bluuebunny/crossref_metadata_2025 huggingface dataset:
Ambient CO Levels during Winter and Summer Agricultural Burning	Seasons of Northern India
Authors: Sahai Shivraj , Sharma C. , Singh S.K. , Gupta Prabhat K.
Published: November 2024

Field burning of crop residues (FBCR) has significant environmental costs in terms of concerning emissions and natural resource loss. Such burning is increasingly common in the developing world regions like India, and the ambient levels of carbon monoxide (CO), a criteria-pollutant, during such burning seasons has not been studied as yet by any research or pollution monitoring agencies in the region. In this instance, in-situ field studies were conducted in the northern Indo-Gangetic plains to study the ambient CO levels during the rice and wheat crop (the major crop residues subject to FBCR in the region) residue burning seasons. The ambient CO levels were observed to be 1.90±0.69 ppmv and 1.35±0.53 ppmv during the rice residue burning season at Pantnagar and Ludhiana respectively. During the wheat residue burning seasons, it was observed to be 0.41±0.23 ppmv at Pantnagar and 0.69±0.22 ppmv at Patiala and Ludhiana (combined). The ambient CO levels remained near the National Ambient Air Quality Standard during the study period and also crossed it several times. It was further observed that the levels were higher in case of rice residue burning season as compared to that of wheat. The long residence time of CO and the increasing FBCR practice may aggravate the problem in future.
Elemental and Spectroscopic Analysis of Organic Matter	Transformation during Forced Aeration of In-Vessel Composting
Authors: Kanchanabhan T.E. , Mohaideen J. Abbas , Kumar Ganesh , Sairam B. , Lavanya
Published: November 2024

This work examines the spectral, elemental and SEM images of compost from different blends obtained from food waste. Four composting bins, each of 100 L capacity, were installed with holes at various depths for probes and leachate collection system. The bins (length 50 cm, width 40 cm, height 50 cm) were placed horizontally with a slight inclination to permit the collection of leachate. The blends were prepared from food waste, cow dung and saw dust as bulking agent. The evaluation studies included the operational indices such as temperature, pH, moisture content, compost maturity indices like carbon, nitrogen, C/N ratio, sulphur, Fourier Transform Infra-Red (FTIR) analysis and Scanning Electron Microscope (SEM) images. SEM images revealed a reduction in the easily assimilated peptide and carbohydrate components. The germination index for tomato seed was above 60% after dark room studies, showing that the final compost was not phytotoxic.
A Novel Eco-friendly Biomaterial Ficus religiosa Leaf Powder	(FRLP) for the Removal of Ni (II) Ion from Water Bodies
Authors: Goyal Pritee , Piara Soami , Srivastava Shalini
Published: November 2024

The study explores the efficacy of Ficus religiosa leaf powder (FRLP) as an effective adsorbent for the abatement of Nickel (73.89%) from water bodies. Morphological changes observed in the scanning electron micrograph of treated biomass confirmed the phenomenon of biosorption and data of metal ion fitted well in Langmuir isotherm model indicating monolayer sorption. Fourier Transform Infra Red (FTIR) spectrometry analysis indicated that amino acid-metal interaction appears to be responsible for the metal binding. Desorption studies showed that the ease of metal ion recovery from metal-loaded biomass by the different eluents is of the order Nitric acid (0.05M) > Citric acid (0.5 M) > Sodium hydroxide (0.05M) > distilled water. The sorption capacity of regenerated biomass remained almost constant up to three cycles of sorption process. The successful application of this easily abundant agricultural waste FRLP, as a biosorbent has potential for a low technological pretreatment step, prior to economically non-viable high-tech chemical treatments for the removal of Ni (II) from water bodies.
Agricultural Intensification in South Asia and Its Contribution to	Greenhouse Gas Emission: A Review
Authors: Raut Nani , Sitaula Bishal Kumar , Bajracharya Roshan Man
Published: November 2024

This paper reviewed the agricultural intensification in South Asian region. The indications of intensification in terms of intensive use of chemical fertilizers (urea) and introduction of agro equipments like tractor were reviewed. From 1961 to 2005, Sri Lanka was in the top position to intensify agriculture. There has been a feedback loop between agricultural intensification and climate change. The observed positive outcome of agricultural intensification are mainly improved livelihood and secure food whereas enhanced emissions of greenhouse gases due to addition of nitrogen fertilizers (N inputs) was examined as one of the negative outcomes. Agricultural soil has been adding up major green house gases like methane (CH $_4$ ) and nitrous oxide (N $_2$ O) to the atmosphere through tillage, fertilizer application and irrigation. From the review, N $_2$ O emission from total arable land (in '000 ha) were analysed and estimated. The N $_2$ O emission rate was found to be highest in Bangladesh and Sri Lanka (3 kg of N $_2$ O-N ha $^{-1}$ ) followed by India and Pakistan (2 kg of N $_2$ O-N ha $^{-1}$ ), assuming that crop intensification will demand urea application in all arable land in future.
The Impacts of Land-use/cover Change on Loktak Lake Water Quality	in North-Eastern Region, India
Authors: Rai S.C. , Raleng Adon
Published: November 2024

