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Nitrate News -- May, 1999

AZNALCAZAR JOURNAL: Year-Old Spill Poisons Farms and Wild Food Chain (New York Times, MARLISE SIMONS, May 24, 1999) “ZNALCAZAR, Spain -- Jose Antonio Alvarez tours his domain, his voice breaking as he recalls the poisonous black mud that surged from the river and rolled across his farm in an unstoppable tide. In an instant, the land that produced peaches, plums and vegetables was inundated with an acid sludge, heavy with cadmium, lead and arsenic. "Everything is now dead or ripped out," he said, walking the terrain that is now barren. "We're forbidden to grow anything." It is one year since the waste reservoir of a nearby zinc mine burst open and more than a billion gallons of toxic slurry poured through the breach into the Guadiamar River, flooding hundreds of farms, including that of Alvarez. The noxious flow skirted the wetlands of Coto de Donana, on the coast of southern Andalusia, one of Europe's most important wildlife reserves. Spain has no acute environmental conscience, but the sight of the trail of destruction cutting through the landscape and threatening Donana was treated as a national disaster. Cleanup crews have hauled away 12 million tons of the noxious mud, along with topsoil and dead fish and fowl, and dumped the mess in an unused quarry. The mine, owned by Boliden Ltd. of Canada, has spent more than $52 million cleaning up, repairing damage and reimbursing farmers for lost crops. The 20-mile-long flood area looks fairly clean, except for the black mud stains marking walls and bridges. But a toxic chain has spread through nature that is less visible and may be difficult to break down. High levels of heavy metals are still embedded in soil and water and have found their way into the wildlife. Some scientists say it may take years for nature to return the area to normal. One trouble spot is the nearby Donana reserve and its buffer zone, a kind of European Everglades that is cherished by many nature buffs. In this mixture of swamps and woodlands, 300 species of birds breed, feed or stop over on their migratory route between Northern Europe and Africa. Hastily built dikes stopped the toxic flood from entering the reserve, but the contaminated water cut through the buffer zone, and frogs, eels, lizards and insects have fed there. Those in turn have been eaten by birds like storks, flamingos and ibises. A study of local geese, published in April, said 44 percent of the sampled birds had high levels of lead and cadmium. In 22 percent of the birds, the contamination was life-threatening. "If these geese don't die, they will have health problems," said Cesar Nombela, director of the Council for Scientific Investigations, which did the study. "It will affect their immune systems and their young." The study of the geese is seen as an illustration of the far wider problem throughout the food chain. "Geese are eaten by eagles and lynxes -- it's a big part of their diet," said Miguel Ferrer, a biologist at the Donana reserve. Because of the contamination, Spain has advised the Scandinavian countries to put a temporary ban on hunting of the geese, many of which fly north for the summer. But even that may not halt the toxic trail. Biologist said predators far from Spain, maybe as far as Northern Europe and West Africa, were likely to eat migrant birds contaminated in Donana. Such worrying about the wildlife angers the local farmers, who feel they have a more immediate problem. They cannot cultivate the once fertile flood plains that used to brim with orchards, rice paddies and cotton and sunflower fields. Catching fish or river crabs is also forbidden. Farmers want to know more about the future of their land. "The most troublesome is the arsenic residue," said Nombela, discussing the most recent soil studies. "We know very little about how to remove it." Biologists are experimenting with chemical treatments and hope to use plants to absorb the contamination, he said. In the river valley, around the farming town of Aznalcazar, a confrontation is brewing. The Andalusian regional government has said it wants to turn the affected areas into a 70-mile-long "green belt," plant trees to halt the erosion and create riding and biking trails. The plan will cost $160 million, of which Andalusia hopes one-third will be paid by the European Union. The regional government has just announced that it will expropriate 10,000 acres of farmland for its plan, which will affect 400 families. But the farmers around Aznalcazar said they will fight the plan in court. "I'm not moving," said Alvarez, whose land is on the expropriation list. "I'll keep the land fallow as long as it takes. But I won't give it up. They're offering less than half the value." Carmen Moraira, a local farmer who is coordinating the protests, said the "green belt plan" was a ploy to get money from the European Union. "The government's new love for the environment is phony," she said, pointing to piles of garbage on public land. Eight towns dump their untreated sewage into the Guadiamar River. "Even as children we could never swim here," she said. Upstream, the zinc mine has just reopened. The board of the Donana reserve wanted to keep the mine shut. But the village of Aznalcazar has lobbied hard to open it. The village depends on the mine and its 500 jobs. A local judge is still deliberating who was responsible for the spill, the Canadian mining company or the previous Spanish owner, who built the waste reservoir that broke. And what was the role of the government inspectors who annually approved what appears to have been a faulty reservoir? The judge has made little headway. To reach a decision, the court needs an independent technical report. But at last count, the court said there was no money to pay for investigators.”

