JEM author Dr Kevin Ashley presented Moyer D. Thomas Award

Dr Kevin Ashley from the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, NIOSH, USA, was recently awarded the prestigious Moyer D. Thomas Award for his “outstanding contributions to the standardization of the sampling and analysis of atmospheres” from the ASTM International Committee D22 on Air Quality.

Dr Ashley is a senior research scientist at the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC), where he has worked since 1991.  His current research is working to evaluate and validate workplace air sampling techniques to improve sample collection and analysis aspects and to harmonize methods for occupational exposure assessment.

A regular author in JEM, some of Dr Ashley’s recent work on environmental atmospheric analysis was published as part of our issue from last year’s AIRMON conference:

Interlaboratory evaluation of trace element determination in workplace air filter samples by inductively coupled plasma mass spectrometry
Kevin Ashley, Stanley A. Shulman, Michael J. Brisson and Alan M. Howe
J. Environ. Monit., 2012,14, 360-367
DOI: 10.1039/C1EM10695C

Preparation, certification and interlaboratory analysis of workplace air filters spiked with high-fired beryllium oxide

Thomas J. Oatts, Cheryl E. Hicks, Amy R. Adams, Michael J. Brisson, Linda D. Youmans-McDonald, Mark D. Hoover and Kevin Ashley
J. Environ. Monit., 2012,14, 391-401
DOI: 10.1039/C1EM10688K

The Moyer D. Thomas award was established in 1975 and is awarded in recognition of outstanding achievement in the standardization of the sampling and analysis of atmospheres. It was last awarded in 2010, to George Luciw, by a task group of the Executive Committee of Committee D22 on Sampling and Analysis of Atmospheres.

Our congratulations to Dr Ashley on receiving this award.

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HOT article: baseline element compositions of lichens in SW Patagonia, Chile

Fabrizio Monaci and co-workers at the University of Siena, Italy, and the University of Concepción, Chile, have measured the baseline element composition of two lichens (Nephroma antarcticum and Usnea sp.) growing in a remote region of SW Chilean Patagonia.

The team recorded the lowest concentrations of major and trace elements from lichens in the rainforest, and say that these concentrations can be used as background levels for the area. The authors believe these levels will be useful for detecting environmental change in the region, which will become more important in the coming months due to the construction of hydropower dams in the area.

Read more about the differences in composition between the different lichens and along the climatic gradient in the full article:

Baseline element composition of foliose and fruticose lichens along the steep climatic gradient of SW Patagonia (Aisén Region, Chile)
Fabrizio Monaci, Federica Fantozzi, Ricardo Figueroa, Oscar Parra and Roberto Bargagli
DOI: 10.1039/C2EM30246B

As with all our HOT articles, this one is free to access for 4 weeks following a simple registration.

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JEM Issue 8 online now

Journal of Environmental Monitoring coverThe latest issue of JEM is now online, featuring two HOT articles on the cover from Knut Breivik and Matthew Nonnenmann et al.

Knut Breivik and colleagues have developed a method to estimate the potential risks of organic chemical emissions emanating from commercial activities. No methods currently exist to quantitatively estimate the risks associated with such emissions and here the authors have sought to address this by developing an approach that looks at the quantities of organic chemicals used, their intended function and physical–chemical properties to estimate emissions to air, soil and water:

Screening organic chemicals in commerce for emissions in the context of environmental and human exposure
Knut Breivik, Jon A. Arnot, Trevor N. Brown, Michael S. McLachlan and Frank Wania
DOI: 10.1039/C2EM30259D

Matthew Nonnenmann et al have sought to overcome some of the limitations associated with culture-based techniques for identifying and quantifying fungi in environmental samples by using pyrosequencing.  Pyrosequencing offers the potential for discovering new fungal species, where are more traditional methods such as PCR and QPCR require known species to develop assays. The paper compares the two approaches in dust samples, where fungi may be associated with lung disease:

Utilizing pyrosequencing and quantitative PCR to characterize fungal populations among house dust samples
Matthew W. Nonnenmann, Gloria Coronado, Beti Thompson, William C. Griffith, John Delton Hanson, Stephen Vesper and Elaine M. Faustman
DOI: 10.1039/C2EM30229B

Also, don’t forget to take a look at the latest environmental digest, which this month discusses noise pollution, the disappointments at Rio+20 and more!

