RESUMO
O combate às mudanças climáticas requer ações coletivas e através de uma nova governança que integre a sustentabilidade e gere valor compartilhado no longo prazo. Considerando o cenário do saneamento e o potencial de atração de investimentos existe uma relação simbiótica entre saneamento e desenvolvimento econômico. O ESG pode ser utilizado como ferramenta de gestão de riscos e como diretriz de comunicação às partes interessadas por organizações. Por meio de pesquisa exploratória de caráter aplicado, esse estudo desenvolveu critérios para avaliação do engajamento das companhias estaduais de saneamento com relação ao ESG. Os resultados indicam diferentes status de engajamento, diferentes metodologias e grandes oportunidades de melhoria no setor. A maioria das companhias estaduais não reporta seus dados não financeiros de forma sistemática e transparente. Os critérios apresentados podem ser utilizados por agências ambientais, fiscalizadoras e para tomada de decisão por diferentes instituições.
Climate change combating demands collective actions through a new governance which integrates sustainability and generates shared value in the long term. Considering sanitation scenario and the potential of investments attraction, there is an symbiotic relation between sanitation and economic development. The ESG criteria can be used as a tool for risk management and as a communication guidance for stakeholders. This study was developed through exploratory applied research and has proposed criteria to assess engagement of state sanitation companies regarding ESG (environmental, social and governance) standards. Results indicated different engagement status, different methodologies being applied and huge improvement opportunities in the sanitation sector. Most of the companies does not report non finance data in a systematic and transparent way. Criteria presented in this work may be used by environmental and enforcement agencies and for decision making at different institutions.
Assuntos
Mudança Climática , Empresas de Saneamento Básico , Saneamento Básico , Indicadores de Desenvolvimento Sustentável , Nascentes Naturais , Administração FinanceiraRESUMO
A new monotypic genus of freshwater snail from late Holocene spring deposits in Viesca, Coahuila (Mexico), is described based on shell morphology. Spinopyrgus luismaedai n. gen. et n. sp. has two to three carinate shells with long and wide shovel-shaped spines, strong axial ridges and a pointed protoconch. All sculptural ornamentations on the teleoconch are part of the calcareous shell material and not projections of the periostracum. This combination of shell features and their almost marine-like appearance is unknown among North American recent and fossil freshwater snails. Because of its shell characteristics, we placed the new genus tentatively in the Cochliopidae. The springs of Viesca dried up in the second half of the 20th century so that any living occurrence of this species in neighboring areas is unlikely, rendering the new genus and species possibly extinct.
Assuntos
Nascentes Naturais , Caramujos , Animais , Fósseis , Água Doce , MéxicoRESUMO
A computational simulation of alpha-particle expansion, emitted by 222Rn naturally diluted in the water of a spring located in the state of Puebla Mexico, is presented. This simulation provided information on the volume of expansion of the alpha particles in the vicinity of the spring and thus awareness if there was a radiological risk for the users or the population that lived near to it. Before performing the simulation, several measurements were made to water samples with a dynamic measurement system. This in order to know the level of radon concentration and compare the results obtained with the levels recommended by the United States Environmental Protection Agency (US-EPA) and the World Health Organization (WHO). In addition, to know if there was a radiological risk due to the presence of gamma emitting radionuclides, complementary water analyses were carried out using gamma-ray spectrometry techniques. The simulation was developed using the scientific software of particle interaction with matter, Geant4. The different variables declared for the software parameters are presented in this document. The results of the radon measurements in the water and the computational simulation, determined that there was no radiological risk due to alpha radiation. Furthermore, the results from the gamma-ray spectrometer showed that there was no presence of other hazardous radionuclides in the water.
Assuntos
Água Potável , Nascentes Naturais , Monitoramento de Radiação , Radônio , Poluentes Radioativos da Água , Partículas alfa , Água Potável/análise , México , Monitoramento de Radiação/métodos , Radioisótopos/análise , Radônio/análise , Estados Unidos , Poluentes Radioativos da Água/análiseRESUMO
A thousand years ago, a population of Ancestral Puebloans occupied a high desert canyon in northwestern New Mexico, USA, where precipitation was limited and surface water scarce. Geological conditions, however, seem favorable for the production of a large Hypocrene springs system near the south canyon walls sufficient to have produced a groundwater ecosystem favorable for agriculture, tree growth, and human occupancy. A human-induced ecological impact is suggested as contributing to the dewatering of the springs, eventually reducing local agricultural production and, presumably, the suitability of Chaco Canyon for human occupancy.
