mail.cwejournal.org Current World Environment en-us https://mail.cwejournal.org/vol15no1/environmental-changes-during---covid-19-lockdown--future-implications/ 07-04-2020 2020-04-29 Dear Readers, In a way the spread of COVID-19 has forced the globe to halt all outdoor manmade activities for the longest period in the memories of the present population of this planet. This lockdown will probably be be marked in history forever. Nevertheless, this shutdown is a rejuvenation of the Earth, environment and human health systems. Despite the sudden changes to the daily behaviour of humans, our surrounding ecological systems are enjoying holistic and positive changes. This is a k

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..]]> https://mail.cwejournal.org/vol15no1/scientific-imperatives-for-covid--19--water-sector/ 22-04-2020 2020-04-29 COVID-19 is an infectious disease caused by a newly discovered coronavirus, spread from person to person through respiratory droplets and contact. Covid-19 known to affect respiratory system leading to infections ranging from the common cold to more severe diseases with common symptoms such as fever, tiredness, dry cough and shortness of breath or difficulty in breathing1 while some infected people don’t develop any symptoms.2 Presently, there are no specific vaccines or treatment, the

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..]]> https://mail.cwejournal.org/vol15no1/why-wont-people-change-their-behavior-toward-the-environment-/ 07-04-2020 2020-04-29 Deforestation, biodiversity loss, and the changing climate are some of the more certain and harmful socio-environmental problems that face this planet. Recent years have seen dramatic increases in the available technology to combat these harmful problems. With this, however, we continue to see unsustainable levels of environmental degradation. Many have found a relationship between human environmental values and reduced concern for natural systems.1 Here I argue that explanations beyond human en

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..]]> https://mail.cwejournal.org/vol15no1/an-analysis-of-grap-task-force-directions-for-improved-aqi-in-delhi-during-2018/ 23-03-2020 2020-04-29 Introduction Air quality standards The issue of air quality in the National Capital Region (NCR) Delhi is a matter of public concern. Poor air quality has various harmful effects on the environment and human health causing smog, acid rain, reduced visibility and increasing premature deaths, asthma attacks and chronic respiratory illness.1,2,3 In general, poor air quality of Delhi is due to high concentrations of the PM2.5 and PM10 which have been reported violating the limits of N

..]]> Air quality has been a matter of public concern in Delhi. The concentration of Particulate Matters (PM2.5 and PM10) often surpasses the Indian National Ambient Air Quality Standards (NAAQS). This study is focused upon the evaluation of Environment Pollution (Prevention and Control) Authority (EPCAs) Graded Response Action Plan (GRAP) action during 2018 in terms of PM2.5 and NO2. In order to control air pollution sources in National Capital Region (NCR), the (EPCA) Environmental Pollution (Preven

..]]> https://mail.cwejournal.org/vol15no1/water-quality-assessment-using-environmetrics-and-pollution-indices-in-a-tropical-river--kerala--sw-coast-of-india/ 20-03-2020 2020-04-29 Introduction Over the years, rivers are progressively subjected to environmental stress caused by human intervention.1 Water quality of a river is being carved up by several interrelated factors, which are subjected local and temporal variations in addition to discharge.2 As a result of increased anthropogenic pressure including pollution, large-scale damming, sand mining etc., the natural self purification capacity of rivers becomes restricted to a minimal level.3 Excessive loading of nutrie

..]]> Envirometrics and pollution indices are proxies to assess water quality of a wetland ecosystem. Hence, the present study is focused on establishing water quality and elucidating the pollution status of Karamana River (KR) in Kerala, SW coast of India. The Karamana River Basin – KRB (n=6th; L= 68 km, A=695 km2), is the main source of water for domestic and drinking purpose in Thiruvananthapuram city. The Killi River (n= 5th; L= 24 km, A= 102 km2), the largest tributary of KR, carry heav