The present study was designed to understand the long-term impacts of land-use/cover change on hydrology and nutrient dynamics of Loktak Lake in Manipur. The major land-use/cover changes are the expansion of built-up land, open forest land, aqua ponds/water bodies and wetland. There was increase in built-up land by 0.80%, open forest by 9.39% and water bodies by 1.31%. The surface inflow from rivers/streams accounts 52% of the total inflow into the lake. The annual average sediment input into the lake was estimated as 650,000 metric tonnes. The nutrient (DO, free CO $_2$ , chloride, TDS, BOD and phosphate phosphorous, etc.) levels of the lake varied between seasons and sites. High intensity of fertilizer usage in the agricultural fields and practice of fish farming contribute significantly to water quality deterioration in the lake. The highly polluted rivers (Nambul and Nambol) also finally discharge pollutants in the lake. Today, Loktak Lake has been placed on the informal list of threatened Ramsar sites of the world. Only a concerted effort on the part of official agencies, professionals, NGOs and the local communities to comprehend the complexities of this delicately balanced, biologically rich wetland ecosystem, and take appropriate action, can save Loktak Lake from demise.
Study on Arsenic Uptaking Capacity of Water Hyacinth
Authors: Islam M.A. , Rahman M.S. , Islam S. , Zakaria A.N.M. , Islam K.M.R.
Published: November 2024

Water hyacinths are free-floating aqueous weeds which can accumulate metals. They have fibrous roots and obtain all of their nutrients from the water. Determination of arsenic uptaking capacity of water hyacinth in arsenic-contaminated water is the main objective of the study. Total of 1350 grams wet water hyacinths were taken from adaptation tank which was collected from the Lake of Shahjalal University of Science and Technology (SUST) campus and were maintained in 27 L tap water supplemented with 0.4, 0.5, 0.6, 0.8, 1.0 and 1.5 mg/L of As in three glass tanks and the test durations were 0, 6, 12, 24, 36, 48 and 72 hours. Samples were collected from three glass tanks and arsenic remained in the solution was measured by Silver Di-ethyl Di-thyo Carbamate (SDDC) method. It was found that the remaining concentration reached below the permissible limit 0.05 mg/L (Bangladesh drinking water quality standard) on or before 48 hours for initial concentration 0.4, 0.5 and 0.6 mg/L of As. But for higher initial concentration (0.8, 1.0 and 1.5 mg/L) the remaining concentration started to increase after 48 hours. So the gross effective floating period for water hyacinth is 48 hours up to initial concentration 0.6 mg/L.
Artificial Neural Network Model to Forecast the Concentration of	Pollutants Over Delhi: Skill Assessment of Learning Rules
Authors: Chaudhuri Sutapa , Acharya Rajashree
Published: November 2024

Air pollution has been reported to persuade climate as well as health significantly and is a matter of concern. The scientific endeavour should thus, be to develop forecast or warning system to predict the concentration of pollutants with considerable accuracy so that the calamities associated with pollution can be minimized, if not eradicated. The purpose of the study is to develop an Artificial Neural Network (ANN) model with different learning rules to predict the concentration of pollutants over Delhi (28° 38'N, 77° 12'E), India for the year 2009. Two types of learning rules are implemented in this study to forecast the concentration of different pollutants. The result reveals that the forecast accuracy of a particular pollutant depends on the type of the learning rule of the ANN model. The result of the study further reveals that the non-linear perceptron is better for forecasting the concentration of sulphur dioxide (SO $_2$ ), carbon monoxide (CO), suspended particulate matter (SPM) and ozone (O $_3$ ) whereas delta learning is better for forecasting nitrogen dioxide (NO $_2$ ). The percentage errors in forecast with different learning rules of the ANN model are compared for all the pollutants. The result shows that the concentration of SO $_2$ can be predicted over Delhi with maximum accuracy using nonlinear perceptron.
Increasing Pollution Level in River Yamuna¡ªA Challenge	to Sustainable Development of an Urban Centre, Delhi, India
Authors: Firdaus Ghuncha , Ahmad Ateeque
Published: November 2024

Water quality degradation is a serious and rapidly growing problem in expanding cities of India where unprecedented and unplanned urbanization accompanied by rapid industrial development are the major causal factors. Delhi, the capital city of India, is facing the problem of water pollution since the last few decades. In the present study different physico-chemical and biological parameters (i.e. COD, BOD, DO, TKN, AMM, WT, TC and FC) of water are analysed to assess the changing quality of water over the period of twelve years (1995–2006) and to evaluate the impact of Yamuna Action Plans on water quality. With the help of time series analysis method changing trend of pollutants is estimated, and value for the future is also calculated. The primary data collected are from 1896 households to examine the relationship between outdoor and indoor pollution levels. The analysis reveals that despite the implementation of Yamuna Action Plan I and II, the pollutants are well above the standard limit set by Central Pollution Control Board (CPCB). For the mitigation and management of this problem in the sustainable urban development perspectives certain relevant measures are also suggested.
Assessing Probabilistic Rainfall Scenario over the Vidarbha	Region, India for Proper Risk Evaluation and Management of Water Resources
Authors: Sarkar Jayanta
Published: November 2024

In a tropical country like India, instability in agricultural production stems from vagaries of rainfall. A complete and quantitative understanding of spatial and temporal variation of this resource is, therefore, required to increase and stabilize food production. The use of average seasonal or monthly rainfall does not seem to be appropriate for planning purposes as it does not cover the risk factor. A detailed probability analysis can bring out the amount of rainfall expected at different probability levels which in turn can give the number of years of adequate, deficient and excess rainfall.

