Raising environmental awareness through art projects

The paper analyzes the importance of actively raising awareness about the significance of ecology and the preservation of our environment through various art forms. The role they play in the process is an important one, both in terms of educating the younger, and raising awareness among the older generations about environmental issues. Art strives for the preservation of culture and cultural heritage, and represents a permanent record of a certain age, a way of life, the social and political circumstances, human opinions, and socially relevant topics. Ranging from architecture, as the most frequently used type of art, via literature and film, to music which reaches the widest of audiences, it can convey any message to the greatest number of people, and each art form can give its own contribution to environmental issues. Socially engaged art is a frequent occurrence. Throughout history, art has been used as a call to rebellion, resistance, and change. Environmental topics have been increasingly more present in art over the past few decades, but are still not present enough. Great potential for the awakening of mankind in terms of the environmental challenges we are facing lies precisely in various art forms. Everyone has their own preference when it comes to art, which is why no art form should be neglected; instead, they should all be developed equally so as to encourage as many people as possible, spanning all generations, to consider the importance of environmental issues.

Human health risk assessment of industry impact in Kikinda industry zone

In industrial zones such as the municipality of Kikinda (presented in this manuscript) it is necessary to monitor environmental pollution and take measures to protect the environment from the effects of harmful polluting and toxic substances (especially from heavy metals). The risk assessment model developed by the US EPA was used to assess the health risks posed by emissions of heavy metals in the air in Kikinda industry zone. It can be concluded that no increased level of risk was identified from heavy metals content in the air from industry systems in the area of the industrial zone in Kikinda, however, it is necessary to apply preventive measures in order to reduce the accumulation of heavy metals in the environment due to activities that are constant in that area.

Assessment of sustainability and management for groundwater source in Erbil city

The issue of rationalizing water consumption and preserving it for future generations is one of the most important indicators of sustainable development referred to in the Agenda 21. This study aims to assess the sustainability of water resources for the city of Erbil in terms of quantity and quality. In this study, the amount of water available in the existing water sources was evaluated and compared with the volume of water demand. The reliability of water sources, especially groundwater, in the selected area was evaluated and confirmed. The study also focused on the management of groundwater by the concerned authorities and the identification of factors that help to develop the sustainability of these sources. The problems facing the management of groundwater and the proposed solutions to solve these problems were also identified. Due to the rapid growth of the populations and lack of both water demand and water supply system, Erbil City required a fundamental evaluation of water supply systems and good planning for future. However, in this study, the assessment was conducted based on the existing data and the accurate archived documents as well. As a result, the study concluded that there have been a lot of problems that should be taken into consideration in order to provide good managing of the groundwater system. It was also observed that there was slightly higher depletion in groundwater table due to poor supplying. This study can be used as a fundamental reference for future investigations especially for those areas having the same problems in sustainable management of the subsurface basins.

Applying mass balance dilution technique for wastewater disposal to Greater-Zab river in Erbil, Kurdistan region-Iraq

Treatment is essential for wastewaters prior to its disposal to the environment or water sources. Numerous wastewater treatment techniques are applied for the treatment of wastewater types. To date, dilution via mass balance approach has not been reported for treatment of various types of wastewaters in Erbil City, Kurdistan Region-Iraq. Consequently, the aim of this work was to examine the treatment of various types of wastewaters using dilution method by river water through applying mass balance approach. Characteristics of different types of wastewaters and Greater-Zab River water in Erbil City were studied. Slaughterhouse, tannery, municipal, landfill-leachate, dairy, and refinery wastewaters in Erbil City were used in the present work. Mass balance approach was applied to verify that dilution of various types of wastewaters using Greater-Zab river water. Dilution factor and required amount of river water were calculated. Temperature, biochemical oxygen demand (BOD), and Dissolved oxygen (DO) were studied using mass balance approach. Results revealed that dilution factor for Erbil wastewaters varied from 10.36 to 513.91. Mixing of wastewaters with Greater-Zab river water led to decreasing of DO in the river water by 3.525 % and increasing of BOD in the Greater-Zab River water. Dilution using various quantities of raw river water via applying mass balance approach resulted in decreasing the pollutants in the wastewaters to an acceptable level and it was regarded as a treatment process. Each type of wastewater needs a definite quantity of raw water for the treatment. Commonly, sedimentation is suggested prior dilution of wastewater with the Greater-Zab River water. Maximum discharge of 1,182 m3/s is sufficient for treatment of all mentioned types of wastewaters in Erbil City.

Characteristics, treatment techniques, and operational limitations for refinery wastewater: Review

Large quantities of wastewater generate from refineries in the process of crude oil usage, distillation, and cooling systems. The wastewater samples need to be treated before disposing into the environment. Disposal of the untreated refinery wastewater causes problems for the water sources and environment. The aim of this work was to study the characteristics, treatment techniques, and limitations of refinery wastewater treatment. A number of tables were prepared to summarize and review wastewater characteristics, treatment process, and the operational limitations. Results revealed that values of some parameters such as biochemical oxygen demand (BOD), chemical oxygen demand (COD), phenols, oil and grease, and total suspended solids (TSS) were 40.25 mg/L to 8,000 mg/L, 80 mg/L to 21,000 mg/L, 3.5 mg/L to 128 mg/L, 12.7 mg/L to 50,000 mg/L, and 22.8 to 2,580 mg/L, respectively. Numerous treatment technologies were used for the treatment of refinery wastewater. Treatment techniques have benefits, weaknesses, and operational limitations. Most amount of the TSS, oil and grease, organic materials are eliminated in the primary and secondary treatment units. Tertiary/Advanced treatment units are necessary for removal of the remaining portions of the contaminants, heavy metals, nitrogen compounds, and phosphorus. Combination of physical, chemical and biological treatment techniques increase removal efficiency of the contaminants.

