction mechanisms, as well as prominent knowledge gaps. Since the context of ENP-biofilm interactions can be multifarious—ranging from ecological systems to water and wastewater treatment to dental/medically relevant biofilms— and includes devising novel strategies for biofilm control, we believe this review will serve an interdisciplinary audience. Finally, the article also touches upon the future directions that the research in the ENP-microbial cells/biofilm interactions could take. Continued research in this area is important to not only enhance our scientific knowledge and arsenal for biofilm control, but to also support environmental health while reaping the benefits of the ‘nanomaterial revolution’. •Hydrophobicity and aggregation of engineered nanoparticles (ENPs) affect toxicity.•ENP-biofilm interactions are less studied than ENP-bacterial interactions.•ENPs may significantly partition to natural biofilms in aquatic systems.•Disintegration of extracellular polymeric substance (EPS) could remove biofilms.•ENPs may inhibit biofilms by interfering with quorum sensing

Removal of Arsenic(III) from Aqueous Solution Using Metal Organic Framework-Graphene Oxide Nanocomposite

MIL-53(Al)-graphene oxide (GO) nanocomposites of different GO to MIL-53(Al) mass ratios (1% to 25% GO) were synthesized and tested for removal of arsenite (As(III)), which is a well-known groundwater contaminant. The properties of MIL-53(Al)-GO nanocomposites were characterized using X-ray Diffraction (XRD), Fourier Transform Infrared (FT-IR) Spectroscopy, Brunauer-Emmett-Teller (BET) surface area measurements, and Scanning Electron Microscopy (SEM). Batch experiments were performed on MIL-53(Al)-GO nanocomposites for As(III) adsorption in aqueous solutions to investigate adsorption kinetics and isotherm behavior under varying environmental conditions. The effects of solution pH (2 to 11), initial As(III) concentrations (10⁻110 mg/L), adsorbent dosage (0.2⁻3.0 g/L), and temperature (298⁻318 K) on As(III) adsorption were investigated. MIL-53(Al)-GO nanocomposites showed higher adsorption of As(III) than pristine MIL-53(Al) and GO individually. As (III) removal was optimized at a ratio of 3% GO in the MIL-53(Al)-GO nanocomposite, with an adsorption capacity of 65 mg/g. The adsorption kinetics and isotherms followed pseudo-second-order and Langmuir isotherm models, respectively. Overall, these results suggest that MIL-53(Al)-GO nanocomposite holds a significant promise for use in the remediation of As (III) from groundwater and other aqueous solutions

Biofilm Cohesive Strength as a Basis for Biofilm Recalcitrance: Are Bacterial Biofilms Overdesigned?

Bacterial biofilms are highly resistant to common antibacterial treatments, and several physiological explanations have been offered to explain the recalcitrant nature of bacterial biofilms. Herein, a biophysical aspect of biofilm recalcitrance is being reported on. While engineering structures are often overdesigned with a factor of safety (FOS) usually under 10, experimental measurements of biofilm cohesive strength suggest that the FOS is on the order of thousands. In other words, bacterial biofilms appear to be designed to withstand extreme forces rather than typical or average loads. In scenarios requiring the removal or control of unwanted biofilms, this emphasizes the importance of considering strategies for structurally weakening the biofilms in conjunction with bacterial inactivation