Water Holding Research Articles

Meta-recommendation of pork technological quality standards

Pork quality classification is supported by different reference standards that are widely reported in the literature. However, selecting the most suitable standard for each type of meat samples remains a challenge, due to their intrinsic variation according to the quality parameters’ interval. The usage of meta-learning was proposed to automatically recommend the most adequate standard for a determined sample collection, leading to a more accurate classification. The meta-learning procedure has emerged from the machine learning research field to solve the algorithm selection dilemma, outlining a new method for pork quality classification. The applicability and advantages of using a suitable classification standard for pork quality were addressed using the J48 Decision Tree (DT) algorithm, which serves as the meta-recommender. Experiments conducted with six pork standards revealed promising results based on a few meta-attributes ( L ∗, water hold capacity, and dataset entropy) as the approach successfully recommended all scenarios. • Meta-learning usage in pork quality evaluations. • L∗, WHC and dataset entropy were the most important meta-features. • We provide a comprehensive identification of porks standards. • Understanding of causes of higher incidence in poor meat quality categories.

Amino Acids, Solubility, Bulk Density and Water Holding Capacity of Novel Freeze-Dried Cow’s Skimmed Milk Fermented with Potential Probiotic Lactobacillus plantarum Bu-Eg5 and Lactobacillus rhamnosus Bu-Eg6

Lactobacillus plantarum Bu-Eg5 and Lactobacillus rhamnosus Bu-Eg6 showed a potential probiotic role in vivo and in vitro in a preliminary unpublished work. This study demonstrated that Lactobacillus plantarum Bu-Eg5 and Lactobacillus rhamnosus Bu-Eg6 mediated modifications of the physicochemical properties of fermented skimmed cow’s milk. Skim milk was inoculated with 1% (w/v) of Lactobacillus plantarum Bu-Eg5 (T 1 ), 1% (w/v) of Lactobacillus rhamnosus Bu-Eg6 (T 2 ) and 1% (w/v) of 1:1 Lactobacillus plantarum Bu-Eg5 and Lactobacillus rhamnosus Bu-Eg6 (T 3 ). After that, fresh skimmed milk control (C), T 1 , T 2 , and T 3 were freeze-dried (Zirbus Technology model: VaCo 5-D, S/N: COM98754, Germany). The resulting freeze-dried fresh and fermented milks powders were evaluated for their solubility index, bulk density and water holding capacity (WHC). The amino acids compositions of the freeze-dried treatments were analyzed using High Performance Amino Acid Analyzer (Biochrom 30). The microbiological quality of freeze-dried fresh and fermented milks powders was measured by enumerating lactic acid bacteria, yeast & mould and coliform bacteria. The total protein content of fresh freeze-dried skimmed milk (38.69%) was higher than that of fermented freeze-dried skimmed milk powders. The bulk density was 16.67 g/mL for all treatments. The solubility of fresh freeze-dried skimmed milk was the highest (100%), followed by the other treatments (78.95%). The WHC of fresh freeze-dried skimmed milks (11.16%) was lower than the other samples. The highest total essential amino acids were observed in fresh freeze-dried skimmed milk sample (17.26%) followed by the freeze-dried skimmed milk fermented with Lactobacillus plantarum Bu-Eg5 (16.22%) while the lowest recorded in the freeze-dried skimmed milk sample fermented with 1:1 Lactobacillus plantarum Bu-Eg5 and Lactobacillus rhamnosus Bu-Eg6 (12.87%), there was a very low bacterial count in the control treatment (1.09 log CFU/ml). Yeast & mould and coliforms were not detected in all samples.

