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Topic Review
Microplastic Pollution in Coastal Area of Black Sea
Plastic materials, degraded by physical and chemical processes, become micro- and nanoparticles. Microplastic pollution is a complex problem, as it is widespread and the exact harmful effects of long and short exposure are not known, although it certainly has considerable consequences for biota, the environment, and public health. The Black Sea is becoming a strategic area as a battle front and shipping route. This certainly influences the quality of the marine environment, and its microplastic pollution could degenerate into a much more unpleasant situation. Therefore, it is important to have a picture of this pollution in the Black Sea area to facilitate future efforts to understand the impact of this crisis.
  • 845
  • 17 Nov 2022
Topic Review
Biotechnological Approaches Applied for Marine Hydrocarbon Spills Remediation
Biological and physico-chemical remediation technologies can be efficient in terms of spill cleanup and microorganisms—mainly bacteria—are the main ones responsible for petroleum hydrocarbons (PHCs) degradation such as crude oil. Biodegradation is considered as one of the most sustainable and efficient techniques for the removal of PHCs. 
  • 841
  • 18 Jul 2022
Topic Review
Fossil Fuel Divestment
Fossil fuel divestment or fossil fuel divestment and investment in climate solutions is an attempt to reduce climate change by exerting social, political, and economic pressure for the institutional divestment of assets including stocks, bonds, and other financial instruments connected to companies involved in extracting fossil fuels. Fossil fuel divestment campaigns emerged on campuses in the United States in 2010 with students urging their administrations to turn endowment investments in the fossil fuel industry into investments in clean energy and communities most impacted by climate change. By 2015, fossil fuel divestment was reportedly the fastest growing divestment movement in history. In April 2020, a total of 1,192 institutions and over 58,000 individuals representing $14 trillion in assets worldwide had begun or committed to a divestment from fossil fuels.
  • 841
  • 10 Oct 2022
Topic Review
The Evolution of Coral Reef under Changing Climate
Coral reefs are vital ecosystems with high biodiversity and ecological services for coastal communities. Climate change is accelerating, with detrimental consequences on coral reefs and related communities. 
  • 841
  • 17 Mar 2023
Topic Review
Secrets of the Astute Red Fox
An ecosystem’s health is based on a delicate balance between human, nonhuman animal, and environmental health. Any factor that leads to an imbalance in one of the components results in disease. There are several bioindicators that allow people to evaluate the status of ecosystems. The red fox (Vulpes vulpes, Linnaeus, 1758) has the widest world distribution among mammals. It is highly adaptable, lives in rural and urban areas, and has a greatly diverse diet. Being susceptible to environmental pollution and zoonotic agents, red foxes may act as sentinels to detect environmental contaminants, and climatic changes and to prevent and control outbreaks of emerging or re-emerging zoonosis. This entry present the information that is related to the red fox as a sentinel of human, animal, and environmental health.
  • 840
  • 13 Feb 2023
Topic Review
Attitudes towards Plastic Pollution
Plastic pollution has received unprecedented attention globally, and there are increasing calls to control it. Despite this, the uptrends of plastic consumption and mismanaged plastic waste show little sign of reversal. It is imperative to understand the attitudes of various societal groups towards plastics to identify the barriers to behavioral changes to reduce plastic pollution and synthesize effective countermeasures. Generally, there are negative attitudes towards plastic pollution and people are willing to act against it by supporting campaigns, paying for environmentally friendly alternatives, and supporting solution-based interventions from governments including policies, regulations and guidelines. Inconvenience due to limited options for plastic items and habits are two main barriers to behavioral changes. Governments play crucial roles to tap into these attitudes to lead and intensify control plastic pollution through a multi-pronged approach that facilitates systematic substitution of conventional plastics with environmentally friendly alternatives as well as the stepping-up of the circular plastic economy and industrial symbiosis. Progressively regulated capping of conventional plastic production and consumption could help the transition, and the public could complement government endeavors through education, mutual influence and awareness-raising which could also be driven by governmental policies and programs.
