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Direct Osmotic Desalination Technique by Solar Energy
Atabek Yuldashev,
Ilnur Garipov,
Renat Khaydarov
Issue:
Volume 5, Issue 3, September 2020
Pages:
84-89
Received:
20 July 2020
Accepted:
30 July 2020
Published:
5 August 2020
Abstract: Over the last decade direct (forward) osmosis has attracted much attention in practical applications including artesian water desalination, green power generation, industrial water purification etc. In comparison with the traditional reverse osmosis process the separation is due to natural osmosis, providing lower energy cost for external pressure that is needed for reverse osmosis and lower membrane fouling potential. The main problem for the direct osmosis application efficiency is a selection of appropriate draw solute (otherwise known as a working substance). In the present paper diethyl ether (C2H5)2O has been considered as a working substance having a relatively high osmotic pressure. Heating regeneration has been explored to obtain fresh water and recover the proposed draw solution. The advantage of the diethyl ether over known draw solutes has been discussed. It was noted that for further commercial applications of the diethyl ether as a working substance the membrane should have better characteristics of water permeability, stability, selectivity, and mechanical strength. The pilot device based on the described direct (forward) osmosis technique with the productivity of 1 m3/hr has been manufactured. In the beginning of 2020 the pilot device was successfully installed in a village of Navoiy Region, Uzbekistan to provide its inhabitants with the clean water.
Abstract: Over the last decade direct (forward) osmosis has attracted much attention in practical applications including artesian water desalination, green power generation, industrial water purification etc. In comparison with the traditional reverse osmosis process the separation is due to natural osmosis, providing lower energy cost for external pressure ...
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Assessing the Impact of Secondary City Development on Sanitation Services: The Case of Muhanga District 2013-2017
Niragire Ezechiel,
Jean Baptiste Safari
Issue:
Volume 5, Issue 3, September 2020
Pages:
90-101
Received:
15 July 2020
Accepted:
29 July 2020
Published:
10 August 2020
Abstract: This research was conducted on the assessment of the impact of Muhanga city development on sanitation services, the primary data regarding sanitation was collected using questionnaire survey, interviews and observation. To evaluate land use land cover situation from the year 2013 up to 2017 remote sensing techniques was used. The results from collected data showed that 65% of generated solid waste is composed by organic waste, while waste collection coverage from household level is low with a percentage of 9%. The analysis of land use land cover situation showed that during the five years, settlement area increased by 8.67%, the amount of waste generation is increasing with population growth, and it varied from 1,555m 3 in 2014 to 3,045m 3 in 2017. The analysis of variance (ANOVA) results shows that the amount of solid waste generated is significantly difference between the year 2014 and the year 2017. Regarding liquid waste management there are drainage systems constructed, although the survey made showed that 39.2% of households sampled highlighted that storm water is still a problem in their residential area. The obtained results evidenced that solid waste collection at household level by a private company is a new practice in the city, and the collection coverage is still low compared to city resident, consequently there is still informal dumpsite in open area across the city. The private sector needs to be more committed in sanitation services provision, and the public sector needs to be involved in sanitation infrastructures development by focusing on composting facilities as a big percentage of generated waste is biodegradable. The public sector has a direct influence on the private sector and the community, the community and the private sector need to become familiar with working together for the purpose of improving sanitation with the aim to protect the environment.
Abstract: This research was conducted on the assessment of the impact of Muhanga city development on sanitation services, the primary data regarding sanitation was collected using questionnaire survey, interviews and observation. To evaluate land use land cover situation from the year 2013 up to 2017 remote sensing techniques was used. The results from colle...
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Potential Opportunities and Threats to a Reintroduced Critically Endangered Mountain Bongo Population and Its Habitat at Mount Kenya Forest
Issue:
Volume 5, Issue 3, September 2020
Pages:
102-107
Received:
17 July 2020
Accepted:
3 August 2020
Published:
13 August 2020
Abstract: Three communities living in areas adjacent the western side of Mount Kenya forest and close to Mount Kenya Wildlife Conservancy were sampled to assess opportunities provided for by the forest, determine conservation benefits from Mountain bongo and evaluate the threats to a released bongo population and to the forest resources. Structured questionnaires were administered randomly to 120 households and interviews conducted to persons above 10 years of age. Despite a large proportion of respondents believing in community’s ownership of forest resources (48%) and it is their duty to actively protect the forest (65%), benefits received from the forest including farming (72%), livestock grazing and pasture extraction (14%), access to firewood, timber and bush meat (14%) tend to threaten the same forest. Overall, there was a significant difference (χ2=24.96 df=3, p<0.05) on benefits received from the forest by the three communities sampled. Poverty was cited as the driving force to overreliance on forest resources for livelihood support. Kanyoni and Kangaita communities, living in squatter systems, pose more danger to the forest than the small scale farmers at Kwamwea. The high prevalence of hunting in the region (55%) mainly for subsistence purposes (45%) pose a major threat to a reintroduced bongo population. All livelihood support activities from the forest are however, a threat to the success of Mountain bongo reintroduction. Nonetheless, the general feeling that presence of wild bongos would boost tourism in the region (85%) ought to be emphasized and escalate conservation education underscoring the impacts of human activities on forest resources and to Mountain bongo habitat.
