Garbage in garbage out: the contribution of our industrial advancement to wastewater degeneration

Non-thermal obliteration of critically ranked carbapenem-resistant Acinetobacter baumannii and its resistance gene in a batch atmospheric plasma reactor

Wastewater treatment plants (WWTPs) have been implicated as direct key reservoir of both antibiotic-resistant bacteria (ARB) and antibiotic-resistant genes (ARGs) associated with human infection, as high concentrations of ARBs and ARGs have been detected in recycled hospital wastewater. Among the ARBs, the carbapenem-resistant Acinetobacter baumannii has been ranked as priority 1 (critical) pathogen by the World Health Organization (WHO), due to its overwhelming burden on public health. Therefore, this study is aimed at investigating non-thermal plasma (NTP) technology as an alternative disinfection step to inactivate this bacterium and its ARGs. Culture-based method and PCR were employed in confirming the carbapenem resistance gene blaNDM-1 in A. baumannii (BAA 1605). Suspension of carbapenem-resistant A. baumannii (24 h culture) was prepared from the confirmed isolate and subjected to plasma treatment at varying time intervals (3 min, 6 min, 9 min, 12 min, and 15 min) in triplicates. The plasma-treated samples were evaluated for re-growth and the presence of the resistance gene. The treatment resulted in a 1.13 log reduction after 3 min and the highest log reduction of ≥ 8 after 15 min, and the results also showed that NTP was able to inactivate the blaNDM-1 gene. The log reduction and gel image results suggest that plasma disinfection has a great potential to be an efficient tertiary treatment step for WWTPs.

Exploring the hidden chemical landscape: Non-target and suspect screening analysis for investigating solid waste-associated environments

Solid waste is an inevitable consequence of urbanization. It can be safely managed in municipal landfills and processing plants for volume reduction or material reuse, including organic solid waste. However, solid waste can also be discarded in (un-)authorized dumping sites or inadvertently released into the environment. Legacy and emerging contaminants have the potential to leach from solid waste, making it a significant pathway to the environment. Non-target screening (NTS) and suspect screening analysis (SSA) have become helpful tools in environmental science for the simultaneous analysis of a wide range of chemical compounds. However, the application of these analytical approaches to environmental samples related to Raw or Processed Solid Waste (RPSW) has been largely neglected so far. This perspective review examines the potential and policy relevance of NTS and SSA applied to waste-related samples (liquid, gaseous and solid). It addresses the hurdles associated with the chemical safety of solid waste accumulation, processing, and reuse, and the need for landfill traceability, as well as effectiveness of leachate treatments. We reviewed the current applications of NTS and SSA to environmental samples of RPSW, as well as the potential adaptation of NTS and SSA techniques from related fields, such as oilfield and metabolomics, to the solid waste domain. Despite the ongoing technical challenges, this review highlights the significant potential for the implementation of NTS and SSA approaches in solid waste management and related scientific fields and provides support and guidance to the regulatory authorities.

Stereoselective analysis of chiral pesticides: a review

Chiral organic pollutants, including pesticides, herbicides, medicines, flame retardants, and polycyclic musk, represent a significant threat to both the environment and human health. The presence of asymmetric centers in the structure of chiral pesticides introduces stereoisomers with distinct distributions, fates, biomagnification capacities, and cytotoxicities. In aquatic environments, pesticides, as persistent/pseudo-persistent compounds, have been detected in substantial quantities, posing severe risks to non-target species and, ultimately, public health through water supply and food exposures. In response to this environmental challenge, stereoselective analytical methods have gained prominence for the identification of pesticide/drug enantiomers in recent years. This review examines the environmental impact of chiral pesticides, emphasizing the distinct biological activities and distribution patterns of their stereoisomers. By highlighting the advancements in liquid chromatography for enantiomeric analysis, the review aims to underscore the urgent need for a comprehensive understanding of these pollutants to facilitate informed remediation strategies and ensure the safer dispersal of chiral organic pollutants in the environment, thereby addressing the potential risks they pose to ecosystems and human health. Future research should focus on developing sustainable and efficient methodologies for the precise analysis of stereoisomers in complex matrices, particularly in sewage water, emphasizing the importance of sewage processing plants in ensuring water quality.