  • 836
  • 21 Jun 2023
Topic Review
Economic Growth and CO2
This entry explored the effect of energy consumption and economic growth on CO2 emissions. The relationship between energy consumption, economic growth and CO2 emissions was assessed using regression analysis (the pooled OLS regression and fixed effects methods), Granger causality and panel cointegration tests. Data from 70 countries between 1994–2013 were analysed. The result of the Granger causality tests revealed that the study variables (population, capital stock and economic growth) have a bi-directional causal relationship with CO2 emissions, while energy consumption has a uni-directional relationship. Likewise, the outcome of the cointegration tests established that a long-run relationship exists among the study variables (energy consumption and economic growth) with CO2 emissions. However, the pooled OLS and fixed methods both showed that energy consumption and economic growth have a significant positive impact on CO2 emissions. Hence, this study supports the need for a global transition to a low carbon economy primarily through climate finance, which refers to local, national, or transnational financing, that may be drawn from public, private and alternative sources of financing. This will help foster large-scale investments in clean energy, that are required to significantly reduce CO2 emissions.
  • 833
  • 26 Oct 2020
Topic Review
Lattice Boltzmann Method
Biofilm growth and evolution are very complex interactions among physicochemical and biological processes. Mathematical models are critical to modern biotechnology—both in research and in the engineering practice. Thus, many models of biofilms have been developed to include various biofilm reactor modules. However, considerable challenges exist in modelling microbial processes where mesoscopic dynamics of nutrient transport must be coupled with microscopic bacteria growth and their elementary biochemical reactions at reactive or enzymatic interfaces, in addition to the microbiological and/or ecological aspects of the “micro” organisms involved in biofilms. Lattice Boltzmann Method (LBM) treats flows in terms of fictive parcels of particles which reside on a mesh and conduct translation according to collision steps entailing overall fluid-like behavior. The goal of this review is to discuss and identify the opportunities of applying different LBM-based models to specific areas of biofilm research as well as unique challenges that LBM-based models must overcome.
  • 831
  • 19 Jul 2021
Topic Review
Data Quality Supporting Marine Mineral Oil Spill Assessments
Spilled mineral oils in the marine environment pose a number of challenges to sampling and analysis. Mineral oils are complex assemblages of hydrocarbons and additives, the composition of which can vary considerably depending on the source oil and product specifications. Further, the marine microbial and chemical environment can be harsh and variable over short times and distances, producing a rigorous source of hydrocarbon degradation of a mineral oil assemblage. Researchers must ensure that any measurements used to determine the nature and extent of the oil release, the fate and transport of the mineral oil constituents, and any resultant toxicological effects are derived using representative data that adhere to the study’s data quality objectives (DQOs).
  • 831
  • 11 Mar 2022
Topic Review
Late Glacial
The Late Glacial climate warming (c. 13,000–10,000 years ago), or Tardiglacial ("Late Glacial"), is defined primarily by the beginning of the modern warm period, in which temperatures in the Northern Hemisphere rose substantially, causing a process of accelerated deglaciation following the Last Glacial Maximum (c. 25,000–13,000 years ago). At this time, human populations, previously forced into refuge areas as a result of Last Glacial Maximum (LGM) climatic conditions, gradually begin to repopulate the Northern Hemisphere's Eurasian landmass and eventually populate North America via Beringia for the first time. The Late Glacial Interstadial c.14,670 to c.12,890 BP represents the first pronounced warming since the end of the LGM. Evidence for its occurrence stems from two main types of analysis. The first is the use of oxygen isotope stages (OIS) gathered from stratified deep-sea sediment cores. Samples are gathered and measured for change in isotope levels to determine temperature fluctuation for given periods of time. The second is a proxy measurement, the observation of certain reappearing fauna and flora fossils that can survive only in temperate climates, thus indicating warming trends for a given geographic area. Archaeological evidence of settlement and resettlement in certain areas by humans also serve as proxy measurements. Towards the end of OIS 2 in which the Late Glacial Maximum occurs, the deep-sea sediment cores indicate a gradually warming climate, and the reappearance of certain warm-weather flora and fauna remains throughout the Northern Hemisphere correlate with that trend. The Late Glacial was interrupted by a severe decline in temperatures during the Younger Dryas from c.12,890 to c.11,650 BP.
  • 828
  • 17 Nov 2022
Topic Review
Multiscapes on an Urbanising Planet
The two most significant signatures of the Anthropocene—agriculture and urbanisation— have yet to be studied synoptically. The term periurban is used to describe territory where the urbanising trend of the planet extends into multiscapes. A periurban praxis is required that spatially reconciles urbanisation and agriculture, simultaneously permitting urban growth and the enhance- ment of critical ecosystem services provided by agricultural hinterlands.
  • 827
  • 18 Mar 2022
Topic Review
Multidimensional Food Security Nexus under Climate Change
Hyperarid, arid, semiarid, and dry subhumid areas cover approximately 41% of the global land area. The human population in drylands, currently estimated at 2.7 billion, faces limited access to sufficient, affordable, and nutritious food. Researchers discuss the interlinkages among water security, environmental security, energy security, economic security, health security, and food security governance, and how they affect food security in drylands. 
