This study examines extreme temperature events in mainland Portugal, specifically maximum daily temperatures. The data was obtained from ERA5-Land hourly temperature in the period from Oct/1981 to Sep/2023 (42 hydrological years). The study area comprehends 1012 ERA5-Land grid points, approximately covering mainland Portugal, a country located in the Iberian Peninsula and bordered in the north and east by Spain and in the south and west by the Atlantic Ocean. To identify the extreme events, temperature thresholds were defined based on the empirical quantiles of 90.0, 99.0, and 99.9% of the global set of daily maximum temperatures for the entire country and period of analysis (exceeding 15 million values). The nationwide thresholds ensur the comparability of extreme daily temperatures across all the grid-points. The analysis period was divided into two sub-periods of 21 years each: from 1981/1982 to 2001/2002 (late period) and from 2002/2003 to 2022/2023 (recent period). For each of periods (global and sub-periods) and quantiles, the mean daily temperature above the threshold was computed per grid point and made dimensionless by division by the corresponding nationwide quantile. The mean annual number of days with extreme temperatures was also computed. The t-Student test was applied to compare the mean daily temperatures above the threshold in the sub-periods. Regardless the period, the mean annual number of days with exceptional temperatures was higher for the lowest quantile, up to 90 days/year, while for the highest quantile it was less than 5 days/year. The spatial patterns showed more daily occurrences in the southern regions, and fewer in the northern and coastal ones. The results from the t-Student test revealed a statistically significant increase in the mean daily maximum temperatures above the threshold towards the present for most grid points, especially for the highest quantiles. These findings emphasize the need for effective risk mitigation strategies to adapt to changing climatic conditions.

The growing disconnection between people, economic activities, and natural ecosystems weakens the relationship with the environment and its intrinsic value. In the face of climate, energy, and biodiversity crises, it is essential to seek new approaches to mitigate the negative effects of human practices. This study intends to evaluate the integration of artificial reefs implemented in two ways: in-water (ARIW) and out-of-water (AROW). ARIW has the function of protecting ecosystems and promoting biodiversity, while AROW acts as a decorative consumer good, financing ARIW and increasing consumers' environmental awareness. In addition, ARIW can be designed with sensors to monitor aquatic habitats and incorporated into bioactive systems to contribute to water management and purification in hydrological systems.

The objectives include evaluating how artificial reefs with biological and aesthetic characteristics influence communities' connection to water ecosystems and increase environmental awareness, examining the viability and durability of the materials used to produce the reefs, and developing guidelines for implementing replicable reefs in different ecological systems and water bodies. The methodology covers a literature review, material selection, digital modeling, and prototype iteration, with the support of experts in aquatic biology. This project aims at demonstrating how design can be a catalyst for sustainable value chains and innovative business models, promoting conscious consumption, water management, and environmental conservation.

Acknowledgments: Calheiros C.S.C. is thankful to Strategic Funding UIDB/04423/2020, UIDP/04423/2020, and LA/P/0101/2020 through national funds provided by FCT.

Constructed wetlands (CWs) are engineered systems, considered a nature-based solution (NBS), that are inspired and mimic many processes (physical, biological, and chemical) and functions that occur in natural wetlands. CIRQUA-Integrated Approaches at Local Scale for Enhancing Water Reuse Efficiency and Sustainable Soil Fertilization from Wastewater’s Recovered Nutrients is a project that aims to improve NBS, focusing on CWs for wastewater treatment and water recovery in rural areas. The aim is to upgrade CWs using technological achievements, such as innovative nanostructured filters and photocatalytic modules, sensors and automation in operation, precision irrigation principles, and the integration of advanced artificial intelligence (AI) tools. These innovative technological achievements are being implemented in a case study in Portugal through the upgrading of an existing polyculture horizontal subsurface flow CW, in a rural area for the wastewater treatment of a tourism house. The CW was designed to act as secondary biological treatment, being placed after a previously installed septic tank. Wastewater quality assessment and biodiversity characterization are being carried out in order to evaluate the upgrading of the system. Acknowledgments: This study integrates the project entitled “Integrated Approaches at Local Scale for Enhancing Water Reuse Efficiency and Sustainable Soil Fertilization from Wastewater’s Recovered Nutrients”, grant agreement No. 2321, Call 2023 Section 1 Management of Water IA, part of the PRIMA programme supported by the European Union. The PRIMA programme is supported under Horizon 2020, the European Union’s Framework Programme for Research and Innovation. Authors affiliated with CIIMAR are thankful for the Strategic Funding UIDB/04423/2020, UIDP/04423/2020, and LA/P/0101/2020 through national funds provided by FCT.

