Domestic Refuse Research Articles

Waste napkin biochar with high-performance designed for antibiotic rapidly removal

In this work, domestic refuse waste napkin (WN) was used as raw material, modified by different dyes and prepared to N-doped biochars via carbonation and activation methods. The results showed that the addition of dyes not only optimized the physicochemical properties of biochars, but also greatly improved the adsorption performances. The specific surface areas of N-doped biochars (BWN-CR, BWN-CV, and BWN-MO) were increased by 5.95–26.6 % compared with that of undoped biochar (BWN, 2173.13 m2/g), similarly, the content of nitrogen atoms in the modified biochars increased by 0.50–2.03 times. In the adsorption experiments using tetracycline hydrochloride as adsorption model, the adsorption capacities of all N-doped biochars (938.71–1159.05 mg/g) were greater than that of most adsorbents including BWN (861.33 mg/g). After 10 cycles of use, both all of the biochars can still maintain more than 65 % of the performance, indicating their stable regeneration ability. This work not only prepared a series of biochars that can be used to efficiently remove antibiotics from water, but more importantly provided a new strategy for the high-value utilization of WN and further released the application potential of secondary resources.

Early-life diet does not affect preference for fish in herring gulls (Larus argentatus).

Urban populations of herring gulls (Larus argentatus) are increasing and causing human-wildlife conflict by exploiting anthropogenic resources. Gulls that breed in urban areas rely on varying amounts of terrestrial anthropogenic foods (e.g., domestic refuse, agricultural and commercial waste) to feed themselves. However, with the onset of hatching, many parent gulls switch to sourcing more marine than anthropogenic or terrestrial foods to provision their chicks. Although anthropogenic foods may meet chick calorific requirements for growth and development, some such foods (e.g., bread) may have lower levels of protein and other key nutrients compared to marine foods. However, whether this parental switch in chick diet is driven by chicks' preference for marine foods, or whether chicks' food preferences are shaped by the food types provisioned by their parents, remains untested. This study tests whether chick food preferences can be influenced by their provisioned diet by experimentally manipulating the ratio of time for which anthropogenic and marine foods were available (80:20 and vice versa) in the rearing diets of two treatment groups of rescued herring gull chicks. Each diet was randomly assigned to each of the 27 captive-reared chicks for the duration of the study. We tested chicks' individual food preferences throughout their development in captivity using food arrays with four food choices (fish, cat food, mussels and brown bread). Regardless of the dietary treatment group, we found that all chicks preferred fish and almost all refused to eat most of the bread offered. Our findings suggest that early-life diet, manipulated by the ratio of time the different foods were available, did not influence gull chicks' food preferences. Instead, chicks developed a strong and persistent preference for marine foods, which appears to match adult gulls' dietary switch to marine foods upon chick hatching and may reinforce the provisioning of marine foods during chick development. However, whether chicks in the wild would refuse provisioned foods, and to a sufficient extent to influence parental provisioning, requires further study. Longitudinal studies of urban animal populations that track wild individuals' food preferences and foraging specialisations throughout life are required to shed light on the development and use of anthropogenic resource exploitation.

When humans were the hunted: bone-tipped arrow points in Prehispanic Sierras of Córdoba, Argentina

ABSTRACT This paper presents the techno-typological study of seven bone projectile points closely associated with a burial assemblage excavated from El Alto 5 (~550 cal BP, Sierras of Córdoba, Argentina). The bone points provide a comparative model for interpreting the function of arrow points, primarily concerning how archaeologists can accurately differentiate the arrow tips used for warfare or hunting. Bone points have barbed shoulders to resist removal from the wound and serrated stems for secure hafting. They required shafts a few millimeters thicker than stone-tipped arrows for hafting, involving more kinetic energy to inflict severe injuries. Identifying a dark residue spattered over the blades opens the possibility that poison was applied to enhance the effectiveness of the shoot. The study is considered a starting point to build more accurate models to identify interpersonal violence during the Late Prehispanic Period, where most bone points occurred as domestic refuse of campsites.

