Reclamation on the Cardinal River and Gregg River coal mines includes the construction of mine pit lakes connected to stream environments. Key physical, chemical and biological parameters of these “truck and shovel” lakes and their streams were investigated, and hypotheses regarding ecosystems and populations were tested. Findings include: Sphinx Lake and Pit Lake CD exhibit meromictic (partial-mixing) tendencies, but still function in a similar fashion to shallower, natural sub-alpine lakes. Elevated selenium concentrations as high as 16 ug/g (dry weight) were recorded in Rainbow trout (Oncorhynchus mykiss) eggs taken from gravid Sphinx Lake and Pit Lake CD fish. Potential detrimental effects associated with the bioaccumulation of selenium on fish reproduction were not observed. Stream water temperatures downstream of Sphinx Lake and Pit Lake CD were significantly warmer than in inlet streams and streams without pit lakes. Streambed concretions caused by calcite precipitation were documented and found to affect portions of the upper Gregg River basin. Remediation of this concretion is important for sustainability of trout populations. Aquatic communities including fish, invertebrates, zooplankton and aquatic plants are present in these pit lake systems. Athabasca Rainbow trout populations are self-propagating (spawning at the outlets) with higher densities downstream than there were prior to lake reclamation. The development of sub-alpine mine-pit lakes connected to the stream environment appears to be an appropriate and beneficial reclamation technique in this area. / xvi, 224 leaves : col. ill., map ; 28 cm

Population escalation in the developing world has been associated with increased poverty, food insecurity and environmental degradation. The situation in Rwanda, with 2.82% annual population increase is no exception. The objective of the present study was to investigate an innovative integrated system of sustainable production suitable for resource-poor rural farmers, the Integrated Rabbit–Fish–Rice (IRFR) system. The study was targeted towards contributing to Rwanda government’s goals of eradicating extreme poverty and hunger, enhancing food security as well as abating environmental degradation. Three experiments, were carried out between 2008 and 2010, and designed to fertilise pond water with rabbit droppings and boost phytoplankton production. We also used results from our previous study, conducted in 2005 in the same ponds and under similar experimental conditions, especially rabbit and fish species and age, fishpond dimensions, as well as the fertilisation mode. The fishpond effluent was re-used to irrigate rice fields rather than being discharged into the environment. This study advocated the potential adaptation of rabbits to wetland conditions and the role of rabbit droppings as organic fertilisers in providing a better environment for fish production. On-farm resources, including rabbit droppings, were the main source of nutrients in the system. The analysis of nutrient flow revealed that 27% N and 79% P of the total nitrogen and phosphorus in fertilizing input in fishponds were supplied by rabbit droppings only. Nile tilapia Oreochromis niloticus were able to recover 18.5–37.6% N and 16.9–34.3% P of the total nitrogen and phosphorus inputs, the rest being accumulated in the pond water and the sediment, making them useful for soil fertilisation. The re-use of nutrient-rich effluent in rice irrigation increased rice production, allowing a successful complete substitution of inorganic fertilisers. The irrigation also reduced environmental pollution as the water seeping through rice field was 31.8 and 83.3% less concentrated in total phosphorus and nitrite pollutants, respectively, than was the pond water. Economically, the IRFR generated up to 597% net return over that of the rice inorganically fertilised, thereby substantiating the sustainability of the system. Overall, it is concluded that the IRFR system works well, is readily applicable, and capable of high, diversified, and sustainable production on limited land. As such, the study demonstrates the potentialities of the IRFR system to contribute successfully to poverty reduction, and the enhancement of food security in rural areas. The system promises economic returns and is environmental friendly. The research recommends the optimal range of rabbit density, that is, 800–1200 rabbits per hectare of pond, and the best fish stocking density, that is, 3 fish.mˉ², for a sustainable IRFR culture system. / Thesis (Ph.D.)-University of KwaZulu-Natal, Pietermaritzburg, 2011.

