A broad survey of regulated trihalomethanes (THM) and haloacetic acids (HAA) concentrations in Queensland drinking water was undertaken and the data were evaluated to assess the overall compliance of the region to Australian Drinking Water Guidelines (ADWG). The results presented here indicate that drinking water total trihalomethane (tTHM) concentrations were predominantly compliant with ADWG, with regions using chlorination being the only regions that exceeded the ADWG for THM. tTHM levels were highest in chlorinated water, whereas levels in combined chlorinated/chloraminated water were much lower. Chloraminated water produced the lowest tTHM levels in the regions examined. tTHM levels generally increased during summer and decreased in winter regardless of disinfection method. Surface waters formed a higher proportion of more highly chlorinated THM species relative to more highly brominated THM species, whereas bore water had a higher proportion of more highly brominated THM species due to the frequently higher bromide concentration and lower natural organic matter (NOM) concentration of these waters. The majority of regions were continuously compliant with ADWG for HAA concentrations, with primarily the trichloroacetic acid guideline value being exceeded, in chlorinated waters only.

This paper addresses the contamination of groundwater by arsenic, a naturally occurring phenomenon that has caused serious cases of arsenic poisoning around the world. While a number of chemical processes are known to be capable of mobilizing arsenic, the extent to which different processes are active in actual geological settings is much less clear. In this work, the El Paso, Texas region is analyzed as a case study to better understand the factors associated with high arsenic levels in groundwater. This study includes two basins that supply drinking water to approximately 2.5 million people. The average arsenic was 8.5 ppb, which is below the current American and WHO Maximum Contaminant Level of 10 ppb. However, arsenic concentrations reached approximately 80 ppb in three different locations. Governmental archival information was combined with field water sampling, and with leaching and analysis of solid phase materials from well cuttings (sediments of the aquifers). The study identifies evidence for both competitive desorption and reductive dissolution operating to mobilize arsenic, with the importance of different mechanisms likely varying throughout the aquifers. A mean of 21% of the solid arsenic content was leached out to solution at pH 9, and mean solid phase arsenic concentration was 4.3 ppm, solid phase iron 7000 ppm, and solid carbon 0.6%, consistent with arsenic desorption out of sediments into the aqueous phase. A potential role of geothermal waters was also identified at a southern hot spot. This information is important to better understand the basic science of the arsenic geochemical cycle and may also provide a rough guide as to where low arsenic waters may be found: groundwater with high potentiometric head and short flow paths, groundwater under the influence of surface water, and lower pH groundwater.

In Japan, mercury and its compounds were categorized as hazardous air pollutants in 1996 and are on the list of “Substances Requiring Priority Action” published by the Central Environmental Council of Japan. The Air Quality Management Division of the Environmental Bureau, Ministry of the Environment, Japan, selected the current annual mean environmental air quality standard for mercury and its compounds of 0.04 µg/m³. Long-term exposure to mercury and its compounds can have a carcinogenic effect, inducing eg, Minamata disease. This study evaluates the impact of mercury emissions on air quality in the coastal area of the Sea of Japan. Average yearly emission of mercury from an elevated point source in this area with background concentration and one-year meteorological data were used to predict the ground level concentration of mercury. The annual mean concentration distribution of mercury and its compounds were calculated for the middle part of Honshu Island, which served as a background level of mercury concentration for the coastal are of the Sea of Japan. To estimate the concentration of mercury and its compounds in air of the local area, two different simulation models have been used. The first is the National Institute of Advanced Science and Technology Atmospheric Dispersion Model for Exposure and Risk Assessment (AIST-ADMER) that estimates regional atmospheric concentration and distribution. The second is the Ministry of Economy, Trade and Industry Low Rise Industrial Source Dispersion Model (METI-LIS) that estimates the atmospheric concentration distribution in the vicinity of facilities.

