The aim of this study was to investigate the impact of industrial waste landfill on the release of polychlorinated biphenyls (PCBs) on the environment with reference to water flow directions. 10 study plots were designated around the landfill site. Soil samples were taken from different soil layers. Plants: Solidago canadensis (leaves, stem), Quercus L. (leaves), and Poaceae were tested on PCBs contents. Groundwater samples were taken from piezometers. PCBs in the samples were determined by gas chromatography with an electron capture detector (GC / ECD).The highest accumulation of PCBs congeners was observed in the topsoil layers and decreased with the sampling depth. The dominant PCBs congeners in soil were PCB 28 and PCB 138, in plants PCB 28 and PCB 52. The most significant PCBs accumulation in the topsoil layer occurred in the research area on which the largest amount of waste was deposited and was equal to 14.2 ng/g. The largest sum of determined PCBs congeners was found in Solidago canadensis leaves – 3.26 ng/g and Quercus L. leaves – 3.32 ng/g. PCB 28 and PCB 52 were capable of translocation from soil to plants. It was found that the water flow direction did not affect PCB content in soils

The aspects of surface stability and groundwater exchange recognized by many researchers due to the intensification of agriculture and industry (manifested in, e.g., regulation and dredging of riverbed sediments of rivers) are now widely discussed on the international forum of water policy and management. It is essential to assess the spatial variability of water exchange through the river length and cross sections for the preparation of data and calculation of the groundwater flow model. This article presents research which describes the spatial distribution of the surface water-groundwater interaction within the river cross-section. Two measurement series were carried out to describe its variability. Additionally, a groundwater flow model was developed to simulate and represent the variable nature of water exchange in the hyporheic zone in the river’s cross-section. The model was successfully verified by means of measurements of water flux in the hyporheic zone. The precise spatial description of this variability is the first step to determine the possibility of introducing this variable in an accurate manner, within the limits of measurement uncertainties or simulation assumptions, in the construction of mathematical models of groundwater flow.

The pesticide persistence, in particular in soils, often significantly exceeding the declarations of their manufacturers is surprising. There are many publications devoted to the explanation of this phenomenon in the field literature, but the diverse research methodologies used may lead to the ambiguous conclusions. On the basis of the collected literature, the attempt was made to systematize the available information on the interactions of commonly used groups of pesticides with individual soil components. The complex mechanisms of interactions between pesticides and soil based on van der Waals forces, ionic and covalent bonding, ligand exchange and charge transfer complexes formation were demonstrated. It was also proved that the nature of interactions is strictly dependent on the structure of the pesticide molecule. The conclusion of the review may contribute to the choice of plant protection products that, in addition to their effectiveness, are as little ballast for the environment as possible.

Cytostatic drugs have become one of the greatest environmental hazards. They exhibit toxic, carcinogenic, mutagenic and teratogenic effects on flora and fauna, including people. They are poorly eliminated in conventional wastewater treatment plants and their mixtures could possess higher ecotoxicity than individual drugs. Fungi are organisms with enormous potential for biodegradation of a variety of toxic chemical pollutants. The aim of this work was to estimate tolerance of five fungal strains to selected anticancer drugs, which will be useful to determine the potential for their possible use in cytostatics removal and may be significant in the context of wastewater treatment application. Test was conducted on Fomes fomentarius (CB13), Hypholoma fasciculare (CB15), Phyllotopsis nidulans (CB14), Pleurotus ostreatus (BWPH) and Trametes versicolor (CB8) and the chosen drugs were bleomycin and vincristine. Their ability to grow in the presence of selected cytostatics was evaluated in cultures conducted on two solid media which differed in the richness of nutrient compounds. Fungal strains tolerance was expressed as a half maximal effective concentration. Results showed that fungi display better tolerance to high cytostatics’ concentrations in the medium rich in carbon source. Regardless of the medium used, the differences in growth ability were lower for bleomycin (the tolerance was higher). The greatest tolerance for bleomycin was shown by Pleurotus ostreatus. Results suggest that more efficient elimination of bleomycin would be possible to obtain, strain BWPH seems to be the best fungal candidate for this drug degradation assay and, probably, in wastewater treatment application tests in a longer perspective.

Bacterial infections that are due to consumption of poor quality water are still an important threat to human health and life. The aim of the article was to investigate the bacteriological threat of water from home wells. The results of water testing from individual wells constituted research material. On their basis, the health risk of fecal streptococci, coliforms and Escherichia coli was assessed and an attempt was made to assess the impact of pollution on the health of residents. The results of water testing in private wells showed unacceptable values for bacteriological pollution. A signifi cant health risk was found for fecal streptococci, coliforms and Escherichia coli. The authors pointed out the need to take extensive actions aimed at raising environmental and health awareness of the inhabitants in terms of water quality used for living purposes, in particular for consumption.