Keeping in mind the above aspects, the present paper studies probabilistic rainfall scenario over the Vidarbha region which, despite having tremendous agricultural potential, could not develop to its full potential.

The study reveals that dynamic influence (mainly lows and depressions moving over the area) is the main cause of rainfall over Vidarbha. Accumulated Assured Rainfall (AAR) analysis, by fitting incomplete Gamma Distribution Model at different probability levels, indicates that it is maximum in the eastern part of Bhandara and northern part of Gadchiroli districts while it is minimum over western Vidarbha covering northern parts of Buldhana, Akola and adjoining Amravati districts. Weekly assured rainfall analysis reveals that in seventy per cent of the years, the eastern most districts of the region get at least 25 mm of rainfall per week continuously for 13 weeks during mid – June to first half of September. Based on AAR analysis at 70% probability level the entire study region has been divided into five homogeneous rainfall zones (namely A, B, C, D and E). The region to the west of 79°E (A, B, and C zones) receives lower rainfall compared to that to the east of 79°E (D and E zones). This could be attributed to the fact that Vidarbha mainly gets rainfall from lows/depressions formed over Bay of Bengal and move in a westerly/ northwesterly direction and sheds much of its rainwater over the eastern D and E zones, while A, B and C zones get rainfall when these systems pass their heyday. In each of these zones the amount of peak rainfall and when the peak is received has also been found out. This type of rainfall information at different probability levels could serve as basic input of planning for agriculture, land use, drainage requirements and water resources development. Coupled with soil information these will help deciding crop types that could be raised to increase and stabilize production.
Evaluation of Groundwater Quality Index in Greater Visakhapatnam	Municipal Corporation, Andhra Pradesh using GIS and Laboratory Methods
Authors: Latha P. Swarna , Rao K. Nageswara
Published: November 2024

An integrated approach of geographical information system (GIS), global positioning system (GPS) and water quality index (WQI) studies has been effectively used for identifying the spatial distribution for quality of groundwater zones in Greater Visakhapatnam Municipal Corporation (GVMC), a coastal city of Andhra Pradesh state. Physico-chemical analysis was carried out for various selected parameters such as pH, alkalinity, electrical conductivity (EC), total hardness (TH), calcium hardness (CaH), sodium (Na), potassium (K), chlorides (Cl), sulphates (SO $_4$ ), fluorides (F) and indirectly estimated parameters like total dissolved solids (TDS), magnesium hardness (MgH), carbonates plus bicarbonates (CO $_3$ +HCO $_3$ ) by adopting standard methods and compared with the Bureau of Indian Standards (BIS). The analytical results revealed that most of the groundwater was found to be in polluted category. The GIS analysis of spatial distribution map of the overall water quality index revealed that only nine percent of groundwater during pre-monsoon and around sixteen percent in post-monsoon is suitable for drinking purpose.
Leaching Behaviour of Elements from High Sulphur Fly Ash
Authors: Md. Equeenuddin Sk. , Kumar Santosh , Dutta Shantanu Kumar
Published: November 2024

Environmental degradation due to leaching of elements from fly ash is of great concern. Leaching result of Cu, Fe, Mn, Pb and Zn from the high sulphur fly ash collected from captive power plant of Nagaon Paper Mill, Assam is reported. The pH of the leachate is weakly alkaline in nature, ranging from 7.39 to 7.90. Fly ash contains very high concentration of elements in comparison with Gondwana counterpart. However, mobilization of elements from the Nagaon fly ash is very less, and is possibly due to the presence of high unburnt carbon.
Upgradation of Sewage Treatment Facility of Pune and	Pimpri-Chinchwad City: A Step Towards Sustainable Development
Authors: Tirthakar S.N. , Vinaykumar C.H.
Published: November 2024

About 80 percent of the water supplied to consumers in Indian cities gets converted into sewage. The metros, major cities and towns together generate about 20,000 million litres of wastewater (sewage) per day. About 50 to 70 percent of the pollution load of rivers and streams is from domestic sewage. Sources of fresh water are getting exhausted and development of new water resources is cost intensive and time consuming. Since water stored in dams and lakes is the main source of water for urban population, it is to be conserved, collected after its use and treated before it is discharged into the nearby water bodies. Sustainable development is necessity of the present world for every industry. Wastewater treatment industry is not an exceptional for this; in fact it is primary need for conservation of natural water sources. To prevent the degradation and to maintain the quality of water in the rivers, the sewage generated from cities is to be treated before its disposal into the nearby river. The treated sewage can be used for secondary purposes like gardening, agriculture, industrial reuse and recreational fields. The paper discusses the integrated approach in decentralised planning, designing and execution of new sewage treatment plants of Pune and Pimpri-Chinchwad Municipal Corporation for sewage treatment and disposal.
Knowledge and Perception of Water Quality Models
Authors: Mallesh T.V. , Prakash S.M. , Kumar L. Prasanna
Published: November 2024

