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Topic Review
STEPLand Framework
This contribution assesses a new term that is proposed to be established within Land Change Science: Spatio-TEmporal Patterns of Land (‘STEPLand’). It refers to a specific workflow for analyzing land-use/land cover (LUC) patterns, identifying and modeling driving forces of LUC changes, assessing socio-environmental consequences, and contributing to defining future scenarios of land transformations. Researchers define this framework based on a comprehensive metaanalysis of 250 selected articles published in international scientific journals from 2000 to 2019. The empirical results demonstrate that STEPLand is a consolidated protocol applied globally, and the large diversity of journals, disciplines, and countries involved shows that it is becoming ubiquitous. The main characteristics of STEPLand are provided and discussed, demonstrating that the operational procedure can facilitate the interaction among researchers from different fields, and communication between researchers and policy makers.
  • 551
  • 29 Jul 2022
Topic Review
Processes Responsible for Nitrate Pollution in Water
Nitrate (NO3−) pollution of surface and groundwater bodies is a global problem of increasing concern, which has stimulated significant research interest. Nitrogen is crucial for life as a macronutrient for living organisms on Earth, but the global nitrogen cycle has been seriously altered by intensification of human activities, leading to eutrophication and hypoxic conditions of aquatic ecosystems. Due to nitrogen overfertilization, intensive agricultural practices generate huge nitrate fluxes that inadvertently deteriorate water quality. Different industrial processes also contribute to NO3− pollution in the environment. 
  • 551
  • 14 Apr 2023
Topic Review
Managing World Heritage
World Heritage is the pinnacle of the recognition of the natural, aesthetic, and cultural value of a place on the planet. Since its inception in 1972, over 1100 sites have received World Heritage status. Many of these places are being challenged by the effects of climate change. Urgent action is needed to build the resilience and adaptive capacity of World Heritage sites in the face of climate change threats to come. The Wet Tropics of Queensland World Heritage Area (WTWHA) is one of the most effectively regulated and managed protected Areas in the world. This includes the scientific evidence upon which that regulation and management is based. However, there is growing evidence that climate change impacts are a clear and present threat to the Outstanding Universal Value (OUV) upon which the listing is based. This challenges the very concept of OUV and points to the business-as-usual regulation and management not being sufficient to deal with the threat. It also calls for quantum changes in the approaches to protecting natural and cultural heritage and the OUV in World Heritage Areas.
  • 550
  • 15 Jun 2021
Topic Review
Geographic Information System Applied to Sustainability Assessments
The conceptual variations and divergences that permeate the debate on sustainability end up directly reflecting the choice of sustainability assessment (SA) processes, providing different methodological approaches. Among them, some researchers have pointed out challenges, but also opportunities to use geospatial data, techniques, and tools as resources to be explored in sustainability assessments.
  • 549
  • 25 Nov 2022
Topic Review
Environmental Levels of Polychlorinated Diphenyl Ethers
Polychlorinated diphenyl ethers (PCDEs) are a class of synthetic halogenated aromatic compounds, which have gradually attracted widespread attention due to potential environmental risks to humans and ecosystems.
  • 548
  • 18 Mar 2023
Topic Review
Geo-Environmental Characterization of High Contaminated Coastal Sites
Despite its remarkable geomorphological, ecological, and touristic value, the coastal sector of the Apulia region (Southern Italy) hosts three of the main contaminated Italian sites (Sites of National Interest, or SINs), for which urgent environmental remediation and reclamation actions are required. These sites are affected by intense coastal modification and diffuse environmental pollution due to the strong industrialization and urbanization processes that have been taking place since the second half of the XIX century. The Apulian coastal SINs, established by the National Law 426/1998 and delimited by the Ministerial Decree of 10 January 2000, include large coastal sectors and marine areas, which have been deeply investigated by the National Institution for the Environmental Research and Protection (ISPRA) and the Regional Agency for the Prevention and Protection of the Environment (ARPA) with the aim of obtaining a deep environmental characterization of the marine matrices (sediments, water, and biota). High-resolution and multidisciplinary investigations focused on the geo-environmental characterization of the coastal basins in the SIN Taranto site have been funded by the “Special Commissioner for the urgent measures of reclamation, environmental improvements, and redevelopment of Taranto”.