..]]> https://mail.cwejournal.org/vol15no1/prevalence-of-accidental-injuries-among-building-construction-workers-in-bangladesh/ 08-04-2020 2020-04-29 Introduction The construction industries play an important role in country development. Generally, construction workers perform their activities in open sky, various weather conditions as well as unsafe workplaces. That is why the construction workers around the world face various occupational injuries.1 Tahir et al.,2 depicted that, construction sectors as industry having the capability of making different risks and perils to agents with the capacity of bringing about injur

..]]> The construction sector is the biggest and most unsafe venture compared to other sectors of the world. The workers in this sector are more prone to accidental injuries. There are different types of agents and lacking for this type of injuries. The objectives of this study were to investigate the prevalence of accidental injuries among building construction workers in Bangladesh. The agents and lacking behind these injuries also investigated. A survey on 390 building construction workers was cond

..]]> https://mail.cwejournal.org/vol15no1/assessing-land-use-and-land-cover-change-in-river-beas-floodplain--punjab/ 20-03-2020 2020-04-29 Introduction Floodplains are one of the most important and fertile ecosystems of the earth. These are depositional smooth features created by the river along its course (Wooldridge and Morgan 1959; Wolman and Leopold 1970; Gregory and Willing 1973) characterized by periodical overflow of river and wet and dry spells. Regular floods are an important characteristic of the floodplains which deposit a layer of fertile soil. Several great ancient civilizations of the world developed in the floodpl

..]]> Floodplains are the most fragile ecosystems of the world which attracted the humans since the dawn of civilizations. Due to their resource enrichment, these remained center of attraction to fulfill the socio-economic needs of people. As a result, the natural land cover of these floodplains are under the influence of human induced activities. River Beas Floodplain of Punjab has also witnessed such changes. Human intervention in these landscapes has depleted natural wealth and has altered its land

..]]> https://mail.cwejournal.org/vol15no1/bioplastics-for-sustainable-development--general-scenario-in-india/ 24-04-2020 2020-04-29 Introduction Plastic materials are used almost everywhere from ordinary polythene bag to biomedical fields. Although plastic is a major environmental pollutant1 in the environment. Petroleum derived plastics accumulation2 is a major cause of pollution for the environment and its adverse effect destroying the balance in the eco system. So it is a novel approach to produce plastic using microbes and bioplastic3 is the answer of this problem. These biopolymers can break down into biomass, water

..]]> Plastic is a major environmental pollutant in the environment. The petroleum derived plastics are mostly non biodegradable and take long time to break down. Thus ecosystem is getting affected by this pollution. So the approach to produce plastic using microbes is a novel approach. Bio-plastics are generally bio-based, they may be or may not be biodegradable but their properties are closed to synthetic polymers. In biodegradation process micro-organisms convert plastics into water, carbon dioxide

..]]> https://mail.cwejournal.org/vol15no1/environmental-assessment-of-imiringi-river-in-south-south-nigeria--the-water-quality-index-approach/ 24-04-2020 2020-04-29 Introduction In Nigeria, the poor structure and framework for the utilization of gas deposits associated with crude oil drilling has led to the continuous flaring of reusable gases (Ajugwo, 2013; Ifenkwe et al., 2018) and the consequent loss of foreign exchange earnings to the country. Following the presence of numerous gas flaring stacks at Imiringi community, some of the most affected environmental aspects include the surrounding vegetation, agricultural farm lands and the overall health o

..]]> The water quality index (WQI) is important because it aids in understanding complex water quality data. Hence, WQI of Imiringi River was evaluated in order to classify quality grade of the water in unambiguous terms. Apart from seepages emanating from oil installations that are located further upstream of Oswan community, dumpsite leachates and agricultural run-offs are some of the likely nonpoint sources of pollution. Because the river ebbs away during the dry term, samples were collected in th