Assuntos
Água Subterrânea , Nascentes Naturais , Agricultura , Ecossistema , Humanos , New MexicoRESUMO
This paper classifies the karst landscapes of the Petén Plateau and defines the Mirador-Calakmul Karst Basin by illustrating the distribution of its karst hydrologic features. Archaeological and spatial research of the Mirador-Calakmul area of Guatemala and Mexico has shown it to be a karst basin with geopolitical implications. Current research characterizes the karst landscapes of the Petén Plateau, maps the distribution of karst hydrologic features, and delineates the basin in geomorphological terms. To further this aim, multiple forms of remote sensing data including orthophotographs, a satellite Digital Elevation Model, satellite multispectral images, and Light Detection and Ranging (LiDAR) data have been integrated to interpret the karst features in the study area. Outcrop study and thin section analysis of the upper Buena Vista Formation document that the dominant lithologies are a shallow water algal boundstone interbedded with terrestrial caliche. Karst landforms have been mapped over the Petén Plateau and we identify five karst landscapes, the largest of which is a fluviokarst landscape dominated by karst valleys. We further map karst hydrologic features including seasonal swamps, dolines, intermittent lakes, intermittent streams, solution-enhanced fractures, and springs all of which are characteristic of drainage basins. Boundaries of the karst basin are mapped from multiple lines of evidence including distribution of the karst valleys, a line of springs along the western boundary of the fluviokarst landscape, and a surface drainage analysis. We capture and classify hydrologic data points and develop a regional groundwater map that indicates subsurface flow from east to west within the basin. A drainage map illustrates the extensive system of karst valleys, boundaries, and inferred groundwater flow paths of the Mirador-Calakmul Karst Basin. It was within this geomorphological setting that the ancient Maya developed an extensive civilization during the Middle and Late Preclassic periods (1000 BCE-150 CE).
Assuntos
Monitoramento Ambiental/métodos , Sistemas de Informação Geográfica/estatística & dados numéricos , Água Subterrânea/análise , Nascentes Naturais/análise , Tecnologia de Sensoriamento Remoto/métodos , Rios/química , Guatemala , HidrologiaRESUMO
Environmental factors can promote phenotypic variation through alterations in the epigenome and facilitate adaptation of an organism to the environment. Although hydrogen sulfide is toxic to most organisms, the fish Poecilia mexicana has adapted to survive in environments with high levels that exceed toxicity thresholds by orders of magnitude. Epigenetic changes in response to this environmental stressor were examined by assessing DNA methylation alterations in red blood cells, which are nucleated in fish. Males and females were sampled from sulfidic and nonsulfidic natural environments; individuals were also propagated for two generations in a nonsulfidic laboratory environment. We compared epimutations between the sexes as well as field and laboratory populations. For both the wild-caught (F0) and the laboratory-reared (F2) fish, comparing the sulfidic and nonsulfidic populations revealed evidence for significant differential DNA methylation regions (DMRs). More importantly, there was over 80% overlap in DMRs across generations, suggesting that the DMRs have stable generational inheritance in the absence of the sulfidic environment. This is an example of epigenetic generational stability after the removal of an environmental stressor. The DMR-associated genes were related to sulfur toxicity and metabolic processes. These findings suggest that adaptation of P. mexicana to sulfidic environments in southern Mexico may, in part, be promoted through epigenetic DNA methylation alterations that become stable and are inherited by subsequent generations independent of the environment.
Assuntos
Metilação de DNA/genética , Epigênese Genética , Sulfeto de Hidrogênio/análise , Nascentes Naturais/química , Poecilia/genética , Animais , Feminino , Geografia , Masculino , México , Análise de Componente PrincipalRESUMO
A new asellotan isopod of the family Protojaniridae Fresi, Idato Scipione, 1980 is described from freshwater springs in the Osorno province, Los Lagos region, southern Chile. Wiyufiloides osornoensis gen. sp. n. is the third South American protojanirid species and the first known groundwater isopod in Chile. The new genus and species is principally characterized by the presence of a vestigial antennal scale, a strongly subchelate pereiopod I and the absence of an apical lobe on the protopod of pleopod II. The new taxon is described in detail and figures are given.
