Què passa amb el mercuri quan arriba al terra?

Un dels elements químics més perjudicials per al medi ambient i els humans, és el mercuri, per la qual cosa resulta important analitzar en quina quantitat es troba i com es comporta una vegada arriba al terra procedent de les emissions industrials. Investigadors de la UAB han estudiat els terrenys més pròxims a una planta química de clor-àlcali ubicada a Holanda.Uno de los elementos químicos más perjudiciales para el medioambiente y los humanos es el mercurio, por lo que resulta importanteanalizar en qué cantidad se halla y cómo se comporta una vez llega alsuelo procedente de las emisiones industriales. Investigadores de laUAB han estudiado los terrenos más cercanos a una planta química decloro-álcali ubicada en Holanda

The status and future of essential geodiversity variables

Rapid environmental change, natural resource overconsumption and increasing concerns about ecological sustainability have led to the development of 'Essential Variables' (EVs). EVs are harmonized data products to inform policy and to enable effective management of natural resources by monitoring global changes. Recent years have seen the instigation of new EVs beyond those established for climate, oceans and biodiversity (ECVs, EOVs and EBVs), including Essential Geodiversity Variables (EGVs). EGVs aim to consistently quantify and monitor heterogeneity of Earth-surface and subsurface abiotic features, including geology, geomorphology, hydrology and pedology. Here we assess the status and future development of EGVs to better incorporate geodiversity into policy and sustainable management of natural resources. Getting EGVs operational requires better consensus on defining geodiversity, investments into a governance structure and open platform for curating the development of EGVs, advances in harmonizing in situ measurements and linking heterogeneous databases, and development of open and accessible computational workflows for global digital mapping using machine-learning techniques. Cross-disciplinary collaboration and partnerships with governmental and private organizations are needed to ensure the successful development and uptake of EGVs across science and policy. This article is part of the Theo Murphy meeting issue 'Geodiversity for science and society'

Life cycle analysis of underground thermal energy storage

Underground Thermal Energy Storage (UTES) systems are used to buffer the seasonal difference between heat and cold supply and demand and, therefore, represent an interesting option to conserve energy. Even though UTES are considered environmental friendly solutions they are not completely free of impacts on the environment in general and the subsurface in particular. In order to improve the understanding and knowledge on the environmental performance of UTES techniques, this study performed a Life Cycle Assessment (LCA) on two different UTES systems: Aquifer Thermal Energy Storage (ATES) and Borehole Thermal Energy Storage (BTES)

Women and property rights : a human rights and gender challenge to churches and society in Kenya (reference to the Meru community of Kenya)

In many developing countries like Kenya, issues of gender discrimination are evident in form of unequal inheritance and property rights. While there seems to be numerous campaigns for the advocacy of gender equality and human rights in all aspects, the practicability is something yet to be visualized. In Kenya for instance, customary law is quite dominant hence sabotaging any attempt to promote gender equality. In this paper, it has been noted that due to the impact customary law has especially on property rights, many have the feeling that security is more important than claiming for gender equality. Needless to say, this of course goes hand in hand with the primitive or traditional beliefs and practices that are still adored with high esteem. The question of women rights to property inheritance in Kenya is therefore not without suspicions and mixed feelings. Besides other aspects like poverty and illiteracy among many women, there is the challenge of some traditional beliefs and practices that can be harmful to their lives. Instead of empowering women with the rights to inherit family properties, especially after the death of their spouses, many have the traditional primitive view that a woman needs to be inherited together with other properties of the deceased; after all she too is part of the properties the deceased owned. A lot therefore needs to be done in order to improve the current situation of women’s rights to inherit properties in Kenya. Key words: Gender discrimination, customary law, Traditional beliefs and practices, poverty, and illiteracy