Benchmarking Indigenous water holdings in the Murray-Darling Basin: a crucial step towards developing water rights targets for Australia

ABSTRACT Australia’s ability to address Indigenous claims for water rights and to advance both national Indigenous and water policy is hampered by a lack of information on Indigenous water entitlements and the communities that hold them. This paper contributes to the policy agenda of increasing Indigenous water rights by developing a method that quantifies and enables spatially explicit comparison of Indigenous-held water within and across Murray-Darling Basin jurisdictions. We construct baselines for (i) Indigenous population (ii) Indigenous holdings of surface water entitlements, and (iii) Indigenous holdings of groundwater entitlements across water management units in the Basin. We estimate that Indigenous surface water holdings constitute no more than 0.17% of the equivalent permitted take across the entire Basin. Groundwater entitlements held by Indigenous entities constitute 0.02% of all available groundwater. The approximate market value of these water entitlements is A$19.2 million in 2015–16 terms, which equates to 0.12% of the total $16.5 billion market value. In contrast, 5.3% of the Murray-Darling Basin population is Indigenous, a proportion that is rapidly increasing. The production of estimates of this type, and Indigenous control of the data needed to generate them, are first steps in a reparations process that can contribute towards Indigenous water justice.

EFEK PENAMBAHAN EKSTRAK RUMPUT LAUT Eucheuma Cottonii PADA PEMBUATAN ES BATU TERHADAP KEMUNDURAN MUTU KERANG LOKAN (Geloina erosa) DAN KERANG DARAH (Anadara granosa)

Phylum molusca is a group of animals that are soft-bodied and have no spine (invertebrates). One of the phylum molusca is a class of Bivalvia that is generally in the form of lateral symmetry, a type of bivalvia that is often found in the water of Riau Islands is Lokan shells (Geloina erosa) and Darah shells (Anadara granosa) that live in tidal areas. The purpose of this study is to find out if the addition of water ice cubes resulting from the extraction of seaweed Echeuma Cottonii is effective for lokan shells and blood shells. Based on the results of the study obtained for the meat rendment of each shell is 85.39% in lokan shells and 84.27% in darah shells. Organoleptic results showed a more effective treatment of shellfish treatment with the addition of regular ice cubes, Water Holding Capacity (WHC) for the treatment of water ice cube extract binding or absorbing more water than regular ice cube treatment. The second pH of shellfish from three treatments had a value below 7, the lowest acidic pH obtained treatment with seaweed ice cubes.

Influence of Natural and Artificial Soil Conditioners on Water Holding Capacity and Hydraulic Conductivity of Sandy Soils

Influence of Natural and Artificial Soil Conditioners on Water Holding Capacity and Hydraulic Conductivity of Sandy Soils

PENGARUH PENGGUNAAN SARI BUAH PEPAYA MUDA TERHADAP KEEMPUKAN, pH, DAN DAYA IKAT AIR DAGING ITIK PETELUR AFKIR

This research was aimed to determine the effect of unripe papaya extract on tenderness, pH value, and water holding capacity (WHC) of laying duck meat. This research was conducted in January 2020 in Laboratory of Animal Production of Animal Husbandary Department and in Laboratory of Agricultural Technology, Faculty of Agriculture, Lampung University. The materials of this research were 20 pieces of laying duck thigh meat. The research used Completely Randomized Design (CRD) with 4 treatments and 5 reaplications, i.e. duck thigh meat marination with 0% of unripe papaya extract (P0), with 10% of unripe papaya extract (P1), with 20% of unripe papaya extract (P2), and with 30% of unripe papaya extract (P3). The observed variables were tenderness, pH value, and WHC of laying duck meat. The obtained data was analyzed by using variance analysis at 5% level of significance, and if the results had significant effect, then were tested further using Least Significant Difference (LSD) test. The result of variance analysis indicated that marination of laying duck meat with different percentage of unripe papaya extract affected on tenderness (P<0,05), but it did not affect on pH value and WHC of laying duck meat.
 Keywords: Laying duck meat, pH value, Tenderness, Unripe papaya extract, Water Holding Capacity (WHC)

Characterization of Bacterial Cellulose Produced by Acetobacter xylinum Strain LKN6 Using Sago Liquid Waste as Nutrient Source.