A theoretical model for preventing marine litter behaviour: An empirical evidence from Singapore

Marine litter pollution has been an emerging environmental problem and arousing extensive attentions from both the academia and the public in recent years. The improperly disposed domestic refuse has been proven to be a major source of the marine litter, which can be effectively prevented through scientific waste management and citizens' daily pro-environmental behaviour. This study aims to investigates Singapore citizens’ intention of avoiding marine litter based on an extended theory of planned behaviour (TPB), incorporating the cognitive constructs as precursors and the irrational constructs as mediators. An online survey was performed targeting Singapore citizens to collect data, and 417 valid responses were analysed using structural equation modelling. The results reveal that environmental knowledge possess significant indirect effect to intention, and concern can act as a predictor of behaviour intention by influencing TPB constructs. Behaviour intention is most influenced by perceived behaviour control, while subjective norm has less constraining force. The irrational factors influence behaviour intention through both direct and indirect paths, habit exerts significant effect to behaviour patterns, while positive affection has greater effect size than negative affection. Previous research regarding marine litter preventing behaviour focus on tourists and consumers, while the survey object of this study is daily behaviour of citizens. The proposed theoretical model extends the traditional TPB by incorporating the cognitive and irrational factors, and offers deeper insights into the process of behaviour change. Besides, the findings also provide implications for government agencies in the field of marine litter control and waste management.

Plastic Debris in Nests of Two Water Bird Species Breeding on Inland Saline Lakes in a Mediterranean Biosphere Reserve.

Despite more studies being carried out to know the impacts associated with plastic debris and much effort being spent on marine ecosystems, the impacts of plastics on terrestrial and freshwater species remain largely unknown. Here, we explored the presence of anthropogenic materials in nests of two wader species, the gull-billed tern (Gelochelidon nilotica) and the black-winged stilt (Himantopus himantopus), breeding on the inland salt lakes in the "La Mancha Húmeda" Biosphere Reserve, Central Spain. We revealed the presence of anthropogenic debris, mainly macroplastics (>5 mm), in 2.4% and 12.5% of the sampled nests of the gull-billed tern and the black-winged stilt, respectively. The fragments found in nests ranged from 8 mm to 257 mm for the gull-billed tern and from 7 mm to 19 mm for the black-winged stilt. This debris showed no clear pattern of color or size and probably originated both in the agricultural activities in the surroundings and domestic refuse. Although we did not detect any pernicious impacts on adults or chicks (e.g., entangled, injured, or dead individuals), the presence of plastics and other human waste directly placed in nests located in a protected area should warn us about the ubiquity of these pollutants, and the endocrine and immunological effects, among others, that may reduce the recruitment of new animals to the population should be assessed.

Lifeways of Early Kantharodai, Sri Lanka

In the 1st millennium BCE Sri Lanka was central to the wide-spanning trading networks in the Western Indian Ocean region. Population agglomerations grew on the coast and further inland, where Anuradhapura emerged as the major central place. Parallel agglomerations formed in the south in Tissamaharama and in the north on Jaffna Peninsula in Kantharodai. The site of Kantharodai on the northern tip of Sri Lanka is the largest known early historic mound site on the Jaffna Peninsula, thought to represent the ancient centre of the region. The Early Historic occupation of Kantharodai began ca. 400-100 BCE. In our study we focus on the older historic occupation phase at Kantharodai, represented by a rich midden deposit of domestic refuse that offer insights into the environmental conditions faced by early occupants of the site and their modes of subsistence. We provide a glimpse into the subsistence strategies of the earliest settled population in Kantharodai who augmented a diet based on domesticated livestock through multiple wild species from forests, swamps, mangroves and marine habitats. Based on the faunal evidence from early Kantharodai, this complex socio-economic structure appears to have been in operation, confirming proposed models of mixed economies in operation in the Early Historic period of the region.