During the 1950s, the shallow Lake Hula and its adjacent marshes, located in the watershed of Lake Kinneret (LK), were drained in order to increase arable land. The drainage resulted in increasing loads of nutrients in the Jordan River and in oxidative degradation of the underlying peat, followed by Aeolian (mostly) and riverine transport to LK. Peat had been accumulating in LK bed sediments since the 1950s, with peak deposits recorded in the mid-1970s. The routine monitoring of Norg and Corg, associated with the peat, in the watershed streams and in LK water (initiated in 1970) also showed the highest levels in the mid-1970s. During the 1980s, a succession of dense natural vegetation inhibited soil surface erosion and a decline in Aeolian transport of peat to LK was recorded. Inversed temporal patterns appear for oxygen and pH, and this is suggested to result from the dependence of these parameters on the magnitude of respiratory process, induced by peat availability. During the 1970s allochthonous peat resources supported about half of the zooplankton activity in LK and therefore the decline in peat availability during the 1980s was accompanied by a two-fold decline in zooplankton biomass. The subsequent lessening of grazing pressure together with the elevated inflows of bio-available P resulted in a significant rise in LK phytoplankton biomass. The 1980s decline in Norg associated with the peat led to lower N/P ratios in the external sources of nutrients to LK. These conditions may have favored the appearance of N₂ fixing cyanobacteria noted in the lake since 1994.

Coastal sediment can be classified by functional bottom type, depending on whether cohesive fine material is eroded (E), transported (T) or deposited/accumulated (A) there. The assessment of such bottom dynamic conditions is useful in many ways, including as a fundament for structuring mass balance models. In this paper more than 200 recently investigated Swedish coastal areas were analyzed using geographic information systems (GIS). Statistical relationships between morphometry, the average proportion of A-areas (BA) and the average critical depth (D_TA), which separates ET-areas from A-areas, were investigated. Many morphometric parameters showed significant correlation with both BA and D_TA and multiple regression models were obtained that could explain much of the variation in these parameters. Parameters describing sheltering effects from islands, mean depth and mean slope were important in this context. Large differences were found in empirical BA-values from two different sources. Furthermore, a new empirical dataset was presented for 209 Swedish coastal areas.

Radiello passive diffusive aldehyde samplers were used to measure ambient formaldehyde and acetaldehyde levels, approximately every 0.7 km in a 10 km² sampling area in Hillsborough County, Florida from January 21 to 28, 2010. Samples were analyzed for aldehyde-DNPH derivatives via high performance liquid chromatography with ultraviolet detection. Concentrations were compared with values at a regulatory fixed-site monitor. Distribution statistics, concentration ratios, and spatial contours were calculated to investigate spatial variability. Mean aldehyde concentrations were 2.4 and 1.1 µg/m³ for formaldehyde and acetaldehyde, respectively. Observed spatial concentration patterns were similar for both aldehydes and suggest the influence of nearby roadway emissions. Overall, the spatial variation was small, with coefficients of variation of 13% and 22%, respectively. Results here provide methods and data for understanding exposures to aldehydes at high spatial resolution.

Water scarcity is one of the main challenges facing Middle Eastern countries. A typical country in this respect is Syria. This paper estimates projections for the available water resources, water balance, and available water per capita (AWPC) in Syria until 2050 in relation to possible future climate changes, national development agendas, water constraints, and water management alternatives. Results show that the AWPC is likely to be reduced by about half up to 2050. Climate change and population growth will have a huge influence on water availability during the coming decades. However, effective water management can to a great extent counterbalance these negative effects. The implementation of modern irrigation practices and the reuse of domestic wastewater, for example, can save up to 400-800 million cubic meters in 2050. If rainwater harvesting systems are implemented water availability can be utilized much more efficiently. Consequently, it appears that there are reasons to be alarmed but also cautiously optimistic regarding Syria's water availability. This, however, depends on the implementation of good development practices, integrated management and public participation at all levels.