<b>Background and Objective:</b> Bacterial Cellulose (BC) is an exopolysaccharide produced by bacteria with unique structural and mechanical properties and is highly pure compared to plant cellulose. This study aimed to produce novel bacterial cellulose using sago liquid waste substrate and evaluate its characteristics as a potential bioplastic.<b>Materials and Methods:</b> Production of BC by static batch fermentation was studied in sago liquid waste substrate usingAcetobacter xylinumLKN6. The BC structure was analyzed by Scanning Electron Microscopy (SEM) and Fourier Transform infrared spectroscopy (FT-IR). Mechanical properties were measured include tensile strength, elongation at break, elasticity (Young's modulus) and Water Holding Capacity (WHC). <b>Results:</b> The BC yield from sago liquid waste as a nutrients source was achieved 12.37 g L<sup>1</sup> and the highest BC yield 14.52 g L<sup>1</sup> in sago liquid waste medium with a sugar concentration of 10% (w/v) after 14 days fermentation period. The existence of bacterial cellulose is proven by FT-IR spectroscopy analysis based on the appearance of absorbance peaks, which are C-C bonding, C-O bonding, C-OH bonding and C-O-C bonding and represents the fingerprints of pure cellulose. The mechanical properties of BC from sago liquid waste were showed a tensile strength of 44.2-87.3 MPa, elongation at break of 4.8-5.8%, Young's Modulus of 0.86-1.64 GPa and water holding capacity of 85.9-98.6 g g<sup>1</sup>. <b>Conclusion:</b> The results suggest that sago liquid waste has great potential to use as a nutrient source in the production of bacterial cellulose and BC's prospect as the bioplastic.

Molecular, functional and nutritional properties of chickpea (Cicer arietinum L.) protein isolates prepared by modified solubilization methods

Amongst different pulses, chickpea is a cost-effective legume in managing protein malnutrition and achieving food security. Chickpea is rich in protein and body building essential amino acids. Chickpea protein isolates from both desi (K850) and kabuli (P1108) cultivars, were prepared from defatted whole seed flour by sodium hydroxide (K1, P1), after removal of polyphenol (K2, P2) and solubilisation by sodium sulphite (K3, P3). The solubilised protein was isoelectrically precipitated (pH-4.3) by HCl and then freeze-dried after washing with water. Amino acid profiling and SDS-PAGE of K1 and P1 were also performed. Proximate data show that, protein content was highest in P1108 isolates (P3) prepared by sodium sulphite (98.65%) and Water Holding Capacity was also high in P3 (395.54%). Oil Holding capacity was highest in P2 (445.62%) prepared after polyphenol removal. Effect of pH, NaCl concentration and temperature influenced solubility, emulsion activity index (EAI), emulsion stability (ES), foaming capacity (FC) and foaming stability (FS). Protein isolates had better functional properties than flour. Solubility was highest at pH 11 in P1 isolate (79.29%) and for 1% NaCl concentration the solubility in P2 was 30.06% and 77.5% at 50 °C. Both EAI and ES were highest at pH 11. Not much difference was observed in EAI at 0.1% and 1.0% NaCl concentration. FC and FS were high at pH 11 and pH 5, respectively. Kabuli isolates formed gel at 10% concentration, whereas K1 and K2 at 16%. Isolate structure was micrographed by SEM. Kabuli protein isolates had better nutritional and functional properties.

Modification of coffee coproducts by-products by dynamic high pressure, acetylation and hydrolysis by cellulase: A potential functional and sustainable food ingredient

Coffee coproducts (CCP) are significant sources of dietary fiber (DF) and phenolic compounds. Dynamic high-pressure (DHP), acetylation (ACT) and enzymatic hydrolysis with cellulase (ENZ) were investigated as methods to change the technological properties of CCP. The impact of the methods on DF structure and phenolic antioxidants was also assessed. DHP, ACT and ENZ have improved the Water Holding Capacity, Swelling Power and Oil Holding Capacity of CCP by up to 1.50, 1.80 and 1.90 times, respectively. DHP caused the most severe effect in disrupting the DF of the CCP, reducing the particle size. Total and Insoluble DF of CCP (0.63 and 0.58 g/g CCP, respectively) decreased significantly after ACT and ENZ. DHP only caused a minor impact on chlorogenic acid of CCP, leading to a smaller reduction in the antioxidant capacity as compared to that of ACT and ENZ. A potential functional and sustainable food ingredient from CCP with improved technological properties and partial maintenance of its antioxidant status was obtained.