Water is an essential element for life; thus, its quality is a key marker of both an individual's and society's overall well-being. In the last century, this environmental factor has become a vulnerable resource; therefore, its management and protection have become top priorities worldwide. Global population increase and agricultural and industrial activities have made a substantial contribution to water contamination. Mining activities in Romania, particularly during the socialist era, have left a significant “legacy” of environmental pollution, especially regarding substantial mining wastewater contamination. Tailings ponds and abandoned mines continue to be major environmental hazards even today. In this context, there is a need to support eco-initiatives that promote a clean environment and mining wastewater decontamination challenges through the use of “green solutions”.

This study aimed to prepare and characterize new magnetic core–shell nanoparticles coated with functionalized eco-friendly polymers. The new nanostructures were investigated by Fourier-transform infrared spectroscopy, transmission and scanning electron microscopy, thermogravimetry and magnetization measurements and afterwards were used for the removal of heavy metals from both batch solutions and mining wastewater samples. The heavy metal concentrations were determined by atomic absorption spectroscopy, and the nanomaterials’ adsorption capacities/mechanisms were also studied. The high heavy metal removal efficiencies (>80%) obtained indicate the need for newly developed magnetic nanostructures for further applications in the field of wastewater treatment.

Lahore, Pakistan's second-largest city, faces significant public health risks due to groundwater contamination in its over-exploited aquifers, which serve as the primary water source for municipal and domestic use. This study introduces a novel, integrated approach to assess groundwater quality across Lahore district, combining geospatial analysis, geostatistics, and multi-criteria evaluation of water quality indices. The research aims to identify spatial patterns of key contaminants, assess their impact on water potability, and evaluate potential remediation strategies. The methodology integrates Geographic Information Systems (GIS) with Multi-Criteria Decision Analysis (MCDA) and water quality indexing. Expert-driven Analytic Hierarchy Process (AHP) was employed to assign weights to various water quality parameters, with arsenic receiving the highest priority (weight 0.28), followed by total dissolved solids (0.22) and hardness (0.15). The GIS-based weighted overlay analysis revealed critical quality hotspots, particularly in urban-industrial areas such as Lahore Cantt, Model Town, and parts of Lahore City, where water quality index values exceeded 150, indicating very poor quality. These findings align with reports of uncontrolled industrial effluent discharge contributing to aquifer contamination. Scenario modeling demonstrated that a 30% reduction in heavy metals, particularly arsenic, could improve water quality indices by up to 20.71% in severely affected areas like Shalimar. Simulations of advanced water treatment processes indicated potential arsenic reduction exceeding 95%, highlighting the need for sophisticated oxidation and filtration infrastructure. This integrated approach offers a powerful decision support tool for visualizing complex contamination patterns, assessing remediation options, and prioritizing risk-mitigation investments. It provides urban planners and water management authorities with crucial insights for developing targeted groundwater quality restoration strategies, including the strategic placement of treatment facilities, improvements in drainage infrastructure, and the implementation of stricter pollutant discharge regulations. The framework's adaptability makes it applicable to other regions facing similar groundwater contamination challenges, offering a robust methodology for data synthesis and quantitative scenario modeling to address widespread water quality issues.