..]]> https://mail.cwejournal.org/vol15no1/environmental-perspective-of-stone-crushing-and-quarrying--a-case-study-from-poonch-district-of-jammu-and-kashmir--india/ 26-03-2020 2020-04-29 Introduction To meet the increasing demand of the population, massive exploitation of environmental resources has taken place in the recent times and is ongoing every day. Threats to environment from the progressive deterioration of the biosphere have emerged as one of the primary issues of the recent times. Various human induced activities have direct and indirect impacts on the environment. Stone crushing and quarrying is one of such activity. Though socioeconomically stone crushing and qua

..]]> Stone crushing and quarrying activities have considerable effects on environmental quality and human health. Present study was conducted to assess environmental perspectives of various stone crushing and quarrying units functioning in Poonch district of Jammu and Kashmir, India. Present study was based on field work, general observations, questionnaire and laboratory experimentation. Serious consequences in term of huge dust, noise and water pollution, decrease in agricultural productivity, loss

..]]> https://mail.cwejournal.org/vol15no1/evaluation-of-the-efficiency-and-quality-of-the-water-of-the-al-hartha-water-treatment-plant-in-basra-city/ 06-04-2020 2020-04-29 Introduction Basra is the largest city in southern Iraq and the third-largest city in Iraq in terms of area and population density, with a population of about 2.5 million according to estimates in 2014. It is the administrative and political Centre of the province of Basra, which is the economic capital of Iraq, and also Iraq's main port. It is located in the far south of Iraq on the west bank of the Shatt Al-Arab River. The Shatt Al-Arab consists of the confluence of the Tigris and

..]]> This study was conducted on the Al-Hartha Water Treatment Plant (HWTP), the largest water treatment plant in the city of Basra, during the period from December 2017 to March 2018. This study gives a description of the units and components of the HWTP, and aimed to evaluate the efficiency of the plant by calculating the efficiency of its sedimentation, filtration and sterilisation basins. Additionally, it aimed to examine its water quality by examining the physical and chemical characteristics of

..]]> https://mail.cwejournal.org/vol15no1/sanitation-park-nathuwawala--dehradun--a-study-of-solid-waste-management-in-uttarakhand/ 26-03-2020 2020-04-29 Introduction Sanitation is directly related to public health and a variety of health related facilities are provided by the government to the society but basically public health is associated with sanitation. In general, sanitation is the responsibility of local bodies like Nagar Nigam, Nagar Palika Parishad and Nagar Panchayat at urban level and Gram Panchayat and Jila Panchayat at rural level. Though these bodies are responsible for multiple services like education, registration of birth/

..]]> Uttarakhand is a hilly state which consists of 90 urban local bodies, facing the problem of Solid Waste Management. There are only two solid waste plants in the state. Solid Waste Management process in decentralised method has recently been started at Nathuawala ward in Dehradun, having a population of 13000. The solid waste processing area has been named “Sanitation Park”. The researchers have found that the waste is disposed systematically in a scientific manner in this are

..]]> https://mail.cwejournal.org/vol15no1/emerging-approach-to-uncover-cyanotoxins-in-aquatic-environment--a-concise-review/ 23-04-2020 2020-04-29 Introduction The algal blooms produced by cyanobacteria have shading effect on the lower layers, resulting in more respiratory activities below the surface and suffocation of fauna.1,2 Some freshwater algae e.g. Microcystics, Chlorella, Trichodesmus and Phormidium are harmful as they produce biomass which generate bad smell, causing de-oxidation and damage to aquatic life.3 The excessive growth of some species microalgae especially those of Microcysticsa nd Lyngbya lead to anoxia (lack of oxy

..]]> The detection of cyanotoxins in aquatic environment is paramount due to its negative impact on aquatic biota. Various types of analytical techniques have been employed to qualify and quantify the presences of cyanotoxins in aquatic environment but most of these methods are not easily accessible. This mini-review concisely summarized the emerging approaches used to uncover cyanotoxins in aquatic environment. The methods of quantifying cyanotoxins in aquatic environment including bio-analytical me