Coal seams are commonly associated with poor quality water that requires treatment. Water treatment can be very expensive and can severely affect the profitability of mining projects. This study investigated the potential cultivation of Arthrospira maxima (Spirulina) in coal seam water to beneficiate coal seam water in order to effectively offset the water treatment cost. The study was conducted in Northern South Africa and formed part of a larger Coal Seam Water Beneficiation Project (CSWBP). The study consisted of laboratory based Flask Studies and outdoor High Rate Algal Pond Studies. The Flask Studies that were carried out in the on-site field laboratory, found that the coal seam water could provide a suitable medium for Spirulina cultivation. In addition, it was found that the optimal pH for the selected strain ranged between 9 - 10.5 and that the addition of excess iron, up to 100 times the concentration found in defined growth media such as Schlösser’s, to the culture media could enhance productivity. The High Rate Algal Pond Studies (HRAP) were carried out over a period of 18 months. The studies showed that the coal seam water at the CSWBP is a valuable resource that can reduce media costs by 50% without affecting productivity. In a study encompassing 334 days it was shown that heating the culture through plate heat exchangers would result in a significant increase in productivity and a heated productivity of 19.86 g/m2/day was recorded. An unheated productivity of 14.11 g/m2/day was recorded. Therefore, it was found that it would be economically feasible to beneficiate coal seam water found at the CSWBP through the cultivation of Arthrospira maxima (Spirulina). / Environmental Sciences / M. Sc. (Environmental Science)

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Que l’on soit un simple promeneur ou un fin observateur, l’eau est présente partout. Pourtant, l’atout qu’elle représente pour les activités anthropiques cache souvent sa réalité environnementale, celle de son cycle. Ce constat se reflète dans l’appréhension juridique de l’eau laquelle est conçue comme un bien ou une chose. Cette qualification l’assigne donc à un statut juridique dont les manifestations révèlent la fonction utilitariste de la ressource. Or, l’émergence des problématiques environnementales confronte le statut juridique de l’eau à sa réalité physique. Ainsi, le droit et les exigences environnementales s’influencent réciproquement pour générer des règles protectrices de l’eau et des représentations juridiques du cycle hydrologique qui engendrent des évolutions du statut. Dès lors, ce dernier s’émancipe des catégories juridiques traditionnelles issues du droit des biens et s’habille d’une finalité protectrice dont les règles et les concepts, qui s’attachent à la fonction écologique de l’eau et à la réalité environnementale du cycle hydrologique, lui façonnent une autre condition juridique. / Along a simple stroll or through fine observations, you will always find water, wherever you go. However, the asset this resource represents for anthropogenic activities often hides its environmental reality, the one of its cycle. This is reflected in the legal definition of water which conceives it as property. This latter qualification assigns it to a judicial status which reveals the utilitarian function of the resource. Yet, the emergence of the environmental issues confronts water’s legal status to its tangible reality. Thus, the conflict between the law and water’s environmental demands makes way for protective regulations. Along with the hydrologic cycle’s legal representation, they both influence the evolution of water’s status. Consequently, the latter goes beyond property law traditional legal categories and arms itself with a protective purpose. Its rules and concepts are tied to the ecological function of water and to the environmental reality of the hydrologic cycle which shape yet another judicial condition for the water.

Aiming for sustainable sanitation systems can provide benefits among a vast range of Sustainable Development Goals. In this study the sustainability of potential options for renovating or upgrading thewastewater treatment plant in Tupiza, a rapidly growing city in theSouthern highlands of Bolivia, was evaluated. The local context was characterized by increasing issues of flooding which in recent years has destroyed important wastewater treatment infrastructure and polluted sources of water for several downstream communities. Three system options consisting of different treatment technologies were evaluated against four criteria of sustainability; health,technical, environmental and financial and institutional. A "conventional" option consisting of waste stabilization ponds was compared against two more options with added steps of treatment, such as constructed wetlands, anaerobic reactors and alkaline and ammonia treatment of sludge. Social acceptance and demand of reuse of treated wastewater and sludge in agriculture was evaluated using qualitative research analysis. Results indicate that the systems with added treatment steps could help improve several areas of sustainability such as risks of disease transmission, space efficiency, treatment