Cancerous tumors found in Lake Michigan zooplankton (Reuters – reported on Environmental News Network, Tuesday, May 25, 1999) “Researchers said Monday they discovered what appeared to be the first known cancerous tumors on tiny crustaceans living in Lake Michigan, raising new questions about water pollution. Scientists at the federal government's Great Lakes Environmental Research Laboratory in Michigan said they were not sure what caused the tumors in zooplankton -- crustaceans that are usually less than an eighth of an inch long. Cancerous tumors "usually imply that there is some environmental factor," researcher H.A. Vanderploeg said in a telephone interview. "What was strange about this is: Why is it happening now when many pollutants are on the decrease?" The researchers planned to do more studies to determine whether there was some environmental cause for the tumors. While tumors have been found in mollusks, insects and flatworms, reports of tumors on crustaceans are rare. "Although tumors in zooplankton were reported in 1994 from an area of the Baltic Sea, this is the first time that photographs have been taken of the abnormalities and that preliminary evidence has been presented that the tumors are cancerous," the researchers said in a statement. Vanderploeg said the research team would search for areas with a high occurrence of tumors to try to determine a cause. "What we're trying to do now is get a spatial distribution of the tumors in the animals and see if we can find some hot spots," he said. The researchers found that predatory species of zooplankton were more likely to have tumors than the plant-eating types. Preliminary analysis suggests that tumors are more common near-shore than off-shore. "We can only speculate as to when the tumors first occurred in Lake Michigan zooplankton," Vanderploeg said in a statement. "Because such tumors have never been seen until now, despite the many programs on the Great Lakes that have monitored or collected zooplankton, we suspect the occurrence of the tumors is a recent phenomenon in the Great Lakes in general and in Lake Michigan in particular," he said. The zooplankton were collected in 1995 and 1998 as part of a food web and water quality study.” Copyright 1999, Reuters, All Rights Reserved