The presented work introduces a simple modification of coal fl y ash (FA) with 30% solution of H 20 2, used as a new efficient sorbent for the removal of organic dye crystal violet (CV) in the presence of Cu(II) ions in single- and bi-component systems Cu(II)-CV. FT-IR, TG, SEM-EDS, and XRD suggested that the mechanism of Cu(II) and CV sorption onto FA-H 2O 2 includes ion-exchange and surface adsorption process. Comparing the values of the reduced chi-square test (χ 2/DoF) and the determination coefficient R 2 obtained for CV of the considered isotherms, the fitting degree follows the sequence: Jovanović > Langmuir > Elovich > Freundlich > Redlich-Peterson (R-P) > Tóth > Halsey > BET. Sorption of Cu(II) ions in a single system by means of FA-H 2O 2 was well fi tted by the Langmuir and R-P model. The studies of equilibrium in a bi-component system by means of extended Langmuir (EL), extended Langmuir-Freundlich (ELF), and Jain-Snoeyink (JS) models were analysed. The estimation of parameters of sorption isotherms in a bi-component system Cu(II)-CV has shown that the best of fi t calculated values of experimental data for both sorbates have been the EL model and the JS model, but only in the case of a CV dye. The sorption kinetic of Cu(II) and CV onto FA-H 2O 2 was discussed by means of the PFO, PSO, and intra-particle diff usion models.

This study investigated the potential of three microalgae taxonomic groups of Chlorophyta, Cyanoprokaryota and Bacillariophyceae for biogas production. Biogas potential was assessed in mesophilic anaerobic digestion batch tests over a period of 20 days. The cumulative biogas yield (CBY) of Chlorophyta and Cyanoprocaryota was respectively 396.21 mL/g Volatile Solids (VS) and 382.45 mL/g VS. Bacillariophyceae digestion showed lower biogas production of 357.07 mL/g VS. The highest cumulative methane yield (CMY) of 241.25 mL CH 4/g VS was recorded for Cyanoprocaryota biomass, which was signifi cantly higher (p<0.05) than the other two types of microalgae. The highest methane content in biogas of 63.08% was observed with Cyanoprokaryota. Chemical composition of biomass as well as biogas productivity are infl uenced by algal taxonomy.

Sugar beet molasses vinasse is a high-strength distillery wastewater. It contains colored substances which significantly affect the degree of pollution and toxicity of vinasse. This study aimed to optimize the medium composition and the process condition of sugar beet molasses vinasse decolorization by Lactobacillus plantarum MiLAB393. The research was conducted in two stages: the shake-fl ask stage in the 250 cm 3 Erlenmeyer flasks and the batch experiments in the 5 dm 3 working volume stirred-tank bioreactor. During the study, the concentrations of glucose and yeast extract were optimized using experimental design of experiments (DOE). The influences of the initial value of pH and pH control, temperature, stirrer speed and glucose concentration on decolorization were tested. The highest color reduction of 24.1% was achieved for an experiment in which 24.93 g/dm 3 of glucose was added to the medium and stirrer speed was 200 rpm. This efficiency of 30% v/v sugar beet molasses vinasse decolorization was obtained at non-controlled pH 6.0 and at 35.8°C. It was found that pH control determines vinasse decolorization. When the pH was controlled, decolorization did not exceed 9%. The glucose and yeast extract concentration and the stirrer speed have a great influence on the process. Changes in these parameters may increase biomass growth while decreasing the decolorization.

The current study was aimed to evaluate the industrial effl uents biodegradation potential of an indigenous microorganism which reduced water pollution caused by these effl uents. In the present study biodegradation of three textile industrial effl uents was performed with locally isolated brown rot fungi named Coniophora puteana IEBL-1. Response Surface Methodology (RSM) was employed under Box Bhenken Design (BBD) for the optimization of physical and nutritional parameters for maximum biodegradation. Quality of treated effl uents was checked by study of BOD, COD and analysis through HPLC. Three ligninolytic enzymes named lignin peroxidase, manganese peroxidase and laccase were also studied during the biodegradation process. The results showed that there was more than 85% biodegradation achieved for all three effl uents with decrease in Biological Oxygen Demand (BOD) and Chemical Oxygen Demand (COD) below the recommended values for industrial effl uent i.e. 80 mg/L for BOD and 220 mg/L for COD after optimization of nutritional parameters in the second stage. Analysis of samples through HPLC revealed the formation of less toxic diphenylamine, 3-methyldiphenylamine and N-methylaniline after treatment. The ligninolytic enzymes assays confi rmed the role of lignin peroxidase (LiP), manganese peroxidase (MnP) and laccase in biodegradation process. Lignin peroxidase with higher activity has more contribution in biodegradation of effl uents under study. It can be concluded through the results that Coniophora buteana IEBL-1 is a potential fungus for the treatment of industrial effluents.

The aim of the research was to determine the microbiological quality of atmospheric air in the Tuchów Sewage Treatment Plant, based on the presence of mesophilic bacteria, α- and β-hemolytic bacteria, actinomycetes and fungi. Bioaerosol measurements were made at four points (raw sewage inlet, aeration chamber, purifi ed sewage outlet and 150 m from the treatment plant, at the background point) in the period from January to December 2018. Bioaerosol samples were collected using Andersen’s 6-stage cascade impactor. The tested atmospheric air was characterized by a qualitatively and quantitatively diverse microfl ora. The highest amounts of all the studied groups of microorganisms were found at the raw sewage inlet, and in the case of actinomycetes, also twice in the place of biological purification. However, there were analyzes in which a higher concentration of microorganisms was observed outside the treatment plant at the control point constituting the background. This applies to bacteria and fungi. The largest source of emission of microorganisms to the atmosphere was the mechanical part of the sewage treatment plant (raw sewage inlet). The tested treatment plant may therefore contribute to the deterioration of the quality of the atmospheric air.