Abstract: Three communities living in areas adjacent the western side of Mount Kenya forest and close to Mount Kenya Wildlife Conservancy were sampled to assess opportunities provided for by the forest, determine conservation benefits from Mountain bongo and evaluate the threats to a released bongo population and to the forest resources. Structured questionn...
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People’s Perception and Participation in Solid Waste Management in Ndokwa West Local Government Area, Delta State, Nigeria
Amukali Ogochukwu,
Bariweni Perekibina Anthony,
Sophia Memuna John,
Imaitor-Uku Ebinemi Edith
Issue:
Volume 5, Issue 3, September 2020
Pages:
108-114
Received:
26 May 2020
Accepted:
18 June 2020
Published:
19 August 2020
Abstract: This work focused on assessing people’s perception and participation in solid waste disposal, collection and management methods in Six (6) towns of Ndokwa West LGA, Delta State, Nigeria. It utilized structured questionnaire and face to face interviews for data generation. The sampled towns were Utagba-Ogbe, Ogume, Abbi, Emu, Onicha-Ukwuani and Utagba-Uno, respectively. It was observed that, irrespective of respondent’s localities, most shops/offices and residential houses lacked approved waste collection bags/bins from authorized waste handlers from the Local Government, rather, some augmented with personal packing bags. Collected waste materials were reportedly disposed-off by road sides, into gutters (where available), streets, pits, abandoned buildings, undeveloped plots, or directly into ponds, rivers and streams. Majority of the respondents outside Utagba-Ogbe were unaware of the existence of any government-approved disposal sites around their communities. Although, some of the respondents adopted waste burning, knowledge of integrated solid waste management was observed to be generally low. Respondents were generally not happy with services of waste handlers in the area. The current waste handling strategy in the study area would have serious health and environmental concerns via engendering disease epidemic. The Local Government Authority should make deliberate efforts to seek better ways of enforcing efficient waste-to-wealth strategies to help sustainably solve the waste generation and disposal problems in the study area.
Abstract: This work focused on assessing people’s perception and participation in solid waste disposal, collection and management methods in Six (6) towns of Ndokwa West LGA, Delta State, Nigeria. It utilized structured questionnaire and face to face interviews for data generation. The sampled towns were Utagba-Ogbe, Ogume, Abbi, Emu, Onicha-Ukwuani and Utag...
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Hematological Indicators of Hydrobionts as a Biomarker of Anthropogenic Pollution of the Aquatic Environment
Maya Vergolyas,
Ernest Myrtaziev,
Maryna Vikhliaieva,
Maksim Taran
Issue:
Volume 5, Issue 3, September 2020
Pages:
115-118
Received:
2 August 2020
Accepted:
18 August 2020
Published:
27 August 2020
Abstract: The problem of preserving the environment, in conditions of intensive development of natural resources, is becoming more and more important every year. In many regions of the world, significant problems with water supply are already noticeable as a result of the quantitative and qualitative depletion of water resources through their irrational use. In the 20th century, hundreds of thousands of tons of organic compounds such as PAHs (polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons), PCBs (polychlorinated biphenyls), OCPs (organochlorine pesticides), and inorganic (heavy metals) were produced and partially released into the environment. Water bodies have often been and still are the collectors of many of the listed substances. In civilized countries, the population is seriously concerned about the problem of possible remote and long-term adverse effects of pollutants on the environment in general and aquatic ecosystems in particular. Objective: Monitoring the state of aquatic ecosystems and searching for methods to effectively assess the level of pollution and identify its sources. To date, the main assessment of water quality is usually carried out on the basis of chemical-analytical methods. And these methods determine only the presence and amount of chemical elements in the tested water samples, but cannot determine the specifics of the formation of the quality of the tested water samples, due to the very large number of possible combinations of chemical compounds in aqueous solutions, including the behavior of anthropogenic compounds and the natural vulnerability of aquatic ecosystems to the combined effects of their pollution. Method: Assessment of the state of organisms living in changing environmental conditions makes it possible to reveal the patterns of responses at different levels of organization (molecular, cellular, organismal), predict the occurrence of diseases, and identify specific biological effects and the etiology of diseases. In this regard, the possibility of using biological markers as tools for assessing water quality is of particular interest. As a result of the research, biomarkers have been developed for assessing the quality of the aquatic environment, based on hematological parameters and characteristics of morphological and functional changes in blood cells of aquatic organisms. A change in the blood formula and an increase in the number of cells with nuclear abnormalities when exposed to water samples are shown, for example from the Desna and Dnieper rivers. Conclusion: The results obtained can be extrapolated to a certain extent to human health, given the fact that river water is one of the main sources of drinking water for the population of many countries of the World.