  • 825
  • 15 Dec 2021
Topic Review
Isotopic Imprints of Pyrite Leaching
Definition  Acid rock drainage (ARD) is one of the major environmental problems at active and closed coal and metalliferous mining sites. ARD forms naturally when sulfidic material comes in contact with atmospheric oxygen and the oxidation of sulfide minerals releases acid, sulfate and metal contaminants. The large-scale ARD that is generated within the mining area is called acid mine drainage (AMD).
  • 825
  • 15 Dec 2020
Topic Review
Ecotoxicological Assessment of Microplastics
Microplastics (MPs) are tiny plastic particles (<5 mm). They have been classified as contaminants of emerging concern (CECs) recently. Microplastics is a commonly used term, the more detailed classification includes: mesoplastics (1–5 mm), microplastics (0.0001–1 mm), and nanoplastics (<0.1 µm).
  • 823
  • 14 May 2021
Topic Review
Soil Nanoremediation and Mushrooms
Soil pollution is a serious challenge facing the global community. This pollution is a direct and/or indirect harmful deterioration, which penetrates all aspects of our life, especially human health. Therefore, there is an urgent need to repair, remove, or decompose these pollutants according to various approaches. Concerning the relationship between soil nanoremediation and its mushrooms, this process can be called nano myco-remediation. The mechanism of this kind of remediation depends mainly on the enzymatic system of mushroom species and is involved in the bioremediation of organic environmental pollutants.
  • 822
  • 06 Dec 2022
Topic Review
Potentiality of Vermicomposting
Vermicomposting is a biological process of decomposition of degradable residues through the digestive tracts of earthworms. It has been studied since long and still very important and relevant mostly in the viewpoint of organic waste recycling and biofertilizer production. Though wide range of literature are available on the topics, however, there are still unknowns that need to be additionally explored to maximize the potential of vermicompost.
  • 821
  • 12 Nov 2021
Topic Review
Biological and Hydrobiological Background of Pond Carp Breeding
In the Central European region, there is a long tradition of breeding fish in artificially constructed ponds. As the area belongs to the temperate zone, farmed fish need to survive cold winter periods. Common carp (Cyprinus carpio L.), which is an omnivorous, bioturbating species, is well adapted to warm and cold periods and the alluvial water environment. Since the Middle Ages, a large scale, efficient carp farming methodology has been developed in the region, where production is based on natural resources (protein and fatty acid sources) of renewable water ecosystems.
  • 821
  • 03 Nov 2022
Topic Review
Heavy Metals in Medicinal Plants
It is possible for heavy metals (HMs) to be present in pharmaceutical herb materials coming from anthropogenic activities like agriculture, industrial waste, and natural sources. In various ethnic groups, there is evidence that contaminants were purposefully added in the belief that they had some sort of therapeutic benefit. HM toxicity of medicinal plant products has been linked to a wide range of adverse health effects, causing dysfunction of the liver, kidney, and heart, and even death.
  • 821
  • 17 Feb 2023
Topic Review
Freight Transport Decarbonization
Freight transport decarbonization is currently an urgent challenge. Decarbonization strategies have a specific time to take effect, and it is essential to consider their time dependence. The system dynamics approach is well suited to represent feedback, lagged responses, and the time dependence of decarbonization strategies. 
  • 821
  • 31 Mar 2022
Topic Review
Properties and Applications of Geopolymer Mortar
Classic cement mortar is often utilised as a standard binding and repairing material in various engineering structures. Many scholars have addressed GPM’s viability and potential applications as a suitable replacement for regular cement mortar. Sathonsaowaphak was the first to investigate geopolymer mortar and studied the properties of bottom ash fineness, ash/liquid alkali ratio, NaOH/Na2SiO3 ratio, NaOH dosage, water to ash ratio, and superplasticiser on the behaviour in terms of workability and compressive strength of GPM. Geopolymer mortar has a mechanical strength of 24–58 MPa, and adding NaOH solution improves the workability performance of GPM without reducing strength. According to the results of Detphan and Chindaprasirt, who prepared GPC using rice husk ash and fly ash and activated by NaOH and NaSiO3 solution as a liquid for the mix, they found that the maximum strength of GPM is acquired by employing a Na2SiO3-to-NaOH mass ratio of four. Moreover, more discussion about geopolymer mortar properties is reported in the following Content.
  • 820
  • 05 Dec 2022
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