Impact of organic pollutants from urban slum informal settlements on sustainable development goals and river sediment quality, Nairobi, Kenya, Africa

The UN Sustainable Development Goals highlight the myriad of socio-economic and environmental challenges occurring as a result of anthropogenic chemical pollution. Urban sediments from informal settlements (slums) on the Nairobi, Ngong and Mathare Rivers (n = 25), were evaluated for sediment quality. Microtox bioassay identified 8 sites as toxic, 9 as moderately toxic and 8 as non-toxic. Slum sediments were characterised by high total organic carbon and Rock-Eval pyrolysis revealed bound carbon from a mix of raw sewage and domestic refuse. Sediments from Kiambio, Kibera, Mathare and Kawangware slums contained high coprostanol at 55–298 μg/g and epicoprostanol at 3.2–21.7 μg/g confirming appreciable incorporation of untreated human faeces. Hormones, antianalgeiscs, antiinflamatories, antiepileptics and antibiotics most affected Mathare > Kiambio > Kibera > Mukuru > Kawangware slums. Carbamazepine, ibuprofen, diclofenac and acetaminophen concentrations are amongst the highest reported in Kenyan river sediments and were positively correlated with faecal steroids (sewage). Common persistent organic pollutants, such as organochlorine insecticides ΣDDT 1–59 μg/kg, mean 21.2 μg/kg, Σ16PAH 182–2218 μg/kg, mean 822 μg/kg and Σ30 PCB 3.1–157.1 μg/kg, mean of 21.4 μg/kg were between probable effect likely and unlikely sediment quality guidelines (SQG). PAH source ratios and parent to alkyl-PAH distribution suggested vehicle exhaust, power stations (heavy oil), kerosene (cooking oil) and other pollution sources. Trace metal concentrations As, Cd, Cr, Hg and Ni were below SQG whereas Pb exceeded the SQG. This multi-contaminant characterisation of sediment quality in Nairobi supports the development and implementation of policies to improve urban infrastructure to protect ecological and human health. It demonstrates the need for environmental geochemists to engage in the science-policy interface associated with both global and national development frameworks, with particular reference to the Sustainable Development Goals, New Urban Agenda, and Kenya’s Vision 2030.

Classification of Domestic Refuse in Medical Institutions Based on Transfer Learning and Convolutional Neural Network

The problem of domestic refuse is becoming more and more serious with the use of all kinds of equipment in medical institutions. This matter arouses people’s attention. Traditional artificial waste classification is subjec... | Find, read and cite all the research you need on Tech Science Press

Agricultural and rural ecological environment management: renewable resources evaluation, management methods and management measures1 1Tianjin Science and Technology Development Strategic Research Plan Project (19ZLZDZF00120)

Among agricultural and rural pollution sources, rural domestic refuse, domestic sewage, crop straw and livestock manure are recyclable renewable resources, which can alleviate non-point source pollution in agricultural and rural areas, and also produce huge economic, environmental and social benefits. Taking Tianjin as an example, the production and comprehensive benefits of these four types of pollution sources are evaluated by building models. The results showed that in 2016, the production of domestic waste, domestic sewage, crop straw and livestock manure in Tianjin were 1.31 million tons, 38.9 million tons, 3.74 million tons and 1.53 million tons. Through comprehensive utilization, these pollution sources can produce a total economic benefit of about 2.36 billion yuan, which can reduce greenhouse gas emissions by 1.94 million tons. The total amount of N and P emissions from manure to soil can be reduced by 10.8 thousand tons. In order to improve the utilization rate of renewable resources and control non-point source pollution in agricultural and rural areas, this paper proposes to construct BMPs system, control the source and end of pollution sources from engineering and non-engineering measures. Finally, some suggestions are put forward to improve the ecological environment of agriculture and rural areas.