Abstract: The problem of preserving the environment, in conditions of intensive development of natural resources, is becoming more and more important every year. In many regions of the world, significant problems with water supply are already noticeable as a result of the quantitative and qualitative depletion of water resources through their irrational use....
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Influence of Community Forest Association Activities on Dryland Resources Management: Case of Kibwezi Forest in Kenya
John Mwendwa Mugambi,
Jane Kagendo,
Mulaha Kweyu,
Musingo Tito Edward Mbuvi
Issue:
Volume 5, Issue 3, September 2020
Pages:
119-128
Received:
6 August 2020
Accepted:
17 August 2020
Published:
3 September 2020
Abstract: Gazetted forests in Kenya are owned and managed by the government through Kenya Forest Service. Other stakeholders including communities formally participate in forest management through Participatory Forest Management, concessions and leasehold. In each management regime the forest has to be well managed and the community continue accessing forest products. The aim of this paper was to investigate whether Community Forest Association activities lead to improved forest cover in a leased forest. The study adopted a descriptive survey design where both qualitative data and satellite data was collected. A sample size of 139 individuals was issued with questionnaires and 5 key informants were interviewed. Satellite imagery was used to quantify changes and trends in forest cover of Kibwezi forest for ten years. Findings of the study established that infrastructural development had a great effect on destruction of forest cover in Kibwezi forest. There was significance relationship between community participation and improvement of forest since Chi square results were (χ2 =27.631, df=9, 0.001). This research recommends that there should be deliberate action by stakeholders to give community forest association incentives to operate optimally. The improvement of the forest was partially contributed by presence of community forest association during inception of project but later David Sheldrick Trust which fenced the forest.
Abstract: Gazetted forests in Kenya are owned and managed by the government through Kenya Forest Service. Other stakeholders including communities formally participate in forest management through Participatory Forest Management, concessions and leasehold. In each management regime the forest has to be well managed and the community continue accessing forest...
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Characterization of the Oleaginous Potential of Jatropha curcas in Burkina Faso: Study of Accessions Resistance to Fungal Pathogens, Seed Traits and Molecular Diversity
Sama Hemayoro,
Sombié Pierre Alexandre Eric Djifaby,
Adéoti Kifouli,
Bonzi Schemaeza,
Hilou Adama
Issue:
Volume 5, Issue 3, September 2020
Pages:
129-138
Received:
4 September 2020
Accepted:
22 September 2020
Published:
12 October 2020
Abstract: The development of the Jatropha sector is limited by the lack of adequate plant genetic resources and data on local genotypes. However, knowledge of the characteristics of local accessions can help to identify suitable genotypes and/or identify varietal improvement paths for sustainable biofuel production. In order to characterize the local genotypes of Jatropha curcas in Burkina Faso, seeds of a collection from 40 plantations of the different climatic zones of the country were used to assess the accessions resistance to fungal pathogens, seeds oil and germination and molecular diversity. The results revealed a high variability in accessions resistance to fungal pathogens, seeds oil content and germination depending on the accessions. These variations of seeds oil content, seeds germination capacity and accessions resistance to fungal pathogens could been explained by genetic factors. This hypothesis is confirmed by genetic parameters which showed a strong heritability of the studied characters. Indeed, outside the diameter of the necrosis, the study exhibited high phenotypic and genotypic coefficients of variation and high heritability in broad sense. The study also revealed positive correlations between resistance parameters and seed oil content on the one hand and between these parameters and germination capacity on the other hand. There are good opportunities to improve accessions resistance to pathogens, seeds oil content and germination capacity. However, the evaluation of molecular diversity based on 20 microsatellites markers showed low genetic diversity. The high phenotypic variability observed in seed traits and resistance of accessions contrasts with a low level of genetic diversity of accessions. This study constitutes an important contribution to the characterization of local genotypes in order to identify the best genotypes for improvement of seeds traits and accessions resistance to fungi in a breeding program.
Abstract: The development of the Jatropha sector is limited by the lack of adequate plant genetic resources and data on local genotypes. However, knowledge of the characteristics of local accessions can help to identify suitable genotypes and/or identify varietal improvement paths for sustainable biofuel production. In order to characterize the local genotyp...
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