Water quality models are tools for simulating the movement of precipitation and pollutant from the surface through pipe and channel networks, storage, treatment units and finally to receiving waters (Brown and Barnwell, 1987). In the present study, an attempt is made to know the level of knowledge and perception on water quality models by potential users. In this context 113 potential users were selected to measure their ability to understand the fundamentals of water quality modeling. The association between knowledge and perception of the potential users with variables such as age, level of education and experience were determined by chi square test and it was found that results are highly associated with knowledge and perception.
Water, Sanitation and Poverty Linkages in Pakistan
Authors: Hakro Ahmed Nawaz
Published: November 2024

Theoretically, water supply, sanitation and poverty are intertwined. This intertwined link is governed by various socio-economic, political and cultural factors. In Pakistan, this interlink is very strong. This paper is designed to assess the extent of this link and to evaluate various options of interventions and their effectiveness. Data analysis suggests that the sector suffers from poor attributes of access, quality, coverage and expenditure constraints. Sector's review indicates that approaches, strategies and priorities suffer from a number of problems. Results imply that water and sanitation approaches are less likely to work well or very effective. At least the approaches are not sustainable in the long run till the situation of the poor people will not be changed. Improvement could only be possible where the services are targeted efficiently with better access with low cost technologies coupled with improved pro-poor financial mechanisms. This can be achieved by extending the services to the income poor and water and sanitation poor and by extending the services in rural areas such as schools where the lack of facilities are visible.
Melting Away of Himalayan Glaciers and Resulting Water Shortages in India and Pakistan
Authors: Sharan Anand M.
Published: November 2024

This paper deals with an important phenomenon taking place these days – melting of polar ice caps and glaciers on various mountains around the globe. This phenomenon has already affected the population in India and Pakistan due to the drying up of rivers. This is an indication for those living in South East Asia, and Far East that without the rivers to irrigate fields, there would be major food crisis. In addition, it would result in mass migration of people due to the shortage of water.

This paper, at first, provides evidences of drying up processes of rivers Indus in Pakistan and Ganga in India – to show that the adverse effect of the global warming is already there in India and Pakistan, and this fact was completely missed out at the Copenhagen Conference in December 2009.

Next, the paper shows that, without the glaciers on the Himalayas, vast areas in India and Pakistan would turn into deserts because in these areas the climate would change drastically due to lack of vegetation and influx of solar energy.
Assessment of Noise Levels in Various Residential, Commercial and	Industrial Places in and around Belpahar and Brajrajnagar, Orissa, India
Authors: Mohapatra Haraprasad , Goswami Shreerup
Published: November 2024

Noise assessment is carried out in various residential, commercial and industrial places in and around Belpahar and Brajarajnagar of Ib River coalfield. The average noise intensities at various residential places range from 57.10 to 63.25 dB during day time (6 am-10 pm) and from 46.77 to 56.22 dB during night (10 pm-6 am). It clearly demonstrates that the noise levels are in close proximity or beyond the permissible limit. Though the average noise intensities at various commercial and industrial places are within the permissible limit, the Lmax noise values are more than the permissible limit. Analysis of variance is also computed for different residential, commercial and industrial places to infer the level of significance.
Assessment of Water Pollution in an Industrial Area by Using	Multi-Variant Analysis – A Case Study from Bollaram Area, Hyderabad,	India
Authors: Ishrath
Published: November 2024

A number of chemical and pharmaceutical industries have been established since past three decades. Effluents from these industries are being directly discharged into surrounding land, irrigation fields and surface water bodies thereby contaminating the groundwater table.

Application of different multivariate statistical approaches is used to interpret the relationship between the specific process that control the quality of water in surface and ground water in Bollaram industrial town near Hyderabad (India). Thirteen parameters have been monitored on thirty eight sampling points from a survey conducted in surface and ground water. This data was analysed using statistical analysis (CA). Sr, Ba, Co, Ni and Cr were associated and controlled by mixed origin with similar contribution from anthropogenic and geogenic sources whereas Fe, Mn, As, Pb, Zn, B and Co were derived from anthropogenic activities. Statistical analysis showed good results rendering the three different groups for surface water and two groups for ground water of similarity between the sampling sites reflecting the different water quality parameters of the study area. This correlation identified with the processes of salinity, alkalinity and pollution which are considered as lithologically and non-lithologically controlled factors.
Quality Assessment of Soils in Thiruvananthapuram District, South	India Using Nematodes as Bio-indicators
Authors: Lakshmy K.S. , Jaya D.S. , Mohandas C.
Published: November 2024