View the issue

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Top ten most accessed articles in June

This month sees the following articles in the Journal of Environmental Monitoring that are in the top ten most accessed:

Emerging investigators contributors 2012
J. Environ. Monit., 2012, 14, 1745-1753
DOI: 10.1039/C2EM90032G

Investigations of mercury concentrations in walleye and other fish in the Athabasca River ecosystem with increasing oil sands developments
Marlene S. Evans and André Talbot
J. Environ. Monit., 2012, 14, 1989-2003
DOI: 10.1039/C2EM30132F

Potential impacts of disinfection processes on elimination and deactivation of antibiotic resistance genes during water and wastewater treatment
Michael C. Dodd
J. Environ. Monit., 2012, 14, 1754-1771
DOI: 10.1039/C2EM00006G

Contamination of Canadian and European bottled waters with antimony from PET containers
William Shotyk, Michael Krachler and Bin Chen
J. Environ. Monit., 2006, 8, 288-292
DOI: 10.1039/B517844B

Preparation and measurement methods for studying nanoparticle aggregate surface chemistry
Christopher Szakal, James A. McCarthy, Melissa S. Ugelow, Andrew R. Konicek, Kacie Louis, Benjamin Yezer, Andrew A. Herzing, Robert J. Hamers and R. David Holbrook
J. Environ. Monit., 2012, 14, 1914-1925
DOI: 10.1039/C2EM30048F

A novel passive water sampler for in situ sampling of antibiotics
Chang-Er Chen, Hao Zhang and Kevin C. Jones
J. Environ. Monit., 2012, 14, 1523-1530
DOI: 10.1039/C2EM30091E

Impact of agglomeration and different dispersions of titanium dioxide nanoparticles on the human related in vitro cytotoxicity and genotoxicity
Zuzana Magdolenova, Dagmar Bilaničová, Giulio Pojana, Lise M Fjellsbø, Alexandra Hudecova, Katarina Hasplova, Antonio Marcomini and Maria Dusinska
J. Environ. Monit., 2012, 14, 455-464
DOI: 10.1039/C2EM10746E

Chromium fractionation and speciation in natural waters
Catarinie Diniz Pereira, João Gabriel Techy, Edgard Moreira Ganzarolli and Sueli Pércio Quináia
J. Environ. Monit., 2012, 14, 1559-1564
DOI: 10.1039/C2EM10949B

Sensitive immunoassay detection of multiple environmental chemicals on protein microarrays using DNA/dye conjugate as a fluorescent label
Ziyan Fan, Young Soo Keum, Qing X. Li, Weilin L. Shelver and Liang-Hong Guo
J. Environ. Monit., 2012, 14, 1345-1352
DOI: 10.1039/C2EM10956E

Indoor air in schools and lung function of Austrian school children
Peter Wallner, Michael Kundi, Hanns Moshammer, Kathrin Piegler, Philipp Hohenblum, Sigrid Scharf, Marina Fröhlich, Bernhard Damberger, Peter Tappler and Hans-Peter Hutter
J. Environ. Monit., 2012, 4, 1976-1982
DOI: 10.1039/C2EM30059A

Why not take a look at the articles today and blog your thoughts and comments below.

Fancy submitting an article to JEM? Then why not submit to us today or alternatively email us your suggestions.

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JEM’s top cited papers from 2009 and 2010

To celebrate last month’s release of the 2011 Impact Factors, we are making some of our best content free to access.

The collection brings together the 20 top cited  Journal of Environmental Monitoring papers from 2009 and 2010.