Produced The Compost by Recycling The Municipality Waste

Around 5000 tons of food waste are prooduced every day in Iraq, accounts for about (50%) of the waste that we get rid of .Waste sent to landfill for disposal may breakdown and produce methane gas that causes greenhouse effect ,as well as odour , epidemics , and disease because of the disintegration. The aims of the research are to produce organic fertilizer through the recycling of domestic refuse. It has been working through this research to collect the domestic food waste which represent the nitrogen source, as well as the remains of cleaning and trimming of various trees and the remains of lawn mowers, and use of sawdust white wood which represent the carbon source. Working on dried and arranged in layers of perforated plastic containers for the purpose of ventilation, it was moisturized with two different types of water and monitored fertilizer maturity for four months. Previously the fresh water was used for the purpose for moisturizing the mixture (tap water) later the domestic wastewater have been used. The comparison was made between the results of tests performed; the test has come up with the resalt that the use of "domestic wastewater" rich in living organisms and bacteria to hydrate the mixture is better than the use of "tap water". The felicitous fertilizer is rich with nutrient nitrogen 2.3%, phosphorus 13% and potassium 20% etc. There are a number of important factors affecting the process of production of fertilizer, including air ventilation, temperature, and moisture content in the mixture, which ranges from 40-60% to provide a suitable medium for microorganisms within the mixture. Where less than 40% lead to dry mixture and kill organisms.

STATUTORY UTILITY RIGHTS TO REALISE ACCESS TO SERVICES AS A CHARACTERISTIC OF ADEQUATE HOUSING

Government of the Republic of South Africa v Grootboom1 (‘Grootboom’) is a landmark judgment for the interpretation of the right of access to adequate housing in South Africa. In this case the Constitutional Court was confronted with the intolerable and exigent housing needs of Ms Irene Grootboom and her fellow respondents in the Wallacedene community. The community had no access to potable water and sanitation services, the municipality did not collect their domestic refuse, and very few of the informal structures had access to electricity.2 Many members of the community applied for access to low-cost subsidised housing from the Oostenberg Municipality and had been in the housing queue for almost seven years. Despite their actions they faced the prospect of enduring these intolerable conditions indefinitely. Since this prospect was unbearable, the respondents moved out of their waterlogged informal settlement onto a vacant, privately-owned property above the flood line where they erected their informal structures.

Heavy metal pollution and potential ecological risk in urban river sediment of Huai’an City, China

Sediment heavy metal pollutant monitoring was carried out at 16 monitoring points of three rivers and one lake in Huai’an city. The contamination degree of heavy metals was evaluated by geoaccumulation index. The potential ecological risk of heavy metals was assessed. The results showed that Hg and Cu geoaccumulation index class exceeded moderately polluted level, especially Hg, and two monitoring points reached highly polluted level. Hg pollution is at a high/extremely high potential ecological risk. Most of the other single-factor heavy metal indexes are at a low ecological risk level. The comprehensive ecological risk index of 6 monitoring points showed a high potential ecological risk. The Hg in urban rivers sediment of Huai’an may come from the deposition of long-term domestic sewage discharge or domestic refuse dump.

Foodways and community at the Late Mississippian site of Parchman Place

ABSTRACTCommunal eating events or feasts were important activities associated with the founding and maintenance of Mississippian communities in the southeastern United States. More often than not, however, archaeological deposits of food refuse are interpreted along a spectrum, with household-level consumption at one end and community-wide feasting at the other. Here, we draw attention to the important ways that domestic food practices contributed to social events and processes at the community level. We examine ceramic, botanical, and faunal assemblages from two fourteenth-century contexts at Parchman Place (22CO511), a Late Mississippi period site in the northern Yazoo Basin. For the earlier deposit, everyday ceramics and plant foods combined with high-utility deer portions and exotic birds suggest potluck-style feasting meant to bring people together in the context of establishing a community in place. We interpret the later deposit, with its pure ash matrix, focus on serving wares, and purposeful disposal of edible maize and animal remains, as the result of activities related to maize harvest ceremonialism. Both practices suggest that household contributions in general and disposal of domestic food refuse in particular are critical yet underappreciated venues for creating and maintaining community ties in the Mississippian Southeast.