..]]> https://mail.cwejournal.org/vol15no1/assessment-of-lowest-chromium-bioaccumulation-vegetables-irrigated-by-sheba-leather-industry-contaminated-water-in-wukro--tigray-/ 04-04-2020 2020-04-29 Introduction Untreated and semi-treated effluents from tanneries and other industries are often discharging in to the environment, particularly in developing countries. Farmers’ are ignorance about the hidden toxicity of such heavily polluted discharges and their subsequent negative impacts has led to its continued use in cultivation of cereals, vegetables and others economically important plants.1 The discharge from various sub-processes in tanneries like bathing, pickling, tanning

..]]> High chromium concentration is threatening to the environment, since it is persistent and non-biodegradable pollutant while introduced once to our planet. Bioaccumulation capacity of chromium has carcinogenic potential to human beings. To minimize the risk of chromium bioaccumulation, the study was conducted in Wukro irrigation fields. 54 plants, 24 water and 18 soil samples were collected in triplication from the selected points of upstream, treatment plant and downstream of the Sheba leather i

..]]> https://mail.cwejournal.org/vol15no1/physico---chemical-analysis-of-fresh-water-of-ropar-wetland--ramsar-site---india/ 16-04-2020 2020-04-29 Introduction Human induced perturbances and hydrological conditions such as amount of precipitation, water loss due to high heat inducers can modify the physical and chemical characteristics such as soil salinity, nutrient availability, pH, sediment properties and degree of substrate anoxia. These changes in physico - chemical environment have direct impact on the biotic component of the water body. The ecological parameter of such water bodies may provide clues for understanding the key rela

..]]> Through anthropogenic activities such as dam building, river management works, indirectly through developments and disturbances in the landscape of the watersheds in particular effluent discharges and deforestation increasingly threatened the environmental integrity of freshwaters systems, world wide. In order to access the monthly and seasonally variations of “Ropar Weland”, study on various physio - chemical parameters was carried out from October 2015 to September 2017 at

..]]> https://mail.cwejournal.org/vol15no1/influence-of-coal-fly-ash-on-soil-properties-and-productivity-of-chickpea-crop-in-semi-arid-region-of-bundelkhand/ 23-04-2020 2020-04-29 Introduction Indian power generation is in majority dependent on coal-based thermal power station. The coal combustion products produced every year is around 112MT (million tons) in India and it exceeds 225 MT by 2017[Singh, 2012]. Impact assessment of fly ash on environmental are very complex and detailed research is important and analysis of the side-effects on plants and soil is need of the hour. Sustainable agriculture needs careful use of any organic amendments to improve the fertility

..]]> Fly ash changes the soil properties which may cause disastrous influence on microbial activity and growth of the plant. However, the scientific studies on the influence of fly ash in various combination with an organic fertilizers on soil properties and microbial response at semi-arid region of Bundelkhand soil is scanty in India. The main objective of this study was to assess the impact of lower or higher doses of fly ash on the soil physico-chemical characteristic, microbial population and gro

..]]> https://mail.cwejournal.org/vol15no1/solar-light-induced-photocatalysis-for-treatment-of-high-cod-pharmaceutical-effluent-with-recyclable-ag-fe-codoped-tio2--kinetics-of-cod-removal/ 24-04-2020 2020-04-29 Introduction Environmental pollution and energy shortages have become the major sectors restricting progress and economical development of the country.1–4 Some researchers have explored nowadays various solar applications for simultaneous solar fuel cells and photocatalysis using iron-graphene oxide-titanium phosphate,5 photocatalysis with cadmium sulphide,6 transition metals doped CuO for heterojunction solar cells,7 carbon nanotubes on cobalt-iron-silica electrocatalysis.8 Active

..]]> A wide range of active pharmaceutical ingredients (API) is found in various water streams. These synthetic non-biodegradable organics create trouble in conventional wastewater treatment due to toxicity. There is a strong need to develop substitute technology such as visible light driven photocatalysis with a reusable photocatalyst to completely oxidize these substances into carbon dioxide and water. Sol-gel method was used for synthesis of Fe doped TiO2 and Ag-Fe codoped TiO2 nanoparticles with

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