Determination of circularity indicators: A case study of MB International Company

The circular economy (CE) is currently a worldwide popular concept that should ensure sustainable development and resource efficiency. It is established on the theory of consumption and use of resources in the process of production in a way that affects a limitation of adverse effects on the environment. Simultaneously, this concept creates additional value and reuse of the products. In the Republic of Serbia (RS), the idea of CE is still new and underdeveloped. Hence, this paper aims to explore the possibility of implementing a CE in companies that operate in the RS by adopting the already developed methodology in the European Union. This research was conducted by monitoring the production process in the company "MB INTERNACIONAL" that produced cardboard packaging. The obtained approximate value of Circular Indicator of this company was 0.47, which indicated that the company had excellent chances for full implementation of the CE model in the business with the application of specific measures. The low-budget and highbudget measures, which could improve the circularity level in the analyzed company, are also presented in the research.

Potential impact of COVID-19 pandemic lockdown on environmental parameters

COVID-19 had an impact on the daily life, human activities, various sectors, and the environment. Accordingly, the aim of this research was to examine the effect of the COVID-19 pandemic lockdown (COVID-19 PL) on the environmental parameters. The studied environmental parameters were solid waste, noise, air, water, wastewater (WW), soil and green areas, natural environment and resources, light pollution, radiation pollution, energy and others. The main environmental issues were divided into seventy sub-parameters. Results revealed that COVID-19 PL increased a number of parameters, such as domestic and hospital wastes, noise at home, aquatic life and water quality, domestic WW amount, green areas, animal and birds movement, natural energy, rodents etc.; while, it decreased several factors for instance commercial/industrial solid waste, traffic and outdoor noises, air pollution and particles, water contamination, WW production, cutting trees and hunting, fuel extraction and mining, artificial light and radiation, fuel combustion, tourist etc. Alternatively, some parameters, such as black water, natural radiation, and normal lighting remained as before COVID-19 PL. Positive, nil, and negative impacts of the parameters on the environment due to COVID-19 PL were 81.43 %, 5.71 %, and 12.86 %, respectively. Positive impacts of the COVID-19 PL on the environment were greater than negative influences and lockdown was regarded as a respiration of the natural environment. Currently, prediction of seasonal impact on spreading COVID-19 is difficult.

Biowastes as a source of extracting chitin and chitosan for biomedical applications

Biomaterials are designed to interact with biological systems in aid to wound healing, regeneration of tissue, mechanical support, and drug delivery to eventually improve current therapeutic outcomes. The adoption of biomaterials is increasing constantly in health care practices by making it more biocompatible and non-toxic under physiological conditions. These adoptions have been associated with improvements in therapeutic outcomes across the population, however, the dosage of therapeutics needed to successfully treat a disease is generally different for each individual and relies a lot on experiences of consultant doctors. Many times, it leads to human errors in deciding on drug doses, un-fit implants and explants and eventually adverse effects or less positive effects. The personalized medicine and devices bring forth the idea that the medicine should be tailored for a patient based on various characteristics, such as gender, age, genetic makeup, and lifestyle. These personalized medicine approaches include type of drugs, activation methods, nanoassemblies, biomedical devices, etc. Among these approaches, personalized biomedical devices have become popular with the advent of 3D printing technologies, which can make customized implants for each patient with minimum price, limited time, and high accuracy. Personalized biomedicine also involves designing of drug to cater the need of an individual with minimum side effects. In this review an effort has been made to introduce different aspects of customized biomedical agents like therapeutic biomolecules, nanomedicine, implants, and explants. This comprehensive review of literature indicates that use of 3D printing technology in producing drug releasing, biodegradable personalized implants could be better therapeutic solution for a range of medical conditions.

Assessment of composting processes in an automated aerobic fermentation system based on key parameters

The poultry (broiler) industry is continuously increasing all over the world, therefore, the amount of waste generated in these facilities is also increasing. As a consequence of the above mentioned, the more efficient conversion of chicken manure to organic fertilizer is a key problem. The aims of the study are to investigate the changes in temperature and moisture content during composting of chicken manure in the oval tank fermentation system and to create a model for the evaluation of the performance of biodegradation processes. The moisture and temperature distribution models of the oval tank were created in Hydrus software. The results showed that the oval tank fermenter can be divided into two main zones. In the first zone, where the rate of biodegradation was relatively high, a heterogeneous temperature zone was found with continuously decreasing moisture content. The second zone was more homogenous in both temperature and moisture content. This stage represents the weak fermentation part of the technology and results in an elongated post fermentation section. Furthermore, statistically significant correlations were found between composting key parameters, such as ammonium content with temperature and organic matter content with organic nitrogen content. It was also concluded that the exact location of the manure turning and chopping mechanical system (MTCM) used for aeration had a high effect on the composting processes, as well as on the quality parameters of the mature compost.

Ecological dimension of PESTEL analysis in small enterprises in the Republic of Serbia

Strategic decision-making seeks to analyze the external environment in which business organizations operate. External environmental factors are analyzed and monitored using PESTEL analysis. PESTEL analysis provides insight into organization's business opportunities and threats, in order to rapidly adapt to new market conditions. The objective of this paper is to present the use and the importance of PESTEL model for the analysis of ecological factors in business environment. The most common challenges of environmental analysis, and examples of positive practice from the Republic of Serbia, are presented in this paper. The paper represents a professional contribution to the business community, specifically, it helps organizations to improve their ecological performances through more efficient use of opportunities and elimination of threats arising from ecological factors.