Sensory attributes and meat quality of broiler chickens fed with mealworm (Tenebrio molitor).

The influence of mealworm (MW) as a dietary protein source on the quality and sensory characteristics of the broiler meat was evaluated. 400day-old male broilers were randomly distributed into 4 groups using a completely randomized design. Each group was replicated 5 times with 20 birds per replicate. Dietary feeds were included 4 levels of MW (0, 1, 2, and 3%) and fed from 1 to 24days of age. Chickens took a normal diet (without MW) from 25 to 42days of age. On days 24 and 42, four birds from each replicate were slaughtered and eviscerated. Sensory attributes were carried out on raw carcass and cooked breast meat using a quantitative descriptive analysis method. Proximate analysis, Water Holding Capacity (WHC), pH, Total Volatile Base Nitrogen (TVB-N), and texture analysis were also done on chicken breast meat. On day 24, significant differences were observed between control and birds fed with MW in terms of fat, ash, pH, TVB-N, WHC, and lightness of carcass. The highest TVB-N (35.50ml/100gN), and the lowest WHC (71.60%) were observed in bird received 3% MW. The control had better sensory attributes than those fed with MW in terms of skin color, meat color, abdominal cavity odor, and texture. On day 42, no significant difference was observed in sensory attributes of carcass and chicken meat except for juiciness. Dietary inclusion of MW up to 3% may be appropriate and sensory attributes and meat quality of broilers may adversely be influenced in higher levels.

Prevalence Of Different Types Of Oral Habits Among School-Children Aged 6-12 Years In Alexandria (A Survey Study)

Objective: The purpose of this study is to identify the prevalence of parafunctional oral habits among schoolchildren aged 6 to 12 years in Alexandria, Egypt. Materials and methods: A total of 255 Egyptian children, consisting of 158 males and 94 females were randomly examined. The examination included 1-Tongue thrusting: masseteric palpation 2-Thumb sucking: finger examination and intra-oral examination. 3-Mouth breathing: a. medical history. b. Mirror test (fog test) c. Jwemen’s Butterfly test. d. Water Holding Test (Masslers test). 4-Nail biting: fingers, nails examination and intraoral examination. Questionnaires were handed out to the parents to obtain information about the child’s gender, age, medical and dental history and any noticeable oral habits and collected a week later. Data was collected, sorted and registered. The subjects were assigned to different groups according to the habit. Percentile distribution of the subjects was calculated for different habit and their relation to each other, Categorical variables were analyzed using the chi-square test and Student t-test. Significance of the obtained results was judged at the 5% level (P ≤ 0.05). Results: the majority of subjects shows with 41.07% of the subjects had nail biting followed by tongue thrust with 29.4% then mouth breathing with 15.9% and the least prevalent oral habit was thumb sucking with 14.73%. 32.1% of the subjects had no habits at all and 67.9% had at least one habit. conclusion: Nail biting was the most dominant oral habit and the least common was thumb sucking, no patients were found practicing more than 3 habits.

Correlation between Chemical Composition, Water Holding Capacity and Flavonoids Content of Maize Verities Harvested at Buxedeni Village of KwaNongoma in KwaZulu Natal, South Africa

Maize is the most important grain crop in South Africa, especially in the rural places of KwaZulu Natal. Protein, starch, fat, minerals, fibre, and flavonoids content was determined, together with water holding capacity in four different maize varieties obtained from rural village of KwaNongoma (KwaZulu Natal Province). Red maize variety had higher macro nutrients than other verities however, all varieties showed low micro nutrients. The soaking time and soaking temperature showed to have an effect on water holding capacity of maize varieties. Red maize variety had higher capacity in all soaking temperatures which increased as the temperature increases with 1.69% at 25°C, 8.79% at 35°C and 11.89% at 45°C. Red and yellow variety showed phenolic content of more than 100 mg 100g-1. This study showed that all maize varieties yielded high nutritional value and flavonoid contents which makes maize produced from rural village of KwaNongoma suitable for human consumption.