Nematodes represent a very abundant group of soil organisms in the food web and are important for soil quality. They are both taxonomically and functionally diverse, respond quickly to soil perturbation and have much potential as indicators of soil health. In the present study, the impact of contaminants on soil health has been addressed through the measurement of nematode abundance. Different categories of land use areas in the rural and urban sites of Thiruvananthapuram District receiving different types of contaminants were selected for this study after conducting a reconnaissance survey of the study area. Control areas which are in a benign environment were also identified in both rural and urban areas of Thiruvananthapuram District. Soil samples were collected from the selected stations in pre-monsoon, monsoon and post-monsoon seasons during the period April 2009 to January 2010 from the selected stations, and the physico-chemical characteristics, heavy metal content and nematode abundance were determined. The results showed that the soils of market area having the highest amount of decaying matter were rich in nematode density. The reason for this may be due to the fact that saprophytic nematodes can flourish well in that environment. It was also noted that the nematodes were scarce in the soils of gasoline station area contaminated with hazardous wastes and chemicals which will unfavourably affect the nematode population. The nematode abundance in the soils of the study stations are in the order: market area > sewage disposal area > agricultural area > benign environment > industrial area > road-side area > gasoline station area > coastal area. Nematodes were abundant in areas where the heavy metal concentrations were low, thus indicating a negative correlation.
Investigation of Some Geochemical Characteristics and the Effect	of Long-term Pumping on Groundwater Constituent Levels of Aquifers Underlie	Communities of Eastern Area of the Blue Nile River of Sudan
Authors: Abdellah Abdel-Monem M. , Abdel-Magid Hago M. , Yahia Nadia A.
Published: November 2024

Previous data of 209 construction routine chemical analyses (CRCA) of boreholes were used to investigate the distribution of aquifer's static water levels (SWLs), productivity (P) and groundwater type (GWT), beside the effect of long-term pumping on groundwater constituent levels. A total of 32 of these boreholes were reanalyzed by the current study (CS) to investigate the effect of long-term pumping on groundwater constituents' levels. Result indicated that the low SWLs (0.0-25 m) were found in the southern part of the study area nearby the Blue Nile River (BNR). High SWLs (50-87 m) were found in central of the northern part of the study area while moderate SWLs (25-50 m) were found to dominate the rest of the study area. High P (50-115 m $^3$ /h) was found in a small area at the southern part close to the BNR while low P (<25 m $^3$ /h) was dominant in the northern part of the study area. Groundwater type has been dramatically shifted to HCO $_3^-$ water-type while the other groundwater constituents levels were found to be fluctuated up-and-down, during pumping time, in a harmony type pattern governed by the so-called "natural physicochemical equilibrium in groundwater".
Appraisal of Stability Indices for Forecasting Severe	Thunderstorms over Kolkata Using Weighted Tree-graph Analysis
Authors: Chaudhuri Sutapa , Middey Anirban
Published: November 2024

In the present study the stability indices that are relevant and useful for convective development are taken to assess the significance in forecasting severe thunderstorms over Kolkata (22° 34'N, 88° 22'E). A tree-graph is constructed using the stability indices and the record of severe thunderstorm as vertices. Weights of the edges of different indices are attributed according to two forecast skills. Probability of Detection (POD) and False Alarm Rate (FAR). Two tree-graphs are thus constructed. The most significant and relevant stability indices are obtained using the sub-graph matching analysis. The results reveal that among all the stability indices the lifted index (LI) and the convective inhibition energy (CIN) with the estimated ranges are the most significant stability indices for forecasting severe thunderstorm over Kolkata whereas dew point temperature (Td), convective available potential energy (CAPE) and bulk Richardson number (BRN) are important for indicating the convective development over the region but the occurrence of severe thunderstorms are not assured by these three indices with the estimated ranges.
Isolation of Salmonella Typhimurium and Detection of Virulence	Contributing Genes from Water of River Ganges
Authors: Saxena M.K. , Singh Rubi , Yadav Achana , Kiran Shashi , Saxena Anjani , Lakhchura B.D.
Published: November 2024

River Ganges is one of the most important rivers of India. This important and sacred river is becoming contaminated day by day. In the present study, 500 water samples were collected from river Ganges and screened for presence of Salmonella by PCR. Out of 500 samples, 44 were found to be positive for Salmonella and Salmonella enterica serovar Typhimurium was the most common serovar isolated from 24 samples. These isolates were screened for presence of stn, inv A and pef A genes which are mainly responsible for virulence of Salmonella. In 21 isolates stn gene was present, while inv A and pef A genes were present in 22 and 18 isolates respectively. In 15 isolates, all three virulent genes were present. The present study indicates that these isolates may be virulent and being a serious cause of health problems both in animals and humans.
Analysis of the Wetland Degradation around the Vicinity of Dhaka	City in Bangladesh
Authors: Khusrul Amin A.K.M. , Haque M. Aminul , Alamgir Mohammad
Published: November 2024

