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Conradi M, Sánchez-Moyano JE. Toward a sustainable circular economy for cigarette butts, the most common waste worldwide on the coast. THE SCIENCE OF THE TOTAL ENVIRONMENT 2022; 847:157634. [PMID: 35905959 DOI: 10.1016/j.scitotenv.2022.157634] [Citation(s) in RCA: 2] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/27/2022] [Revised: 07/20/2022] [Accepted: 07/21/2022] [Indexed: 05/11/2023]
Abstract
The circular economy is based on the maximum use of resources by reducing, reusing, and recycling the elements used. Currently, the items littered most frequently in the world are cigarettes butts (CB) as these debris are freely disseminated in the marine habitat, they are generally difficult to collect and very complex to recycle. Litter CB is a great social problem that generates excessive economic costs and serious environmental problems. CB is also not biodegradable and highly toxic to marine organisms and presents a distinctive mixture of physical and chemical contamination. However, little research has been done on the management and recycling of this dangerous waste. Several proposals have been made to incorporate this waste into high-volume articles of direct production or recycling, but collection logistics are lacking since the current system is inefficient, in addition to the poor environmental behaviour of citizens. This work presents a current synthesis of the CB problem from all its possible aspects in order to have a global vision of the life cycle of the CB, indicating both the known and the gaps in the knowledge of each of them, and intends to give a general outline of the steps to follow to try to end such a worrying problem at the global level.
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Affiliation(s)
- Mercedes Conradi
- Department of Zoology, Faculty of Biology, University of Sevilla, Av. Reina Mercedes 6, 41012 Sevilla, Spain
| | - J Emilio Sánchez-Moyano
- Department of Zoology, Faculty of Biology, University of Sevilla, Av. Reina Mercedes 6, 41012 Sevilla, Spain.
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UV-B Irradiation Effect on Microalgae Performance in the Remediation of Effluent Derived from the Cigarette Butt Cleaning Process. PLANTS 2022; 11:plants11182356. [PMID: 36145757 PMCID: PMC9504614 DOI: 10.3390/plants11182356] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/18/2022] [Revised: 08/29/2022] [Accepted: 09/07/2022] [Indexed: 11/25/2022]
Abstract
In this study, the potential of ultraviolet B (UV-B) radiation to alleviate the effects of pollutants in cigarette butt wastewater (CBW) was investigated using different Chlorella sorokiniana strains (F4, R1 and LG1). Microalgae were treated with UV-B (1.7 W m−2) for 3 days prior to their exposure to CBW and then incubated for 4 days in the absence or presence of UV-B. UV-B-untreated microalgae were used as the control. Comparative physiological responses, including photosynthetic pigments and non-enzymatic antioxidants, as well as nicotine and nicotyrine removal, were evaluated in 7-day cultures. UV-B treatments did not negatively impact algal chlorophyll or carotenoid production. UV-B acclimation was strain-dependent, correlating with native environment adaptations and genetic constitutions. UV-B as a pretreatment had long-term positive effects on non-enzymatic antioxidant capacity. However, LG1 needed more time to readjust the pro-oxidant/antioxidant balance, as it was the most UV-B-sensitive. Phenolic compounds played an important role in the antioxidant system response to UV-B, while flavonoids did not contribute to the total antioxidant capacity. Although cross-resistance between UV-B and CBW was observed in F4 and R1, only R1 showed nicotine/nicotyrine catabolism induction due to UV-B. Overall, the results suggest that UV-B activates defense pathways associated with resistance or tolerance to nicotine and nicotyrine.
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Chiellini C, Mariotti L, Huarancca Reyes T, de Arruda EJ, Fonseca GG, Guglielminetti L. Remediation Capacity of Different Microalgae in Effluents Derived from the Cigarette Butt Cleaning Process. PLANTS (BASEL, SWITZERLAND) 2022; 11:plants11131770. [PMID: 35807722 PMCID: PMC9269138 DOI: 10.3390/plants11131770] [Citation(s) in RCA: 4] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/25/2022] [Revised: 06/23/2022] [Accepted: 06/30/2022] [Indexed: 05/17/2023]
Abstract
Microalgal-based remediation is an ecofriendly and cost-effective system for wastewater treatment. This study evaluated the capacity of microalgae in the remediation of wastewater from cleaning process of smoked cigarette butts (CB). At laboratory scale, six strains (one from the family Scenedesmaceae, two Chlamydomonas debaryana and three Chlorella sorokiniana) were exposed to different CB wastewater dilutions to identify toxicity levels reflected in the alteration of microalgal physiological status and to determine the optimal conditions for an effective removal of contaminants. CB wastewater could impact on microalgal chlorophyll and carotenoid production in a concentration-dependent manner. Moreover, the resistance and remediation capacity did not only depend on the microalgal strain, but also on the chemical characteristics of the organic pollutants. In detail, nicotine was the most resistant pollutant to removal by the microalgae tested and its low removal correlated with the inhibition of photosynthetic pigments affecting microalgal growth. Concerning the optimal conditions for an effective bioremediation, this study demonstrated that the Chlamydomonas strain named F2 showed the best removal capacity to organic pollutants at 5% CB wastewater (corresponding to 25 butts L−1 or 5 g CB L−1) maintaining its growth and photosynthetic pigments at control levels.
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Affiliation(s)
- Carolina Chiellini
- Department of Agriculture, Food and Environment, University of Pisa, 56124 Pisa, Italy; (C.C.); (L.M.); (L.G.)
- Institute of Agricultural Biology and Biotechnology, Italian National Research Council, 56124 Pisa, Italy
| | - Lorenzo Mariotti
- Department of Agriculture, Food and Environment, University of Pisa, 56124 Pisa, Italy; (C.C.); (L.M.); (L.G.)
- Centro di Ricerche Agro-Ambientali “E. Avanzi”, University of Pisa, 56122 Pisa, Italy
| | - Thais Huarancca Reyes
- Department of Agriculture, Food and Environment, University of Pisa, 56124 Pisa, Italy; (C.C.); (L.M.); (L.G.)
- Centro di Ricerche Agro-Ambientali “E. Avanzi”, University of Pisa, 56122 Pisa, Italy
- Faculty of Exact Sciences and Technology, Federal University of Grande Dourados, Dourados 79804-970, MS, Brazil;
- Correspondence:
| | - Eduardo José de Arruda
- Faculty of Exact Sciences and Technology, Federal University of Grande Dourados, Dourados 79804-970, MS, Brazil;
| | - Gustavo Graciano Fonseca
- Faculty of Natural Resource Sciences, School of Business and Science, University of Akureyri, 600 Akureyri, Iceland;
| | - Lorenzo Guglielminetti
- Department of Agriculture, Food and Environment, University of Pisa, 56124 Pisa, Italy; (C.C.); (L.M.); (L.G.)
- Centro di Ricerche Agro-Ambientali “E. Avanzi”, University of Pisa, 56122 Pisa, Italy
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