Embracing the future of circular bio-enabled economy: unveiling the prospects of microbial fuel cells in achieving true sustainable energy

Sustainable development and energy security, highlighted by the United Nations Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs), necessitate the use of renewable and sustainable energy sources. However, upon careful evaluation of literature, we have discovered that many existing and emerging renewable energy systems (RESs) prioritize renewability over true sustainability. These systems not only suffer from performance inconsistencies and lack of scalability but also fall short in fully embodying the principles of sustainability and circular economy. To address this gap, we propose considering microbial fuel cells (MFCs) as a viable alternative and integral part of the renewable energy ecosystem. MFCs harness the omnipresence, abundance, and cost-effectiveness of their essential components, making them a promising candidate. Through our comprehensive analysis, we shed light on the limitations and advancements of this technology, which underscore the remarkable potential of MFCs to revolutionize our perception of clean, sustainable energy.

Microbial Diversity and Enzyme Activity as Indicators of Permethrin-Exposed Soil Health

Owing to their wide range of applications in the control of ticks and insects in horticulture, forestry, agriculture and food production, pyrethroids pose a significant threat to the environment, including a risk to human health. Hence, it is extremely important to gain a sound understanding of the response of plants and changes in the soil microbiome induced by permethrin. The purpose of this study has been to show the diversity of microorganisms, activity of soil enzymes and growth of Zea mays following the application of permethrin. This article presents the results of the identification of microorganisms with the NGS sequencing method, and of isolated colonies of microorganisms on selective microbiological substrates. Furthermore, the activity of several soil enzymes, such as dehydrogenases (Deh), urease (Ure), catalase (Cat), acid phosphatase (Pac), alkaline phosphatase (Pal), β-glucosidase (Glu) and arylsulfatase (Aryl), as well as the growth of Zea mays and its greenness indicators (SPAD), after 60 days of growth following the application of permethrin, were presented. The research results indicate that permethrin does not have a negative effect on the growth of plants. The metagenomic studies showed that the application of permethrin increases the abundance of Proteobacteria, but decreases the counts of Actinobacteria and Ascomycota. The application of permethrin raised to the highest degree the abundance of bacteria of the genera Cellulomonas, Kaistobacter, Pseudomonas, Rhodanobacter and fungi of the genera Penicillium, Humicola, Iodophanus, Meyerozyma. It has been determined that permethrin stimulates the multiplication of organotrophic bacteria and actinomycetes, decreases the counts of fungi and depresses the activity of all soil enzymes in unseeded soil. Zea mays is able to mitigate the effect of permethrin and can therefore be used as an effective phytoremediation plant.

Inactivation of antibiotic-resistant bacteria and antibiotic-resistance genes in wastewater streams: Current challenges and future perspectives

The discovery of antibiotics, which was once regarded as a timely medical intervention now leaves a bitter aftertaste: antimicrobial resistance (AMR), due to the unregulated use of these compounds and the poor management receiving wastewaters before discharge into pristine environments or the recycling of such treated waters. Wastewater treatment plants (WWTPs) have been regarded a central sink for the mostly unmetabolized or partially metabolised antibiotics and is also pivotal to the incidence of antibiotic resistance bacteria (ARBs) and their resistance genes (ARGs), which consistently contribute to the global disease burden and deteriorating prophylaxis. In this regard, we highlighted WWTP-antibiotics consumption-ARBs-ARGs nexus, which might be critical to understanding the epidemiology of AMR and also guide the precise prevention and remediation of such occurrences. We also discovered the unsophistication of conventional WWTPs and treatment techniques for adequate treatment of antibiotics, ARBs and ARGs, due to their lack of compliance with environmental sustainability, then ultimately assessed the prospects of cold atmospheric plasma (CAP). Herein, we observed that CAP technologies not only has the capability to disinfect wastewater polluted with copious amounts of chemicals and biologicals, but also have a potential to augment bioelectricity generation, when integrated into bio electrochemical modules, which future WWTPs should be retrofitted to accommodate. Therefore, further research should be conducted to unveil more of the unknowns, which only a snippet has been highlighted in this study.