Ibuprofen is a contaminant of emerging concern (CEC) released into the environment that, due to its overconsumption and low degradation, accumulates in ecosystems. Additionally, conventional wastewater treatment methods are characterized by high energy consumption, greenhouse gas emissions and costs, and the risk of secondary contamination, and they are not effective in removing CECs. In this context, adsorption has emerged as an effective and simple technique that is widely used in water treatment to remove various types of contaminants. This work aimed to study the potential of alginate spheres containing activated carbon for the removal of ibuprofen from aqueous solutions and treated wastewater spiked with the drug. Kinetic assays were carried with different initial concentrations of ibuprofen and three desorption solvents were evaluated: ethanol, methanol, and HCl 0.2M. Ibuprofen quantification was carried out at 222 nm by UV--Vis spectroscopy and reversed-phase HPLC. The spheres showed substantial adsorption capacities around 20 mg/g with high ibuprofen concentrations but also a significant adsorption ability with low mg/L concentrations. For desorption, methanol and ethanol were the most suitable solvents with both achieving a desorption ratio of 100%. Cycles of adsorption/desorption revealed the material maintained its ibuprofen removal capacity after desorption with both solvents. Furthermore, removal superior to 90% was achieved for ibuprofen concentrations close to those found in real environments when using laboratory aqueous solution or wastewater-treated effluent as a matrix. This study indicates alginate spheres containing activated carbon as a sustainable adsorbent material for ibuprofen at concentrations similar to those found in samples of environmental relevance and using a matrix of the wastewater treatment plant effluent. Moreover, the adsorption capacity was maintained after desorption with both ethanol and methanol. In the future, more studies will be conducted to transfer the technology format from batch to fixed-bed column.

Flooding is a significant natural hazard affecting millions of people worldwide, with both fluvial (accumulated rainfall as river runoff) and pluvial (accumulated rainfall directly ponding in the floodplain) sources contributing to the inundation risk of an area. Recently, Davao City, a city with a vast land area spanning Mt Apo in the Philippines, experienced severe flooding on January 16~19, 2024, and January 31, 2024. It not only caused aggravated flooding in low-lying areas but also triggered other related hazards in the city, affecting 214,100 families in the entire area. Traditional flood modeling approaches often focus on fluvial and sometimes on pluvial flooding being modeled separately, neglecting the interactions between these two or more flood drivers, often leading to less accurate flood representations. Hence, this study suggests an integrated methodology for fluvial and pluvial compound flooding, aiming to enhance a better comprehension of the dynamics of flood risk within mixed forested and urban settings. This includes the analysis of the flood morphology employed by using (QGIS) in isolated cases of fluvial and pluvial and its combined scenarios in varying return periods (5, 10, 25, 50, and 100) to assess its impact on the flood inundation of an area. The research utilizes a hydrologic-hydraulic modeling framework to simulate fluvial, pluvial, and combined flooding processes through (HEC-RAS) to estimate the depth and extent of flood waters over an area and verify its results with historical flood events. The results concluded a very pronounced flood-impact zones in combined scenarios due to the effect on water volume and flood depth Hence, the proposed methodology highlights the urgency of understanding flood behavior as experienced by recent flood events to be better prepared for the potential of future multi-hazard risks exacerbated by the changing environment we have nowadays.

Bisphenol A (BPA) is an endocrine-disrupting chemical recognized by its inherent toxicity that has been found in the effluent of wastewater treatment plants. Thus, there is an urgent need for decontamination processes targeting wastewater effluent containing BPA. In this work, we combined previous experience using adsorbent materials [1] and catalytic systems [2] to tackle this challenge.

The aim of this study was to implement a combined process for BPA water removal using alginate spheres containing activated carbon (AS-AC), followed by its enzymatic degradation using Laccase as the enzymatic system. For this, AS-AC were prepared as before [1] and tested as adsorbent material for the water removal of 5 mg/L of BPA for 24 h at room temperature. Desorption assays were achieved using ethanol for 24h and followed up by enzymatic catalysis of desorbed BPA with the Laccase enzyme for 24h at room temperature. The quantification of BPA was carried out using a reverse-phase HPLC analytical system containing a C18 column.