capacity and efficiency as well as enable safe reuse of sludge and wastewater in agriculture. Implementation of funding mechanisms covering the entire sanitation service chain as well as flood mitigation measures resulted essential in ensuring the long-term functionality of such improvements. This project was intended as a pre-study and identified several areas of future research including additional evaluation of nutrient content in effluent, investigation of a possible certification process for recycled byproducts from the wastewater treatment plant, risk assessment of floods of different magnitudes, evaluation of the long-term economic impact of having improved systems and evaluationof local institutional capacity surrounding the sanitation service chain in Tupiza. / Hållbara sanitetssystem för med sig många fördelar som kan främja majoriteten av de globala hållbarhetsmålen. I denna studie utreds hållbarheten i potentiella alternativ för renovering eller uppgradering av ett avloppsreningsverk i Tupiza, en snabbt växande stad i södra Bolivias högland. Den lokala kontexten präglades av en tilltagande översvämmningsproblematik som de senaste åren bidragit till förstörelse av central infrastruktur for avloppsvattenrening samt påföljande vattenföroreningar i samhällen nedströms reningsverket. Tre systemalternativ beståendes av olika reningstekniker utreddes utefter fyra hållbarhetskategorier; hälsa, teknologi, miljö samt finansiell/institutionell. Ett konventionellt alternativ som utgjordes av stabiliseringsdammar jämfördes mot två mer avancerade alternativ med ytterligare reningssteg såsom anlagd våtmark, anaerobiska reaktorer samt alkali- och ammoniakbehandling av slam. Social acceptans och efterfrågan för återanvändning av behandlat avloppsvatten och slam inom lantbruket utreddes i en kvalitativ forskningsstudie. Resultaten tyder på att system med fler reningssteg kan främja flera hållbarhetsområden såsom risk för överföring av sjukdomar, yteffektivitet, reningskapacitet och effektivitet samt möjliggöra säkert återanvändande av slam och avloppsvatten i jordbruket. Implementering av mekanismer för finansiering som täcker hela sanitetskedjan samt åtgärder mor översvämningar visade sig vara centrala för att säkerställa långsiktig funktion av sådana förbättringar. \\\\Det här projektet var menat som en förstudie och identifierade flertalet områden för vidare forskning såsom ytterligare utvärdering av näringsinnehåll i utgående vatten, utredning av möjlig certifieringsprocess för återvunna produkter från avloppsreningsverket, analys av översvämningsrisker av olika magnituder, utvärdering av den indirekta ekonomiska effekten av att ha system med fler reningssteg samt utvärdering av lokal institutionell kapacitet för hela servicekedjan för sanitet i Tupiza. / En este estudio se evaluó la sostenibilidad de opciones potenciales para renovar o mejorar la planta de tratamiento de aguas residuales de Tupiza, una ciudad de rápido crecimiento en las tierras altas del sur de Bolivia. En los últimos años, el contexto local se ha caracterizado por la ocurrencia de lluvias de mayor intensidad. Estas ocasionaron inundaciones que en efecto causaron daños importantes en la infraestructura de la planta de tratamiento de aguas residuales (PTAR). El deterioro de la infraestructura provocó el derrame de aguas residuales al río y la contaminación del agua en las comunidades ubicadas en la cuenca baja. Trés opciones de sistemas de tecnologías de tratamiento de aguas residuales para la renovación y/o mejoro de la planta de Tupiza fueron evaluadas considerando cuatro criterios de sostenibilidad: Salud, tecnolgía, ambiental y financiera/institucional. Por otra parte la aceptación social y demanda de reúso de aguas residuales y lodos tratados en la agricultura se evaluaron mediante un análisis de investigación cualitativa. La opción convencional que consiste en estanques de estabilización de desechos, se comparó con dos otras alternativas que incluyen pasos adicionales de tratamiento, como son humedales artificiales, reactores anaeróbicos y tratamiento de lodos con urea y cal. Los resultados indican que los sistemas de pasos adicionales de tratamiento podrían ayudar a mejorar diferentes aspectos de sostenibilidad, como los riesgos de transmisión de enfermedades, la eficiencia espacial,  la capacidad y eficiencia de tratamiento y la posibilidad de reutilización segura de lodos y aguas residuales en la agricultura. La implementación de mecanismos de financiación que cubren toda la cadena de servicios de saneamiento, así como las medidas de mitigacióin de inundaciones se mostraron esenciales para garantizar la funcionalidad a largo plazo de tales mejoras. La tesis es un estudio preliminar e identificó varias áreas de investigación futuras, la evaluación adicional del contenido de nutrientes en el efluente, la investigación de un posible proceso de certificación de subproductos reciclados de la PTAR, la evaluación de riesgos de inundaciones de diferentes magnitudes, la evaluación del impacto económico a largo plazo de la implementación de sistemas con pasos adicionales de tratamiento y la evaluación  de capacidad institucional local a lo largo de la cadena de servicios de sanemiento.