How nitrification-related N2O is associated with soil ammonia oxidizers in two contrasting soils in China?

As a key process contributing to N2O emissions, nitrification is regulated by soil microbes and mainly affected by soil pH, NH3 availability, temperature and O2 availability. Current knowledge gaps include how nitrification-related N2O is associated with soil microbes in different pH soils. In the current study, a microcosm incubation experiment was conducted with two contrasting soils of different pH (5.08, 8.30) under controlled conditions. The soils were amended with ammonium sulphate ((NH4)2SO4, 50 mg N kg−1) combined with or without nitrification inhibitors and incubated under 20 °C, 65% water hold capacity (WHC) for three weeks. N2O fluxes, mineral nitrogen (N) concentrations and ammonia oxidizers populations were measured during the incubation to investigate the correlations of nitrification-related N2O with ammonia oxidizers. The nitrification inhibitor 3,4-dimethylpyrazole phosphate (DMPP) was used to inhibit nitrification albeit to various inhibition effects with different soils. Acetylene (0.1% v/v C2H2), an inhibitor of AOA and AOB ammonia monooxygenase (AMO), was used to distinguish N2O emissions by nitrifiers and denitrifiers. 1-octyne (5 μM aqueous), a selective specific AOB inhibitor, was used to assess the relative contributions of AOA and AOB to N2O emissions. The results showed that N2O yield for AOA and AOB varied with soil pH. AOB was the key microbial player in alkaline soil, contributing about 85% of nitrification-related N2O. Conversely, about 78% of nitrification-related N2O was contributed by AOA in acidic soil. Furthermore, there was a significant and positive relationship between mineral N (NO2−, NO3−), AOA and AOB populations and nitrification-related N2O in alkaline soil. However, in acidic soil, NO3− concentration and AOA had significantly positive relationships with nitrification-related N2O. To conclude, soil pH was a key factor affecting the contribution of ammonia oxidizers to nitrification-related N2O emissions. AOA-related N2O production dominated at low pH (5.08), while AOB-related N2O was favored in alkaline soil (pH 8.3).

Relationship between gel properties and water holding of ovalbumin-carboxymethylcellulose electrostatic complex hydrogels

The relationship between the water holding (WH) and gel properties of protein-based hydrogels is important for designing and regulating the texture and sensory properties of foods. Herein, the relation among WH and heat-set gel properties of ovalbumin (OVA)-carboxymethylcellulose (CMC) electrostatic complexes was explored. The results showed that the gels exhibited homogeneous and dense structure and good WH compared with pure OVA at pH 4.6, while Young's modulus decreased significantly (P < 0.05). This was closely related to the inhibition of the electrostatic interaction on the formation of large protein aggregates during heat treatment (90 °C, 30 min). Specially, the CMC1.2 (the degree of substitution was 1.2) with higher charge density showed stronger interference than CMC0.7 (the degree of substitution was 0.7) for the gel network structure and properties. Moreover, the addition of salt ions could enhance the gel strength. Meanwhile, the coarseness and microstructure pore size were also increased with enhancing of ionic strength, resulting in a significant decrease in the WH. The effective permeability coefficient (k1) and water flux coefficient (k2) of gels have a significant positive correlation with their network pore size, indicated that the regulation of WH of hydrogel mainly depended on controlling the pore size of its microstructure.

Sensory and Physicochemical Characteristics of Manyung (Arius thalassinus) Kekian High Fiber with the Addition of Eucheuma cottonii Seaweed