The AS-AC were shown to be an efficient material for the removal of BPA from an aqueous solution, attaining removal rates above 90%. The desorption of BPA from the AS-AC using ethanol was achieved with a desorption rate of 60%. And, finally, total degradation of the desorbed BPA was achieved with Laccase in the presence of ethanol, which suggests the efficiency of this enzyme in transforming the pollutant.

In conclusion, it was possible to demonstrate that the sequential combination of different approaches such as adsorption, desorption, and enzymatic degradation allows for BPA elimination from water, which could be very interesting for further applications. Still, the desorption process needs to be improved to obtain better efficiencies, and other emerging pollutants should also be investigated to understand the application spectrum of this system.

[1] Marques-da-Silva et al 2022 - https://doi.org/10.3390/pr10112300

[2] Lopes et al 2022 - DOI: 10.2174/1389203723666220704090416

This work investigates the chemical coagulation (CC) and electrocoagulation (EC) processes for polluted water treatment. Polluted synthetic water was prepared (pH = 7, 365─357 mg Pt-Co L^-1). Jar tests were conducted using aluminum sulfate as a coagulant (100 – 1600 mg Al₂(SO₄)₃ L^-1, pH = 4 – 9). The EC test was performed using a lab-scale device. The EC set-up was installed for the first time in the Sanitary and Environmental Engineering/ Uerj laboratory course. The students performed all the experiments. Aluminum electrode plates (15 x 3 x 2 cm) were connected in parallel, and a distance of 30 mm was maintained. The treatment performance was evaluated based on true color removals. Operating costs were calculated based on chemical utilization for CC (aluminum sulfate and sodium carbonate) and EC energy consumption under optimum conditions. Removal efficiencies of 94% and 88% were obtained in CC (pH = 7 and 800 mg Al₂(SO₄)₃ L^-1) and EC (pH = 7, 350 mA, and 40 min), respectively. The operating costs of CC and EC were estimated at 0.130 and 0.583 US$ m^-3. As expected, the EC process had higher operating expenses than the CC process. However, EC may be attractive in remote settlements since modular and efficient systems are needed to guarantee drinking water production. No chemicals are required in this process; the treatment is automated, and less sludge is generated. The utilization of alternative energy sources can increase EC's cost-effectiveness. Future studies will focus on integrating EC and membrane-based treatments in modular set-ups. Decentralized water treatments can promote safe potable water, sanitation, and hygiene (WASH) in remote sites. Safe WASH is a prerequisite to health and the development of resilient communities.

Title: Assessment of Groundwater Quality Status using Water Quality Index in National Industrial Zone, Rawat, Pakistan

Introduction: Groundwater is crucial for human consumption, agriculture, and industrial uses. Its widespread use in each sector of life makes it a life-saving component in society, but its quality and availability are seriously threatened by pollution and unnecessary usages, particularly industrial activities. In this regard, the National Industrial Zone (NIZ) in Rawat, Pakistan, was taken as the study area. So, we aimed to calculate the quality of water using a Geographic Information System (GIS)-based Water Quality Index (WQI) to address improvements and their implications for public health and the environment.

Methodology: This study involved analyzing 11 physicochemical parameters in groundwater samples from 38 locations within the NIZ. These parameters were evaluated against both national and international water quality standards. Furthermore, the obtained data were processed using GIS to create spatial distribution maps, which were then used to calculate the Water Quality Index (WQI) for the study area.

Results: The analysis revealed that a significant portion of the groundwater in the NIZ exceeded permissible limits for several parameters, including EC, TDS, hardness, and chloride. Specifically, the WQI results indicated that 63% of the groundwater samples fell into the poor-quality category. The spatial distribution maps highlighted areas with the highest levels of contamination. Despite these findings, some groundwater remained within acceptable quality levels and was deemed usable for certain applications.

Conclusion: The findings emphasized the urgency for enhanced regulatory frameworks, improved wastewater treatment, increased public awareness, and ultra-processing techniques at the industrial level to prevent further contamination of groundwater in NIZ. Additionally, sustainable water management practices are required for safeguarding groundwater resources and protecting public and environmental health.