Degradation of wetland creates adverse impact on natural environment, ecosystem and on drainage congestion. The situation is more alarming in case of urban areas especially Dhaka and its adjacent areas. The objectives of the study are to determine the status of wetland reduction around Dhaka city in terms of extent of area and causes responsible for degradation. Satellite images of 1967, 1977, 1989, 1999, 2009 and 2010 have been used for preparing permanent wetland maps while satellite images of 1996 and 2009 have been used for preparing seasonal wetland status. Analysis showed that extends of permanent wetlands have been reduced in all the study areas during 1996-2009. Wetland degradation was found to be worse in eastern Dhaka followed by western Dhaka and Dhaka-Narayanganj-Demra (DND) areas. In case of Seasonal Wetlands, western Dhaka showed almost twotime more degradation than that of eastern Dhaka in case of areal extension, when the same period of 1996-2009 is considered. Extensive increase of population and commercially productive use of land within the city are mainly responsible for this degradation. Demand driven urban growth that has profound adverse effects on the water resources and the wetland system in Dhaka have caused adverse impacts on the drainage systems. Unplanned urbanization has hampered the natural state of drainage, and hence caused sudden inundation and water-logging. Another major reason for seasonal wetland degradation is loss of the connectivity of floodplains within the study area.
Distribution of Fluoride in the Environment of Balasore District, Odisha, India
Authors: Kar B.B. , Patra B.B. , Das Mohapatra P.
Published: November 2024

Fluoride pollution in the Balasore district of Odisha has become a challenging issue before the scientists and administrators as well. The problem is wide-spread in most of the areas of the district and fluorosis has been revealed in most of areas where people are using fluoride-contaminated drinking water. The in situ fluoridization of water has caused contamination in static water quality, ground water, soil, water hyacinth, grass and drumstick plants as well. A detailed investigation has revealed that fluoride content varies in the range of 0.6 ppm to 400 ppm.
Assessment of Relative Hazard Potential of Popular e-Waste	Categories during Landfilling
Authors: Ahluwalia, Poonam , Setia Ashima , Nema Arvind K.
Published: November 2024

Electronic waste (e-waste) has become the fastest growing component in solid waste stream. Lack of data regarding characterisation of these e-waste categories and their hazard potential poses further challenge for setting up or planning of proper recycling and disposal facilities for them. The present study aims to assess relative hazard potential of popular e-waste categories such as laptop computers, mobile phones, radio sets, electronic calculators and electronic toys, which form a substantial amount of total e-waste. Samples of these e-waste categories were collected, dismantled and leached to specifically identify various plastic and metal fractions from each category. Leachates (by simulating conditions of landfilling) were prepared under different pH conditions and analysed for contents of hazardous metals. The current study could provide a basis for modelling different intervention options and predicting their effects. The findings could be utilised to support efforts to arouse and enhance public awareness regarding environmental protection by publicity and education to guide consumer preferences to support products that are manufactured with and ultimately generate little hazardous or solid waste.
A Comparative Study on Decolourization of Industrial Dyes and Real	Textile Wastewater by White Rot and Non-white Rot Fungi
Authors: Shah Mitali K. , Darshan T. Dharajiya , Bajpai Bhakti
Published: November 2024

Synthetic dyes are extensively used in several industries including textile, paper, printing, cosmetic and pharmaceutical. Dyes are released in effluent from a wide variety of industries such as textile, tannery, packed food, pulp and paper, paint and electroplating thus threatening various forms of life. Non-white rot fungi Aspergillus flavus A6, Aspergillus fumigatus A23, Aspergillus terreus A2 and white rot fungus Phanerochaete chrysosporium were used to decolourize individual dyes, simulated textile effluent (STE) and real textile wastewater (RTW). Fungi could effectively decolourize STE and RTW under optimized conditions of medium (minimal salt medium and potato dextrose agar medium), temperature (40°C for A. flavus A6 and 30°C for P. chrysosporium), pH (4.0 for A. flavus A6 and 5.0 for P. chrysosporium) and agitation (100 rpm for A. flavus A6 and P. chrysosporium). The decolourization of STE by A. flavus A6 and P. chrysosporium was 73 and 62% respectively while the decolourization of RTW by A. flavus A6 and P. chrysosporium was 76 and 68% respectively after 7 d incubation. The mechanism of dye removal by the fungus appeared to be mainly by adsorption and absorption and the biotransformation occurred only after absorption of the dye. Analysis of samples before and after treatment with fungus using TLC indicated the biotransformation of dye.
The Impact of Vegetation and Peat Fire Emissions in Indonesia on	Air Pollution and Global Climate
Authors: Langmann Bärbel
Published: November 2024

Fire is used in Indonesia as a tool to clear tropical forest and to convert peat land for agricultural purposes. This use of fi re has considerably increased in recent decades. Increased fi re activity is also strongly connected with the decrease of precipitation during El Niño years when the usually moist peat swamps in Indonesia suffer from extreme drought and are thus very susceptible to fi res. The emissions from such peat fi res greatly exceed those produced by surface vegetation fi res and generate smoke haze episodes downwind in Southeast Asia. Furthermore, the concentrations of climatically relevant trace species in the atmosphere are considerably enhanced by emissions from Indonesian peat fi res. The motivation of this paper is to provide an overview of vegetation and peat fi res in Indonesia in recent years and to present the local, regional and global implications of the associated emissions.
Lead and Cadmiun Concentrations in the Catfi sh Pangasius	Polyuranodon (Bleeker 1852) from the Siak River, Riau Province, Indonesia
Authors: Husnah  , Grote B. , Kaban Siswanta
Published: November 2024