A five-year investigation of water quality and heavy metal mass flux of an industrially affected river

This study investigated the water quality parameters (dissolved oxygen, electrical conductivity, salinity, pH, and temperature) and the mass flux of eight heavy metals (As, Cd, Cr, Cu, Hg, Ni, Pb, and Zn) in five years (2015-2019) of the Houjing River. The river flows through a heavily-industrialized zone in Kaohsiung City in southern Taiwan. The surface water was sampled 4 times per year from five sampling locations: upstream sites (H1 and H2), industrial wastewater discharge point sites (H3 and H4), and downstream (H5). Our findings show that the water quality parameters improved in the study period, especially dissolved oxygen. However, some parameters, such as electrical conductivity (mean = 1152.50 ± 414.21 μS cm^-1), were still higher than the Taiwan water quality irrigation standards. The heavy metal pollution was investigated in the aspect of mass fluxes and sources contribution. The spatial variation of the total heavy metal mass flux increased gradually from upstream to downstream, with H5 having the highest total mass flux of 74.1 kg d^-1. H2, located near an industrial zone, had a total mass flux of 33.7 kg d^-1 and contributed to the most Ni, Cr, Pb, Zn, and Hg fluxes. This study indicates that the water quality improvements observed are still not enough to meet the regulations. Stricter enforcement is required as well as further investigation to identify any illegal pollution sources.

The potentials of biofilm reactor as recourse for the recuperation of rare earth metals/elements from wastewater: a review

Wastewater is nowadays increasingly receiving global attention as a resource much more than a problem due to its potential so serve as a resource recovery channel. In this regard, wastewater is gradually been transformed from being a cesspool to a "treasure pool." Among notable resources in the treasure pool, rare earth metals/elements (REEs) warrant focal investigation, both in terms of environmental abundance and biorecovery, due to their environmental impacts. The ineffectiveness or cost intensiveness of extant physicochemical and advanced wastewater resource recovery techniques warrants the investigation of natural phenomenons in the treasure pools. Bacteria are able to cleverly secrete certain biochemicals to help trap and aggregate nutrients for their metabolism-the biofilms. In this regard, there is increased espousal of biofilm-enabled reactors, especially for the application of the recovery of invaluable feedstock in wastewater as well as other aqueous media due to high production rates and stability of cells. Furthermore, it anticipated that this technology will be translated to recovery of rare earth elements, due to their increased demand across the globe. This piece reiterates the nitty-gritty of biofilm-enhanced biorecovery and also keeps the scientific readership abreast of the multifarious aspects regarding the successful biofilm affected biorecovery of REEs at reactor scale.

The Sustainable Production of a Novel Laccase from Wheat Bran by Bordetella sp. JWO16: Toward a Total Environment

Laccase is increasingly adopted in diverse industrial and environmental applications, due to its readily accessible requirements for efficient catalytic synthesis and biotransformation of chemicals. However, it is perceived that its industrial production might incur some unfavorable overhead, which leads to expensive market products, and the corresponding negative environmental feedback, due to the use of capital-intensive and precarious chemicals. To this end, this study was designed to evaluate the performance indicators of the valorization of wheat bran by a novel Jb1b laccase and its subsequent application in waste minimization and water management, on a laboratory scale. Optimal Jb1b laccase was produced in submerged fermentation medium containing wheat bran, an agroindustrial residue, through response surface methodology (RSM) algorithm, and was applied in dye decolorization and denim bioscouring, respectively. Results showed that the resultant enzyme manifested unique biochemical properties, such as enhanced tolerance at certain physicochemical conditions, with a residual activity of at least ca. 76%. Furthermore, phenomenally high concentrations of synthetic dyes (0.2% w v−1) were decolorized over 56 h, and a 6 h mediator-supported simultaneous denim bleaching and decolorization of wash effluent was observed. The sustainability of the production and application processes were inferred from the reusability of the fermentation sludge as a potential biofertilizer, with subsequent prospects for the biostimulation and bioaugmentation of contaminated soils, whereas the decolorized water could be adopted for other uses, amongst which horticulture and forestry are typical examples. These phenomena therefore authenticate the favorable environmental feedbacks and overhead realized in this present study.

Microplastic's story

The problem of microplastic pollution is now the order of the day in front of everyone's eyes affecting the environment and the health of leaving creature. This work aims to retrace the history of microplastics in a critical way through a substantial bibliographic collection, defining the points still unresolved and those that can be resolved. Presence of marine litter in different environments is reviewed on a global scale, focusing in particular on micro and macro plastics definition, classification and characterization techniques.