View the collection here.

All the articles are free to access for a limited time, following a simple registration for individual users.

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HOT article: the effects of the Ajka red mud spill on test species

This HOT article from Orsolya Klebercz and co-workers from Hungary and the UK discusses the ecotoxicity of fluvial sediments that resulted from the spillage of bauxite processing residue (red mud) in Ajka, Hungary.

The team carried out physico-chemical analyses on a number of samples taken from sites downstream of the spill. Biological characterisation and ecotoxicity testing was also carried out on a number of test species, including the Vibrio fischeri luminescence inhibition test, the Sinapis alba root and shoot growth inhibition test and the Heterocypris incongruens mortality test.

Adverse effects were recorded across a range of trophic levels at the different sample sites, although the microbial activity was shown to have increased. Lemna minor was shown to be a useful test species when assessing the impact of red mud contamination.

Read more about the study here – the paper is free to access for 4 weeks:

Ecotoxicity of fluvial sediments downstream of the Ajka red mud spill, Hungary
Orsolya Klebercz, William M. Mayes, Áron Dániel Anton, Viktória Feigl, Adam P. Jarvis and Katalin Gruiz
DOI: 10.1039/C2EM30155E

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Our content, straight to your inbox

Did you know that following a simple sign up, you could receive our table-of-contents e-alerts straight to your inbox? Once subscribed, you’ll receive your requested journals’ alerts each issue, meaning that you’ll never miss important research again!

Register today, and receive notification of great content like the below, quickly and easily.

Paper
Characterization and environmental implications of nano- and larger TiO2 particles in sewage sludge, and soils amended with sewage sludge
Bojeong Kim, Mitsuhiro Murayama, Benjamin P. Colman and Michael F. Hochella
J. Environ. Monit., 2012, 14, 1129-1137
DOI: 10.1039/C2EM10809G

Focus
Bioaerosol exposure assessment in the workplace: the past, present and recent advances
Wijnand Eduard, Dick Heederik, Caroline Duchaine and Brett James Green
J. Environ. Monit., 2012, 14, 334-339
DOI: 10.1039/C2EM10717A

Paper
Quantitation of persistent organic pollutants adsorbed on plastic debris from the Northern Pacific Gyre’s “eastern garbage patch”
Lorena M. Rios, Patrick R. Jones, Charles Moore and Urja V. Narayan
J. Environ. Monit., 2010, 12, 2226-2236
DOI: 10.1039/C0EM00239A

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HOT article: Measuring the deposition of polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons

This week’s HOT article is by Dieter Gladtke from the Landesamt für Natur, Umwelt und Verbraucherschutz Nordrhein-Westfalen and co-workers. In their paper, they present different collector types, sample workup procedures and analysis methods to measure the deposition of polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAH).

Whilst workup procedures and analysis methods had no effect on the results, the team found that using different collectors did have an influence. For compliance with European legislation, funnel–bottle combinations were shown to be the best, with the highest deposition rates and a low measurement uncertainty.

Different collector types for sampling deposition of polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons – comparison of measurement results and their uncertainty
Dieter Gladtke, Frits Bakker, Hugues Biaudet, Alexandra Brennfleck, Peter Coleman, Harald Creutznacher, Ben F. Van Egmond, Theo Hafkenscheid, Frank Hahne, Marc M. Houtzager, Eva Leoz-Garziandia, Edoardo Menichini, Anja Olschewski and Thomas Remesch
DOI: 10.1039/C2EM30119A

This HOT article is free to access for the next four weeks following a simple registration for individual users.

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JEM Emerging Investigators 2012

Our latest issue is dedicated to Emerging Investigators – highlighting the research of the best and brightest young minds in environmental science and engineering. This is the third year we have produced an issue dedicated to new researchers to the field, and we are delighted that 2010 Emerging Investigators David Cwiertny and Tamar Kohn guest edited this issue with us.

