Abstract Construction and demolition waste (CDW) are commonly disposed of in unlined landfills or inappropriately at irregular sites. Civil construction materials may contain hazardous substances that, if solubilized or leached, can negatively impact the environment and human health. Understanding the leaching behavior of CDW is essential for assessing its environmental performance and ensuring its safe reintegration into the construction supply chain. This study aimed to investigate the impact of paint presence on the leachate contamination potential. The method involved the UNE-EN 12457-3 compliance leaching test and column percolation tests conducted under both saturated and unsaturated conditions, using columns filled with CDW, with and without paint. The samples, regardless of the presence of the paint layer, were classified as non-hazardous according to the criteria established by the European Council. The results indicate that the presence of paint mainly influenced the apparent color, turbidity, and concentrations of Na + and K + in the leachate. Although various heavy metals are used in paints, especially as pigments, the presence of paint in CDW did not significantly influence the release of these metals into the leachate. The CDW leachates, regardless of the presence of paint, exhibited potential for groundwater contamination due to elevated levels of sulphate and total dissolved solids. Notably, CDW also demonstrated the capacity to remove Zn and Fe and CDW without paint was found to reduce water turbidity.

Abstract Textile industries contribute significantly to the global economy; however, they pose a serious environmental threat due to the discharge of undesired dye runoff and intensely colored effluent. This study evaluates and compares various textile wastewater treatment strategies, including biological, physical, and integrated systems. Out of fourteen bacterial isolates, a newly isolated strain, Staphylococcus auricularis TWD11, and a bacterial consortium, TWDcon, exhibited the highest decolorization efficiencies. The optimized parameters yielded decolorization rates of 83.50 ± 0.51% and 68.02 ± 0.10%, respectively. When ionizing irradiation was applied, increasing the dosage from 4 to 20 kGy raised the decolorization rate from 43.91 ± 6.48 to 79.51 ± 0.01% via gamma irradiation, while electron beam irradiation enhanced the decolorization potential from 54.03 ± 1.04 to 93.09 ± 1.01%. In terms of efficiency, safety, reusability, and economic feasibility, complementary integrated systems were studied. In the suggested system, undiluted effluent was exposed to electron beam irradiation (4 kGy) during the primary stage, followed by a secondary biological treatment using optimized Staphylococcus auricularis TWD11, and finally passing through a tertiary treatment process in which wastewater traversed a low-cost multi-media filter. Integrated system treatment achieved decreases in chemical oxygen demand, biological oxygen demand, total suspended solids, total dissolved solids, and color by 96%, 93%, 97.80%, 81.70%, and 99.20%, respectively. Post-treatment, degradation metabolites were examined using ultraviolet–visible spectroscopy, fourier transform infrared spectroscopy, high-performance liquid chromatography, and toxicity assessment. Complementary integration systems provide a sustainable, efficient, and safe biotechnological solution for textile effluent remediation.

Abstract Polyethersulfone (PES) ultrafiltration (UF) membranes were modified with starch and varying concentrations of poly (methacrylic acid) (PMA) and integrated with a granular multimedia (GM) filtration system to evaluate their performance in slaughterhouse wastewater treatment for reuse. Increasing PMA loading (0.5–3 wt%) resulted in smoother, more hydrophilic membranes, with an average surface roughness decreasing from 363 to 66 nm and contact angle decreasing from 69.2 ± 3.6 to 63.4 ± 3.1˚. Although porosity (75.8 ± 6.5%–63.8 ± 4.7%) and water uptake (79.3 ± 1.2%–69.8 ± 3.2%) slightly declined, antifouling and reusability improved markedly, maintaining flux recovery ratios above 90% after 1 cycle and above 80% after 5 cycles. The addition of starch and PMA decreased the pure water flux (133.3–40.7 Lm −2 h −1 ) at 1 bar, and this correlated with a reduction in pore size from 0.021 ± 9.0 × 10 –4 to 0.012 ± 1.1 × 10 –5 µm. The GM pre-filtration achieved up to 95.9 ± 1.8% turbidity reduction, 23.6 ± 0.01% total organic content (TOC) reduction, and 80.9 ± 0.4% chemical oxygen demand (COD) reduction, significantly alleviating membrane fouling. The combined GM-UF system achieved removals of 99.6 ± 0.9% TOC, 91.8 ± 0.2% COD, and 100% turbidity, fats, oils, and greases, producing effluent compliant with South African non-potable water reuse standards. These findings demonstrate the synergistic benefits of starch and PMA incorporation in enhancing membrane antifouling performance and the overall efficiency of the hybrid GM-UF system for sustainable onsite slaughterhouse wastewater reuse.

Abstract Recently, blends and composites of biodegradable polymers have been developed to replace petroleum-based plastics. Polybutylene adipate terephthalate and polyhydroxybutyrate are polymers that have received much attention due to their interesting mechanical properties. Polyhydroxybutyrate is highly biodegradable. However, polybutylene adipate terephthalate is quite difficult to biodegrade under environmental conditions, and only a few microorganisms are known with this capability. In this work, two fungi isolated from soil were characterized regarding their ability to biodegrade polybutylene adipate terephthalate and polyhydroxybutyrate/polybutylene adipate terephthalate films. The polymers were the sole carbon and energy source. The biodegradation assays were performed in monoculture and coculture. Biodegradation was assessed in solid and liquid media. Clear zone formation was monitored during incubation in agar plates containing the polymers. Film weight loss was measured after incubations in a liquid salt medium. The consumption of oxygen was also monitored to confirm biodegradation. These fungi could efficiently biodegrade polyhydroxybutyrate/polybutylene adipate terephthalate films to similar extents. Remarkably, after 14 days of incubation, isolate 7 (assigned to Aspergillus pseudoflectus ) achieved 40.7% (wt) biodegradation and isolate 9 (assigned to Purpureocillium lilacinum ) 43.4% (wt). The coculture biodegraded 40.6% (wt). Polybutylene adipate terephthalate biodegradation was far more challenging, and in 287 days, isolates 9 and 7 achieved 41.2% and 30.2% respectively. This is the first study reporting the biodegradation of polyhydroxybutyrate/polybutylene adipate terephthalate films by aerobic mesophilic fungi. These fungi are promising candidates for the development of polybutylene adipate terephthalate biodegradation technologies and bioremediation strategies to clean up environmental plastic contamination.

Abstract The design of a micropollutant monitoring network in rivers is a challenging task because of the lack of environmental regulations, high laboratory analysis costs, and the limited availability of standardized analytical techniques, especially in Latin America. These constraints hinder the ability to make informed, data-driven decisions. In this study, we proposed a methodology that updates the micropollutant measurement process in rivers and incorporates a height variable to improve the precision of ecological threat index (hazard quotient) interpolations at unsampled sites using the cokriging method. The methodology is applied to a section of the Cauca River, the second most important river in Colombia. The sampling design is based on the stratification of sampling subsections, defined by geographic stratum similarity, enabling a more efficient placement of sampling stations at the macrolocation level. This approach not only improves the spatial representativeness of the data but also helps reduce measurement costs, an important aspect in regions with limited resources. In addition, the proposed methodology is dynamic and can be updated with new measurements, guaranteeing its sustainability over time and its applicability in surface water bodies (basins and rivers) with similar characteristics.