  • 547
  • 17 Jun 2022
Topic Review
Key Subsurface Policies in CO2 Geological Storage
One promising option for reducing carbon emissions is the deployment of carbon capture, utilization, and storage technologies (CCUS) to achieve climate goals. However, for large-scale deployment of underground carbon storage, it is essential to develop technically sound, safe, and cost-effective CO2 injection and well control strategies. This involves sophisticated balancing of various factors such as subsurface engineering policies, technical constraints, and economic trade-offs. Optimization techniques are the best tools to manage this complexity and ensure that CCUS projects are economically viable while maintaining safety and environmental standards.
  • 546
  • 30 May 2023
Topic Review
COVID-19 Affect Our Perception of Sustainability
Since the World Health Organization (WHO) declared the outbreak of severe acute respiratory syndrome COVID-19 virus 2 (COVID-19) virus disease 2 (SARS-CoV-2) on 9 January 2020, the entire world has been exceptionally interested in examining the impact of this pandemic on people and the environment. The pandemic led to unprecedented measures to halt air traffic and close factories due to lockdowns, economic closures, and the stopping of transportation of all kinds. The decline in the use of coal by power plants, oil refining, and steel manufacturing had a beneficial effect on air pollution and caused a decrease in carbon dioxide emissions. Moreover, the concept of sustainability has become more prevalent, reflecting the increasing awareness of the responsibility placed on every member of society. Sustainability is the quality and quantity of change that meets our needs without destroying the giving planet, which is the hope for the survival of future generations. 
  • 545
  • 09 Feb 2023
Topic Review
Near Zero-Energy Housing
A context-specific approach to the investigation of barriers to Near Zero-Energy Housing could facilitate and accelerate the transition towards a zero-energy built environment.
  • 544
  • 22 Jul 2021
Topic Review
Inland/Coastal Water Quality Measures
Water quality measures for inland and coastal waters are available as discrete samples from professional and volunteer water quality monitoring programs and higher-frequency, near-continuous data from automated in situ sensors. Water quality parameters also are estimated from model outputs and remote sensing. The integration of these data, via data assimilation, can result in a more holistic characterization of these highly dynamic ecosystems, and consequently improve water resource management.
  • 544
  • 10 Aug 2021
Topic Review
 Aspergillus and Penicillium Species in Biodegradation of Pesticides
Since filamentous fungi of Penicillium and Aspergillus genera can colonize very diverse niches, and Ascomycota seems to be the dominant phylum within the microbial group in various contaminated substrates, they possess great potential in the remediation of pesticide-contaminated sites. Different species can remove the pesticides at different rates, and to various extents; however, the fungal ability to resist high concentrations of pesticides is almost unparalleled compared to other microbial groups. Their performance may be further improved by applying indigenous strains isolated from pesticide-contaminated soils and sediments. 
  • 544
  • 10 Jul 2023
Topic Review
Bioactive Metabolites in Liquid State Cultures
Humans have appreciated mushrooms for their edible and medicinal value since the Neolithic age. Increased interest in the pharmaceutical potential of mushrooms has led to numerous publications that explore more than 100 reported medicinal functions. These are functions such as antifungal, antibacterial, antiviral, antioxidant, anti-inflammatory, anti-tumor, antiviral, anti-diabetic, anti-thrombotic, anti-allergic, antidepressive, antihyperlipidemic, digestive, hypotensive, cytotoxic, hepatoprotective, neuroprotective, nephroprotective, osteoprotective, and immunomodulating activities, among others. This therapeutic action is due to a wide array of bioactive metabolites isolated from the fruiting body, mycelium, and culture broth of macrofungi. Both complex high-molecular-weight compounds such as polysaccharides, proteins, and lipids and low-molecular-weight compounds such as terpenoids, polyketides, and alkaloids have been isolated and are under study. In addition to their pharmaceutical potential, mushrooms are recognized as a rich source of nutraceuticals. Nutraceuticals are substances that have positive effects, proven by clinical testing, on normal physiological functions that maintain health in humans, thus preventing and treating diseases and enhancing longevity. There is a globally growing market for nutraceuticals sold as nutrients and supplements or in the form of enhanced “functional foods”. Natural bioactive compounds found in macrofungi are ideal for this market and are already being used for their properties.