During the last decades, increasing development of industries, urban communities and agriculture near aquatic ecosystems lead to pollution, especially in the developing countries of Southeast Asia. Due to trace metal pollution through increasing development and human activities near aquatic ecosystems, there is a growing risk of toxic metal exposure to fi sh and through their consumption also to humans. Therefore, the investigation of the chemical quality of fi sh for consumption, particularly the concentrations of toxic metals, is important for human health. We investigated the trace metal concentrations of lead (Pb) and cadmium (Cd) in different tissues of the catfi sh Pangasius polyuranodon from fi ve areas of the Siak River in order to evaluate the potential for human health hazards resulting from fi sh consumption. Mean concentrations of Pb and Cd in gills (0.14 and 0.22, respectively), livers (0.11 and 0.18, respectively) and muscles (0.14 and 0.15, respectively) of P. polyuranodon were below national and international standards. Pb levels in gills and muscles were close to the national food standard at one sampling site and Cd concentrations in the gills were found to be at the national food standard at the same site. Only at one site, Cd concentration in the liver slightly exceeded the national, but not the international food standard. The overall results indicate that the edibles parts of P. polyuranodon in the Siak are only slightly contaminated by Pb and Cd and do not represent a risk for human consumption in regard to the two investigated trace metals. However, the special biogeochemistry of the blackwater river Siak might enhance bioaccumulation of toxic metals and more research is needed in regard to other toxic metals, seasonal availability of these metals, other consumed fi sh species, as well as fi sh age or size dependent accumulation of toxic metals.
Groundwater Arsenic in South-East Asia: Extent, Effects and Solutions
Authors: Sharma Prabhakar , Goel Gaurav , Ashekuzzaman S.M. , Saini Gaurav , Singh Ranvir
Published: November 2024

Groundwater is a clean source of drinking water. However, the presence of elevated concentrations of inorganic arsenic in groundwater, particularly in the regions of Bangladesh and the eastern part of India, is a cause for concern. Most people residing in this geographic location have no alternative but to drink arsenic contaminated groundwater, which has arsenic concentrations above the permissible limit (0.01 mg/L). As a result, approximately 123 million people in India and Bangladesh face higher risk of cancer, as well as risk other cardiovascular and neurologic diseases. Many techniques for getting rid of arsenic from drinking water are available. In this paper, we focus on the region of eastern India and Bangladesh to examine the extent of arsenic contamination and its toxic effects on humans, explore the sources of arsenic in this geography, and compare and contrast the technologies of arsenic removal.
Operation of Brick Kilns in Bangladesh – A Comparative	Study
Authors: Tehzeeb A.H. , Bhuiyan Muhammed A.
Published: November 2024

This paper presents an investigation on current use of brick kiln technologies in Bangladesh. There are around five thousand established and numerous make-shift brickfields of various capacities all over the country. Most of the kilns in Bangladesh are fixed chimney (FCK) type, which are somewhat old technology and sources of pounding pollutions. Recently the Department of Environment (DoE) of the Bangladesh Government has directed brickfield owners to switch to comparatively better environment friendly technologies like Zigzag, Hybrid Hoffman (HHK) and Vertical Shaft (VSK) kilns. Most of brickfield owners are not familiar with these kilns and thus reluctant to make over due to lack of industrial knowledge and financial support. However few companies have implemented these technologies on pilot-scale and are yet to demonstrate their full financial viability. As such, broad range technical information along with financial analysis of these technologies is presented here.

A set of recommendations are prepared in relation to these technologies suited to their investment opportunity, land accessibility, energy and raw-material supply, labour availability and other requirements. Amongst the three technologies, HHK is the most suitable one for large-scale production whereas FCK if modified and converted into Zigzag kiln will be relatively fuel efficient and less polluting. On the other hand VSK, which are comparatively smaller in capacity, can be made popular in rural Bangladesh. The payback periods of these three kilns are 3.14, 3.27 and 2.62 years respectively, whereas CO $_2$ emission potentials are 22.20, 15.86 and 28.54 tCO $_2$ e, respectively compared to 38.06 tCO $_2$ e for FCK.
Promoting Higher Order Thinking Skills in Undergraduates: Conceptualizing Challenge-Based Learning Through Personal Learning Environments Platform
Authors: Zhang Huanhuan , Xu Xiaoshu , Zhang Yunfeng , Sun Ye
Published: November 2024

This research aims to enhance higher-order thinking Skills (HOTS) in undergraduates by exploring the integration of Challenge-Based Learning (CBL) and Personal Learning Environments (PLEs). Through a thorough review of existing literature, the study develops a comprehensive platform that combines the practical, real-world problem-solving nature of CBL with the customizable, digital features of PLEs. The platform is meticulously designed to support CBL within the framework of PLE, offering a wide array of resources, collaborative workspaces for peer interaction, real-time analytics for ongoing assessment, and a continuous cycle of reflection and feedback. The paper highlights the potential of this integration to significantly improve analytical and critical thinking skills among learners. While grounded in theoretical research, the study identifies a new area for future empirical research and practical application, advocating for further exploration to fully harness the potential of this innovative educational approach.
Collaborative Task Allocation Problem in Laboratory Equipment Maintenance in Universities
Authors: Hu Huiying , Abdullah @ Dolah Natrah , Ahmad Nor Diana
Published: November 2024