Energy from domestic refuse by enzymatic degradation of cellulosic fibre waste into sugars and ethanol: initial laboratory studies

The search for commercially viable biogenic sources of transport fuel, such as ethanol, is nowa priority among developed countries. Sugar- and starch-containing crops currently supportmature industries producing ethanol by yeast fermentation. The potential of bulk plantmaterials (biomass crops, agricultural wastes and domestic refuse) is enormous, but suchligno-cellulosic compounds are difficult to degrade into simple sugar molecules. In the USAand Canada, commercial development programmes are under way to develop new enzymaticand fermentation technologies and to reduce process costs.We investigated the potential of processed waste material derived from domestic refuse as asource of simple sugars for conversion to ethanol. "Pure" cellulose was almost completelydegraded to reducing sugars by cellulase C0I3L, a mixed enzyme preparation, and byTrichoderma viride cellulase, whereas enzymes from other fungal species performed lesswell. T viride achieved less than I 0% (by weight) conversion of waste material to reducingsugars in 2 hour incubations, whereas C013L cellulase gave sugar yields of up to 35%.Extended incubation times gave little increase in yield. These results support the feedstockpotential of this material. Alternative techniques, such as pre-treatment with ferulic acidesterase to improve the effectiveness of degradation, are discussed.

국내 고형연료 관리의 문제점 및 개선 방향

국내 고형연료 관리의 문제점 및 개선 방향

Spatiotemporal Analysis of Carbon Emissions and Carbon Storage Using National Geography Census Data in Wuhan, China

Mapping changes in carbon emissions and carbon storage (CECS) with high precision at a small scale (urban street-block level) can improve governmental policy decisions with respect to the construction of low-carbon cities. In this study, a methodological framework for assessing the carbon budget and its spatiotemporal changes from 2015 to 2017 in Wuhan is proposed, which is able to monitor a large area. To estimate the carbon storage, a comprehensive coefficient model was adopted with carbon density factors and corresponding land cover types. Details regarding land cover were extracted from the Geographic National Census Data (GNCD), including forests, grasslands, croplands, and gardens. For the carbon emissions, an emission-factor model was first used and a spatialization operation was subsequently performed using the geographic location that was obtained from the GNCD. The carbon emissions that were identified in the study are from fossil-fuel consumption, industrial production processes, disposal of urban domestic refuse, and transportation. The final dynamic changes in the CECS, in addition to the net carbon emissions, were monitored and analyzed, yielding temporal and spatial maps with a high-precision at a small scale. The results showed that the carbon storage in Wuhan declined by 2.70% over the three years, whereas the carbon emissions initially increased by 0.2%, and subsequently decreased by 3.1% over this period. The trend in the net carbon emission changes was similar to that of the carbon emissions, demonstrating that the efficiency of carbon reduction was improved during this period. Precise spatiotemporal results at the street-block level can offer insights to governments that are engaged in urban carbon cycle decision making processes, improving their capacities to more effectively manage the spatial distribution of CECS.

Recycling of Food Waste to Produce the Plant Fertilizer

Around 5000 tons of food waste is produced every day in Iraq which accounts for about (50%) of the waste that we get rid of them. Waste sent to landfill for disposal may break down and produce methane gas that causes greenhouse effect, as well as cause odor, epidemics, and disease because of the disintegration. The research aims to produce organic fertilizer through the recycling of domestic refuse. It has been working through this research to collect the domestic refuse food which represent the nitrogen source, as well as the remains of cleaning and trimming of various trees and the remains of lawn mowers, and use of sawdust white wood which represent the carbon source. Have been working on dried and arranged in layers of perforated plastic containers for ventilation, it was moisturized with two different types of water and monitored fertilizer maturity for four months. Previously the fresh water was used for the purpose for moisturizing the mixture (chlorination water supply) later the domestic wastewater have been used. The comparison was made between the results of tests performed; the test has come up with the result that the use of "domestic wastewater" which it is rich in living organisms is the best and fastest in the process of manufacturing organic fertilizer than the use of "water supply", to contain the latter on the amount of chlorine of weakens the growth of microorganisms. And the use of dried plant waste, in the mixture as source of carbon was successful, and it gave the best organic fertilizer production results because these wastes are easy to decompose compare with sawdust wood. The felicitous fertilizer is it rich with nutrient such as nitrogen 2.3 %, phosphorus 13%, and potassium 20%, etc. There are some important factors affecting the process of production of fertilizer, including air ventilation, temperature, moisture content in the mixture. Carbon to nitrogen is a major factor, where each 20-30 part of the carbon should be taken into account for the decomposition of 1 part of the nitrogen to produce the compost properly, the high proportion of carbon about 30%, causes low-temperature mixture, and it leads to slow compost composition, and less than 20% leads to excess nitrogen, which lost in the air in the form of ammonia, and the higher pH value, could be toxic to some microorganisms.