Carolina college’s aquaculture program builds skills for growing industry. (Helena Oliviero, The Sun News, Myrtle Beach, S.C. , Thursday, May 20, 1999) “By A hot commodity is swimming in Jacuzzi-sized tubs behind a cement wall off U.S. 17 in Supply, N.C. The finger-size yellow perch whirling in those tubs soon could make their way out of a college laboratory experiment and onto grocery lists thanks to the aquaculture program at Brunswick Community College. Doug Holland, BCC's lead aquaculture professor, sees a sea of opportunity in fish farming in the Carolinas as pollution, development and other factors take a bite out of the commercial fishing industry. "Farmers are looking hard for alternatives because it's hard to make any money these days," Holland said. Students learn about fish farming, marketing and how to build a fish pond in BCC's two-year aquaculture program, the only one of its kind offered by a community college in the Carolinas. The 3-year-old program will have 30 more ponds to work with this fall. The college is building 25 quarter-acre ponds, four 1-acre ponds and one 3-acre pond on the western corner of the college's campus with the help of a $2 million federal grant. The grant money also will pay for a 10,000-square-foot aquaculture laboratory with 2,500-gallon tanks. Holland wants to hook Brunswick County residents on to yellow perch. The flaky, mildly sweet fish, which is popular in the Midwest, still is hard to find in North Carolina. Longtime commercial fisherman Archie Wainwright, who finished the aquaculture program this month, said building a fish farm is the only way to survive and profit in the face of a dwindling commercial fishing industry. Wainwright's tone turns bitter when asked about his days catching coolers of fish off the piers 20 years ago. Now, he said he'd be lucky to catch a single fish near the pier. "It's depressing because I'd rather look at a wild area than development, and there's no end to it," Wainwright added. "It doesn't look like its going to get any better." Many commercial fishermen appear cool to idea of fish farming. But Jesse Hayes, owner of Captain Pete's seafood house in Holden Beach, N.C., said he sees fish farming and the traditional commercial fish industries working hand-in-hand. Hayes said no fish farming products have yet competed directly with local commercial fishermen. But farm-raised fish, including mussels from Nova Scotia, are making their way onto trays at his seafood store. "You've got to look at the future," he said. "The stocks are lower, and the need for seafood is forever increasing." Hayes, whose family has for decades bought shrimp and other seafood from locals, also sells pond-raised salmon from Maine for $5.95 a pound. He buys farm-raised shrimp from Asia during Brunswick County's off-season "to fill the void." The pounds of fish and shellfish caught off the N.C. coast have steadily declined since the 1970s, according to the N.C. Division of Marine Fisheries. In 1998, 179.5 million pounds of commercial fish landings were recorded with a value of $100.9 million. In 1978, 299.5 million pounds of fish were brought in, with a value at that time of $40.6 million. Students at BCC now rely on tanks of fish at the college or Holland's 30-acre catfish farm about 13 miles from the campus in Winnabow. Holland's pond of fish constantly is monitored for water quality. If he detects even slight declines in the water quality in his pond -- which is equipped with paddlewheels, screens and levy tape -- Holland takes measures, such as backing off on the feeding rate, to regain ideal conditions. "In this controlled environment, there shouldn't be anything alarming," he said. "If so, we are doing something wrong." This fall, students' grades could be a life-and-death situation. Each student will be assigned to a pond. A widespread fish kill in a student's pond could mean an "F." This year's class, using limited resources, is capitalizing on what appears to be a stream of opportunities in the burgeoning field of fish farming. Some students are going on to work at aquariums while others are building fish ponds. Kathy Goetting, 21, will apply the skills she learned during a two-year stint in Africa with the Peace Corps. Goetting, who completed the BCC aquaculture program this month, will build, stock and clean tilapia ponds in an African country during a two-year assignment. "This is a very good field," said Goetting, an Oklahoma native who also is graduating from the University of North Carolina at Wilmington. "I know I will use what I learn." UNCW signed a cooperative agreement with the community college two years ago to allow students to transfer credits in aquaculture. Community college students who obtain an associate's degree also can transfer their credits toward a bachelor's degree in marine biology at UNCW. Copyright 1999, The Sun News, Myrtle Beach, S.C. Knight Ridder/Tribune Business News, All Rights Reserved

Environmental health symposium (News Bytes, Environmental News Network, May 25, 1999) “A symposium June 3-5 at the University of Wisconsin-Madison will explore new research on the links between environmental toxins and disease, including birth defects and cancer. "Horizons in Developmental Toxicology and Developmental Biology" will focus on how chemicals can cause toxic changes, why infants and children are most vulnerable and why early exposure presents increased risk of later diseases such as cancer. Time will be set aside to discuss specific community concerns and priorities. The meeting will also feature a public forum on lessons learned about the effects of chemicals on human health. Contact Colin Jefcoate, UW-Madison, (608)263-5557”