Given the increasing demand for laboratory equipment management in universities, especially the increasingly complex equipment management, the traditional equipment management system can no longer meet the management needs of universities. Therefore, it is very important to optimize the university’s equipment management system. The allocation of laboratory equipment maintenance tasks in the laboratory equipment management system of universities is a very critical link. Its effective solution is crucial to ensure the normal operation of laboratory equipment and the reasonable allocation of maintenance resources. This study proposes a double coding adaptive genetic algorithm to optimize the allocation of laboratory equipment maintenance tasks in universities to achieve the optimal allocation of resources and minimize maintenance costs. The work allocation scheme is iteratively optimized by a dual-coding strategy and definition of adaptive crossover and mutation operators. The experimental results of this study show that the algorithm can find the approximate optimal task allocation scheme within a reasonable time, which improves the efficiency and accuracy of laboratory equipment maintenance. In addition, compared with the traditional allocation method, the algorithm in this paper shows stronger flexibility and robustness when dealing with large-scale complex problems.
Antimatter Networks for Combating the Dying ReLU Problem
Authors: Chua Nick Sen , Maul Tomas
Published: November 2024

ReLU nodes are utilized commonly in neural networks as they look and act like linear functions while providing nonlinearity. In spite of addressing the vanishing gradient problem, they can lead to the dying ReLU problem which can be detrimental in terms of convergence and generalization performance. This paper proposes antimatter networks, a new and simple solution to the dying ReLU problem which involves combining ReLU nodes with their inverse, negative ReLU nodes, together with activation swapping mechanisms. We tested the solution on six separate dataset-architecture combinations with the MNIST, CIFAR-10, and Flowers-16 datasets for Convolutional Neural Networks (CNN) and Multi-Layer Perceptron networks (MLP) and found that antimatter networks lead to consistent convergence and generalization improvements compared to networks solely consisting of ReLU or NReLU nodes.
A Word Order Framework for Mandarin Sentiment Analysis of Social Media Text
Authors: Zhang Jie , Maskat Ruhaila
Published: November 2024

This study explores sentiment analysis research framework based on the Mandarin social media dataset, focusing on the Transformer model. The paper first reviews the background of sentiment analysis, emphasizing the importance of this task in text classification and the relative lack of sentiment analysis in Mandarin Chinese. The study used three public datasets from the CSDN platform, including positive and negative reviews from different social media platform, explores how word order impacts sentiment classification in Mandarin. The study completed the experiment through four stages: preprocessing, text embedding, feature extraction, and sentiment classification, and used a pre-trained Transformer model for analysis. The results demonstrate the effectiveness of Transformer models for sentiment analysis with high accuracy on certain datasets, although challenges persist with specific data due to complexity. Future work aims to refine the model’s performance on diverse datasets and address limitations in sentiment feature extraction for Mandarin texts. The results confirm that there is still much room for improvement in Transformer models in improving sentiment classification in non-English languages such as Mandarin.
Noise Extraction and Evaluation Method Based on Multi Sound Transmission Array and Deep Learning for High Voltage Reactors
Authors: Fang Jizhong , Wu Yang , Lu Bin , Han Li , Pan Jie , Liu Qifei , Zhang Yuan , Tian Kai
Published: November 2024

Substations are subjected to multiple sound sources and complex environments and it is difficult to accurately extract the noises of high voltage reactors. In this study, we propose a noise extraction and evaluation method based on a multi-sound transmission array and deep learning for high voltage reactors. Firstly, the noise source was positioned on the basis of the reactor noise model by using the beamforming method, and the signal compensation was executed by combining the frequency domain-focused beamforming algorithm to guarantee high extraction accuracy of noise features. Then, echo was eliminated by using the improved local cepstrum, and the Deep Belief Network(DBN) evaluation model was improved by using genetic algorithms. Additionally, the processed sound pressure level signals were input into the improved DBN model to obtain the sound pressure level of the noises of high voltage reactors and achieve level evaluation. The proposed method was demonstrated experimentally by using the monitoring data of high voltage reactors in a 220 kV substation. The results showed that the proposed method can accurately locate the noise source, and the average percentage errors of the noise evaluation results in the daytime and at night were 2.7% and 3.5% respectively, both of which meet the requirements of practical application.
Public Security Patrol Based on 3D Path Planning
Authors: Qiu Mingyue , Zhang Xueying , Wang Xinmeng
Published: November 2024

Social condition, accompanied by booming economy and technology, has become increasingly complex, gradually increasing pressure on public security. Therefore, enhancing public security patrol performance has become important means for ensuring the security of lives and property of people. This study aimed to select a combination of public security patrol and three-dimensional (3D) path planning as the breakthrough point to explore the operating current condition and existing problems of the combination. 3D path planning under a simulation environment was implemented using bidirectional A*, rapidly exploring random tree (RRT) Extend, and RRT-Connect algorithms. Finally, the prospects of the combination of police patrol and 3D path planning were discussed to provide a new thought for the future development of police patrol.