Kekian is a processed product from fish meat added with seasoning, fillers and binders then formed and wrapped with tofu skin. Kekian has a low dietary fiber so that the addition of seaweed porridge can be used to increase the content of dietary fiber in kekian. The purpose of this study was to determine the effect of adding different seaweed porridge (Eucheuma cottonii) to characteristics of manyung (Arius thalassinus) kekian and determine the best seaweed porridge to the best kekian fish characteristics. The research method used was experimental laboratories using a completely randomized design of one factor is concentration of the addition of porridge (0%, 20%, 30% and 40%) with 3 replications. Sensory value data were analyzed by the Kruskal-Wallis test, while tests of dietary fiber, air content, protein content, water holding capacity and gel strength were analyzed using ANOVA. The results showed that the difference in the addition of seaweed porridge had a significant effect (P &lt;0.05) on sensory values, dietary fiber, water content, protein content, water holding capacity and gel strength. Manyung kekian with the addition of E. cottonii porridge 20% is the best product with quality criteria: sensory of 7.61 &lt;µ &lt;7.86, dietary fiber of 6.03%, water content of 69.31%, protein content by 11.49%, Water Holding Capacity by 39.69% and gel strength by 773.82 kgf.

Proximate Composition and Meat Quality of Three Indian Native Chicken Breeds

Background: The present study was conducted at Livestock farm complex, TANUVAS, Chennai (India) with the objective of comparing the proximate composition and meat characters of three desi chicken breeds viz., Kadaknath, Nicobari Black and Naked Neck chicken. Methods: For this purpose, 60 adult birds (20 each) were maintained on littered floor in separate pens under optimal management conditions. The birds were fed with ad libitum balanced broiler ration and slaughtered after 8 weeks by randomly selecting 6 birds from each breed. Result: Laboratory analysis revealed that there was no significant difference (p&gt;0.05) in the proximate composition of meats among the three native chicken breeds. The total ash content and calcium level was found to be higher in Nicobari Black chicken meat than other breeds and Naked Neck chicken showed the highest value of unsaturated fatty acid. There was significant difference (p less than 0.01) in the physical characters like pH, Water Holding Capacity (WHC), Shear Force Value (SFV), Extract Release Volume (ERV), Thiobarbituric Acid (TBA), Tyrosine Value (TV) texture profile analysis and hunter colour value among the three native breeds. These factors will help us to choose the right native desi breed for development of designer and value added meat products.

Direct contact ultrasound assisted freezing of chicken breast samples

Nowadays, rapid freezing is sought to favor the formation of small ice crystals. Several studies have shown that the application of ultrasounds (US) accelerates the processes of energy and mass transfer when they are applied through immersion systems. However, there are hardly any studies on its application in direct systems without the use of a liquid medium for its transmission. Therefore, the objective of this work was to evaluate the potential of the application of US for improving the freezing process of chicken breast samples. First, the application of intermittent US treatments at different net sonication times of 7, 17, 37, 50 and 67% during the freezing of distilled water samples in a conventional freezer was evaluated. It was observed that net sonication times of 37, 50 and 67% reduced the phase change period by 30.0, 21.4, 27.0%, respectively. The effective freezing time was also reduced by 12.4 and 12.8% by applying net sonication times of 37 and 50%. Considering these results, an intermittent US treatment with a net sonication time of 37% was chosen for chicken breast freezing in an air-forced cooling tunnel at ambient temperatures from −13 to −22 °C. The length of all the freezing phases was reduced upon application of US, leading to an overall process time reduction of approx. 11%. On the other hand, no significant differences were found either in the Water Holding Capacity (WHC) or Cooking Loss (CL) values between control and US assisted frozen chicken breast samples. Furthermore, in vitro experiments showed that US-assisted freezing did not influence protein digestibility of chicken meat samples.This study demonstrates the potential of the application of US by direct contact to favor energy transfer processes during freezing of water and chicken breasts samples. However, its effect on the quality of the frozen products should be further studied.

Prediction of maximum scaled feed intake in broiler chickens based on physical properties of bulky feeds

ABSTRACT 1. A trial was conducted to investigate the capacity of broiler chickens to consume bulky feeds during three stages of growth. These phases were from 1 to 15 d, 16 to 30 d and from 31 to 45 d. 2. A basal feed was serially diluted (0%, 2.5%, 5.0%, 10% or 15%) with one of five diluents (cellulose fibre, sawdust, rice husk, sand or vermiculite) to produce 25 feeds which were supplied on an ad libitum basis to the birds in each phase. Cobb 500® strain chicks were used, and, within each phase, each feed was given to nine individually-caged birds, 225 in total, distributed in a completely randomised design. 3. Intake increased initially, and then declined, as the proportion of each diluent increased. The consumption of feeds that limited intake were directly proportional to metabolic body weight and so a scaled feed intake, expressed as g/BW0.67 per day, was calculated. There were large effects of feed type on intake, in the short term, with consumption of a bulky feed leading to higher intakes. 4. It was concluded the Water Holding Capacity (WHC) content of the feeds could be appropriate measurement of ‘bulk’ responsible for limiting intake and could be used to predict maximum feed intake capacities of broiler chickens fed bulky diets.