David Cwiertny and Tamar Kohn discuss the unique nature of the young environmental science field in their editorial and the challenges facing new researchers, from marketing work to funding agencies to communicating science to the public.

The issue contains plenty of HOT research, including fluvial transport of arsenic, groundwater contamination at an ex-uranium mine, Cr VI formation during chlorination of drinking water, interactions of organic matter and gold nanoparticles, effect of water treatment on antibiotic resistance and improving the measurement accuracy for water-soluble composition of PM2.5.

View the rest of the issue here

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Top ten most accessed articles in May

This month sees the following articles in the Journal of Environmental Monitoring that are in the top ten most accessed:

Radioactive fallout in the United States due to the Fukushima nuclear plant accident
P. Thakur, S. Ballard and R. Nelson
J. Environ. Monit., 2012, 14, 1317-1324
DOI: 10.1039/C2EM11011C

Potential impacts of disinfection processes on elimination and deactivation of antibiotic resistance genes during water and wastewater treatment
Michael C. Dodd
J. Environ. Monit., 2012, 14, 1754-1771
DOI: 10.1039/C2EM00006G

The release of engineered nanomaterials to the environment
Fadri Gottschalk and Bernd Nowack
J. Environ. Monit., 2011, 13, 1145-1155
DOI: 10.1039/C0EM00547A

Environmental and biological monitoring of benzene in traffic policemen, police drivers and rural outdoor male workers
Manuela Ciarrocca, Francesco Tomei, Tiziana Caciari, Assunta Capozzella, Lara Scimitto, Nadia Nardone, Giorgia Andreozzi, Barbara Scala, Maria Fiaschetti, Carlotta Cetica, Valeria Di Giorgio, Maria Pia Schifano, Gianfranco Tomei and Angela Sancini
J. Environ. Monit., 2012, 14, 1542-1550
DOI: 10.1039/C2EM30120B

Characterization and environmental implications of nano- and larger TiO2 particles in sewage sludge, and soils amended with sewage sludge
Bojeong Kim, Mitsuhiro Murayama, Benjamin P. Colman and Michael F. Hochella
J. Environ. Monit., 2012, 14, 1129-1137
DOI: 10.1039/C2EM10809G

Distribution and risk assessment of organochlorine contaminants in surface water from River Chenab, Pakistan
Syed Ali-Musstjab-Akber-Shah Eqani, Riffat Naseem Malik, Athanasios Katsoyiannis, Gan Zhang, Paromita Chakraborty, Ashiq Mohammad and Kevin C. Jones
J. Environ. Monit., 2012, 14, 1645-1654
DOI: 10.1039/C2EM11012A

The antibacterial effects of engineered nanomaterials: implications for wastewater treatment plants
Ndeke Musee, Melusi Thwala and Nomakhwezi Nota
J. Environ. Monit., 2011, 13, 1164-1183
DOI: 10.1039/C1EM10023H

Planning for sustainability in China’s urban development: Status and challenges for Dongtan eco-city project
Hefa Cheng and Yuanan Hu
J. Environ. Monit., 2010, 12, 119-126
DOI: 10.1039/B911473D

Quantitation of persistent organic pollutants adsorbed on plastic debris from the Northern Pacific Gyre’s “eastern garbage patch”
Lorena M. Rios, Patrick R. Jones, Charles Moore and Urja V. Narayan
J. Environ. Monit., 2010, 12, 2226-2236
DOI: 10.1039/C0EM00239A

Assessment of particulate matter in the urban atmosphere: size distribution, metal composition and source characterization using principal component analysis
Burcu Onat, Ülkü Alver Şahin and Cuma Bayat
J. Environ. Monit., 2012, 4, 1400-1409
DOI: 10.1039/C2EM10792A

Why not take a look at the articles today and blog your thoughts and comments below.

Fancy submitting an article to JEM? Then why not submit to us today or alternatively email us your suggestions.

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