Assuntos
Água Subterrânea , Isópodes/anatomia & histologia , Isópodes/classificação , Nascentes Naturais , Animais , Chile , Água DoceRESUMO
Glacial and periglacial basins contain the largest reserves of fresh water in the world. These areas are extremely sensitive to global warming and climate change. The dry Andes of South America are characterized by large periglacial areas. This study focuses on the water isotopic composition and hydrochemistry of a typical periglacial environment of the Andes, in the Vallecitos catchment (2400-5500 m a.s.l.), Cordillera Frontal, Argentina. Detailed fieldwork was conducted between 2013 and 2017 with 240 samples collected for major ions and physicochemical parameters, and 67 samples analysed for 2H and 18O. The chemical composition of precipitation is typical Ca-HCO3, while streams and groundwaters are Ca-MgSO4 type. The isotope content of precipitation shows a wide dispersion. The snow samples are in general more depleted than the rainfall. Some springs vary their composition seasonally, associated to the melting of perennial snow patches. In general, all samples from the upper basin present depleted isotope contents related to recharge at higher altitudes, whereas samples from the lower basin show more enriched values. Intermediate compositions reflect the melting of snow and degrading ice-rich permafrost. These results will give a better understanding of the dynamics of water to manage water resources.
Assuntos
Monitoramento Ambiental/métodos , Água Subterrânea/química , Chuva/química , Rios/química , Neve/química , Recursos Hídricos/provisão & distribuição , Altitude , Argentina , Mudança Climática , Deutério/análise , Nascentes Naturais/química , Isótopos de Oxigênio/análise , Pergelissolo/químicaRESUMO
O estudo visa disponibilizar aos órgãos de saúde informações sobre a circulação viral nas diferentes áreas do território avaliado, aumentando a compreensão da dinâmica viral na epidemia e auxiliando na tomada de decisão das medidas de distanciamento, além de fornecer elementos que contribuam para a investigação da hipótese de transmissão fecal-oral ou fecal-respiratória. Trata-se de um projeto multicêntrico, colaborativo, que conta com a participação de pesquisadores das Universidades Feevale e UFRGS e também do serviço público nas esferas federal, estadual e municipal - representando Fundação Oswaldo Cruz - FIOCRUZ, Centro Estadual de Vigilância em Saúde - CEVS, Fundação Estadual de Proteção Ambiental - FEPAM, Departamento Municipal de Água e Esgotos- DMAE e Secretaria Municipal do Meio Ambiente e da Sustentabilidade - SMAMS de Porto Alegre e Secretaria Municipal de Saúde de Novo Hamburgo nesta primeira etapa do projeto. (AU)
Assuntos
Humanos , Monitoramento Ambiental , Infecções por Coronavirus/prevenção & controle , Pandemias , Betacoronavirus/isolamento & purificação , Estações de Tratamento de Águas Residuárias/análise , Estações de Bombeamento/análise , Infecções por Coronavirus/transmissão , Infecções por Coronavirus/epidemiologia , Nascentes Naturais/análiseRESUMO
O estudo visa disponibilizar aos órgãos de saúde informações sobre a circulação viral nas diferentes áreas do território avaliado, aumentando a compreensão da dinâmica viral na epidemia e auxiliando na tomada de decisão das medidas de distanciamento, além de fornecer elementos que contribuam para a investigação da hipótese de transmissão fecal-oral ou fecal-respiratória. Trata-se de um projeto multicêntrico, colaborativo, que conta com a participação de pesquisadores das Universidades Feevale e UFRGS e também do serviço público nas esferas federal, estadual e municipal - representando Fundação Oswaldo Cruz - FIOCRUZ, Centro Estadual de Vigilância em Saúde - CEVS, Fundação Estadual de Proteção Ambiental - FEPAM, Departamento Municipal de Água e Esgotos- DMAE e Secretaria Municipal do Meio Ambiente e da Sustentabilidade - SMAMS de Porto Alegre e Secretaria Municipal de Saúde de Novo Hamburgo nesta primeira etapa do projeto. (AU)