Trends in Aboriginal water ownership in New South Wales, Australia: The continuities between colonial and neoliberal forms of dispossession

There is significant interest in global trends in Indigenous land titling but relatively less attention given to Indigenous water tenure despite significant reform of water governance regimes in many regions of the world. This paper considers the intertwined and complex history of Aboriginal land and water tenure in the Australian State of New South Wales, within the Murray-Darling Basin. Its temporal scope encompasses the initial dispossession effected by colonization and settler water development; the re-appropriation of land and water under social justice restoration schemes from the 1970s; and the past decade in which the small water holdings in the possession of some Aboriginal organizations have significantly diminished. The paper shows that proprietary rights to land and water acquired through the colonial period strongly conditioned rights of access to water during subsequent eras, particularly when Australian governments separated land and water titles and capped water use to create the world’s biggest water market. Using empirical water entitlement data, we profile the composition, spatial distribution and value of Aboriginal water holdings in the NSW portion of the Murray-Darling Basin. We show that while Aboriginal people in this area constitute nearly 10 % of the total population, their organizations hold only 0.2 % of the available surface water. We identify changes in Aboriginal water holdings between 2009 and 2018 that are indicative of a new wave of dispossession. Almost one fifth of Aboriginal water holdings by volume were lost over 2009−18 (at least 17.2 % in standardized terms). We discuss the factors that render Aboriginal water-holders vulnerable to the loss of valuable water rights and those factors that constrain the ability of all Aboriginal people to fully enjoy the benefits of water access, including water market participation. Additionally, we identify critical omissions in Australian water rights reform and offer recommendations for redress that are of wider international relevance.

Forced Aerated Poultry Compost Effects on Soil Physicochemical Properties and Lettuce Plant Growth

In previous studies, the stability and maturity of forced aerated composts were examined from the physicochemical analysis inside the reactors. The objective of this study is to check the maturity and effects of forced aerated composts after its addition to soil and plants. The composts were prepared from fresh chicken manure and sawdust in cylindrical reactors and aerated at 0.75, 0.50, and 0.25 L min−1 kg−1 organic matter (OM) for 1 month. Afterward, it was mixed with soil and coded as treatment T1 (0.75 L min−1 kg−1 OM aeration rate + soil), T2 (0.50 L min−1 kg−1 OM aeration rate + soil), T3 (0.25 L min−1 kg−1 OM aeration rate + soil), and CS (only soil), respectively. The soil properties (pH, electrical conductivity (EC), organic matter content (OM), loss of organic matter content, bulk density (BD), water holding(WH)) and plant growth (shoot length (cm), leaves’ area (cm2), fresh and dry weight (g)) were checked for 4 months. The results showed a significant increase (at P < 0.05) in soil properties in T1, T2, and T3 as compared with CS. Among treatments T1, T2, and T3, the maximum pH (7.20 ± 0.07), OM degradation (77.06%), loss of organic matter (6.32 ± 0.42%), and WH (32.17 ± 0.32%) were observed in T3. Additionally, the lowest EC (1.15 ± 0.02 mS/cm) and BD (1.06 ± 0.02%) were observed in T3. Further a significant increased difference (at P < 0.05) in shoot length (21.40 ± 1.01 cm), leaves’ area (293.20 ± 16.33 cm2), fresh weight (88.22 ± 7.30 g), and dry weight (12.10 ± 0.91 g) of the plant were observed in T3. The poultry manure compost’s aerated rate (0.25 L min−1 kg−1 OM) in T3 was observed to be more mature and stable as compared with T1 and T2.