LA County to treat polluted runoff (Environmental News Network, Thursday, May 20, 1999) “A planned storm drain system will keep polluted runoff from entering Santa Monica Bay, according to the Los Angeles County Department of Public Works, which will begin construction of the system next month in Redondo Beach, Calif. The Herondo Storm Drain Low-flow Diversion will reduce runoff pollution by diverting it to the sewer system for treatment instead of allowing untreated water to enter the ocean and other waterways. Thus, less dangerous bacteria will be able to enter waterways in the county. "The diversion system will not only reduce pollution, but also the subsequent health risks associated with stormwater runoff," said Menerva Daoud, program director of the DPW Environmental Programs Division. When trash, debris, motor oil, paints, pesticides, fertilizer and animal waste enter area gutters and mix with rainwater, the resulting stormwater pollution can kill marine life, create health risks and contribute to neighborhood flooding and beach closures. The project is expected to divert approximately 30,000 gallons a day of low-flow runoff in dry weather (April-October) from parts of Redondo Beach, Hermosa Beach and Torrance to the County Sanitation District's treatment plant in Carson, according to county officials. "We commend the county for implementing this much-needed project at a beach notorious for stormwater pollution," said Mark Gold, executive director of Heal the Bay, a local environmental group. "Dry weather runoff diversions are the best way to protect the public health of swimmers and surfers during the beach season." For more information, contact Menerva Daoud, Los Angeles County Department of Public Works, (626)458-5975.” Copyright 1999, Environmental News Network, All Rights Reserved

Laboratory touts newly installed nitrate-conversion technology LOS ALAMOS, N.M., May 26, 1999 - The Department of Energy's Los Alamos National Laboratory recently installed technology that converts nitrates into harmless nitrogen gas at its Liquid Radioactive Waste Treatment Facility. Jacek Dziewinski, Joel Anderson and Stas Marczak of Los Alamos' Environmental Science and Waste Technologies Group developed the technology, which uses a transition metal/acid mixture that strips oxygen atoms from nitrates and converts the nitrates to nitrogen gas that can be safely released into the atmosphere. The new process is more efficient and less expensive than methods currently used worldwide to destroy or remove nitrate wastes, such as reverse osmosis, evaporation and thermal or biological destruction, said Dziewinski. Since first announcing the technology's development late last year, a number of industries have expressed considerable interest in using it. "I still receive several phone calls and electronic mail messages a day from people who want to know more about it," said Dziewinski. The developers held demonstration workshops for numerous private industry representatives in February in collaboration with Los Alamos' Civilian and Industrial Technology Program Office. Nitrates - essentially salts of nitric acid -- are wastes typically generated in the mining, chemical, farming and nuclear power industries and during plutonium production. They can cause excessive biological activity, vegetation growth and precipitation of organic residues when brought into contact with bodies of water such as lakes. If consumed in sufficient quantities, nitrates can cause harm to humans, especially infants. Until recently, there was no limit on the amount of nitrates that can be released into the environment. The New Mexico Environment Department now limits nitrate releases to 10 milligrams per liter. The equipment, which cost approximately $30,000, currently eliminates about 12 pounds of nitrates from wastewater per week from a waste stream containing up to 500 grams of nitrates per liter. "We can easily meet NMED regulations regarding nitrate release levels with this process," said Dziewinski. Almost all nitrate wastes produced at Los Alamos as part of normal operations go to the Liquid Radioactive Waste Treatment Facility for treatment. The facility also uses ultrafiltration and reverse osmosis methods to treat nitrates. Under its current configuration, nitrate-laced wastewater inside a 20-gallon container is pumped into a similarly sized reactor filled with the metal/acid reagents. These reagents work synergistically to strip away the oxygen atoms from each nitrate, resulting in nitrate-free wastewater that is released as effluent. During the stripping process, the solid metal reagent dissolves into the solution. That mixture is pumped into an electrolytic cell, which converts the metal ions back into their original metallic form. The reagent is then returned to the reactor container for reuse. Dziewinski noted that additional enhancements to the process currently are under consideration. For instance, he said, researchers are proposing to develop a computerized system that automatically takes and analyzes solution samples and adds the reagents as required. "These enhancements would allow us to run the machine 24 hours a day and keep pace with the amount of nitrate waste that's produced here daily," he said. Researchers also hope to soon scale up the 20-gallon reactor tank to 200 gallons and increase the throughput of the process. A patent currently is pending for the new technology. Los Alamos National Laboratory is operated by the University of California for the U.S. Department of Energy.

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