Middle and Late Iron Age Occupation at Cadnam Farm, Alton, Hampshire

Three individual areas, totalling 0.55ha, were excavated at the Cadnam Farm site, following evaluation. Area 1 contained a D-shaped enclosure of Middle Iron Age date, associated with the remains of a roundhouse, and a ditched drove-way. Other features included refuse pits, a four-post structure and a small post-built structure of circular plan. Area 2 contained the superimposed foundation gullies of two Middle Iron Age roundhouses, adjacent to a probable third example. Area 3 contained a small number of Middle Iron Age pits, together with undated, post-built structures of probable Middle Iron Age date, including a roundhouse and four and six-post structures. Two large boundary ditches extended from the south-west corner of Area 3, and were interpreted as the funnelled entrance of a drove-way. These contained both domestic and industrial refuse of the late Iron Age date in their fills.

The end of the world, or just ‘goodbye to all that’? Contextualising the red deer heap from Links of Noltland, Westray, within late 3rd-millennium cal BC Orkney

As part of a major international research project, The Times of Their Lives, a programme of radiocarbon dating and Bayesian modelling was undertaken to refine the chronology of activities in one small but important part of the extensive Late Neolithic and Bronze Age settlement on Links of Noltland on the island of Westray, Orkney. The selected area (Trench D) is well known for having produced, next to a wall, the remains of a heap of at least 15 red deer carcasses, on top of which had been placed a large cod, a gannet’s wing along with part of a greater black-backed gull, and a pair of large antlers. This remarkable deposit had been preceded by, and was followed by, periods of cultivation and the deposition of domestic refuse. Refined date estimates have been produced, based on 18 radiocarbon determinations obtained from 16 samples from Trench D (including nine newly obtained dates, three from individual deer in the heap). These clarify when, during this long sequence of activities, the deer were heaped up: probably in the 22nd century cal BC, around the same time as Beaker pottery was deposited elsewhere on the Links. This allows comparison between the dated activities in this part of the site with activity elsewhere on the Links and also with other episodes of deer deposition in 3rd-millennium cal BC Orkney. It encourages exploration of the possible reasons for what appears to be a remarkable act of structured deposition. The significance of an earlier, much larger scale deposit featuring cattle remains at Ness of Brodgar is discussed in exploring the nature of Orcadian society and practices during the second half of the 3rd millennium cal BC.

The most common diet results in low reproduction in a generalist seabird.

Dietary specialization has been described across a wide range of taxa in the animal kingdom. Fitness consequences are, however, not well documented. We examined the reproductive consequences of different dietary specializations in the herring gull Larus argentatus, an omnivorous seabird, using an extensive dataset which includes breeding and dietary data of 10 successive years. We hypothesized that pairs that focused on prey of higher energetic value would yield higher fledging rates. An alternative hypothesis is that pairs that relied on more resources simultaneously would reproduce better. The novelty of this study is that we used continuous measurements representing dietary composition and degree of specialization rather than restricting our analysis to predefined categories. By relating these two continuous measurements for diet to several proxies for reproductive success, we show clear consequences of dietary choice. Most pairs concentrated on bivalves, a prey type not particularly rich in energy. Pairs feeding on energy‐rich prey (e.g., “domestic refuse and fishery discards”) during chick rearing were found to have a higher reproductive success, supporting the first hypothesis. Pairs that used more resources did not clearly have a higher reproductive success. The majority of the pairs did not switch to energy‐rich prey during chick rearing, despite low breeding outcome. We discuss how trade‐offs between factors such as resource availability, predictability, and the time and energy needed to obtain certain prey species may influence resource selection.