  • 543
  • 18 Nov 2022
Topic Review
Carbon Polygons and Carbon Offsets
The most important area of study concerning carbon polygons is the problem of assessing the reserves and trends in the stability of organic matter in the soil of natural ecosystems. An adequate assessment of these stocks should be based on verified methods for determining the content of organic matter (direct and indirect methods and the problem of the correlation of results) and on unified ideas about the depth and regularity of sampling within soil profiles and monitoring sites. This problem is particularly relevant to the development of a spatial network of carbon polygons in the Russian Federation.
  • 541
  • 17 Nov 2021
Topic Review
Studies on Traditional Ecological Knowledge
Traditional ecological knowledge (TEK) dominated by traditional populations, especially fishermen and women, has been the object of scientific research from different perspectives, disseminating information on fauna and flora in different environments. Such interest refers to the importance that the set of information that these populations have on the dynamics of the local environment and the relationship with the environment in which they live. Generally, the transmission of this knowledge happens from generation to generation; however, it is still little valued by studies related to natural sciences. The study of this type of traditional ecological knowledge can support scientific studies and, therefore, help to fill the gaps in the understanding between the relationship between human activities and different ecosystems.
  • 541
  • 26 Apr 2022
Topic Review
Climate Change Communication
Climate change communication is a crucial strategy for addressing the major challenges of climate change, and the knowledge mapping analysis and overview of it helps to clarify research progress. Based on CiteSpace, 428 pieces of domestic and foreign literature are collected to clarify the basic status of climate change communication research and summarize research hotspots and prospects.
  • 541
  • 26 Sep 2022
Topic Review
Phenoxy Carboxylic Acid Herbicides Physical and Chemical Properties
Chlorophenoxy herbicides belong to the class of aryloxyalkanoic acids that are derivatives of 1–3 carbon hydroxyalkanoic acids with aromatic substituent attached to the alcoholic oxygen.
  • 541
  • 26 Jul 2023
Topic Review
Roadkills for Monitor Raccoon Dog Populations
The raccoon dog (Nyctereutes procyonoides) is a highly invasive species, therefore knowledge regarding the population size, trends and spatial distribution is important for species assessment and for the planning of control measures. And the raccoon dog (Nyctereutes procyonoides) is one of the most frequently killed species on Lithuanian roads.
  • 540
  • 12 Nov 2021
Topic Review
Freshwater Invertebrates in Biomonitoring
Invertebrates are excluded from ethical consideration in the procedures of environmental protection, which results in the killing of many more individuals during sampling than necessary. Biomonitoring is used as a routine method for environmental protection that results in the cruel death of even millions of aquatic animals annually.
  • 539
  • 29 Aug 2023
Topic Review
ENM/NPs and Marine Safety
The application of engineered nanomaterials (ENMs) in marine environmental remediation gained increasing attention. Due to their large surface area and high reactivity, ENMs offer the potential for the efficient removal of pollutants from environmental matrices with better performances compared to conventional techniques.
  • 538
  • 29 Apr 2021
Topic Review
Diver-Based Optical Survey Techniques for Coral Monitoring
Monitoring the health of coral reefs is essential to understanding the damaging impacts of anthropogenic climate change as such non-invasive methods to survey coral reefs are the most desirable. Optics-based surveys, ranging from simple photography to multispectral satellite imaging are well established. The techniques are broadly separated by the primary method in which data are collected: by divers and/or robots directly within the environment or by remote sensing where data are captured above the water’s surface by planes, drones, or satellites.
  • 538
  • 01 Apr 2022
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