Proceedings of International Forestry and Environment Symposium最新文献

{"title":"Floods and Land Use Land Cover Changes in the Kalu River Basin: A Call to Action","authors":"Amarakoon V., Wickramasinghe D.D., Premasiri H.M.R., Shaw R., Mukherjee M.","doi":"10.31357/fesympo.v27.7051","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.31357/fesympo.v27.7051","url":null,"abstract":"\u0000 \u0000 \u0000Floods are one of the most common natural disasters worldwide. Apart from rainfall, Land Use Land Cover (LULC) changes too are a main contributory factor for floods. This study attempted to understand the link between floods and LULC changes in Kalu river basin, which is the second largest river basin and an area that experiences recurrent floods in Sri Lanka. We studied peak water levels, number of flood events, changes in land use types and impacts in rapidly urbanizing two districts, Rathnapura (upper basin) and Kalutara (lower basin) during 2001-2020. The satellite images (LANDSAT) were obtained for 2001, 2009, 2015 and 2020 and land use classification was done using ArcGIS and Remote Sensing Tools. Main land use types and their transformations were investigated and ground-truthing was carried out. Accordingly, the main types of land uses identified were Natural Vegetation and forests (NV), Settlements (ST- housing and industrial lands), Cultivated Lands (CL), Water Bodies (WB) and Bare Lands (BL). The results indicated that the most drastic change was found in the natural areas (NV) and they have diminished while the lands with anthropogenic impacts (ST, CL and BL) have increased across years. The NV had occupied the highest land area in 2001 (42.4%) and has reduced by 14.2% by 2020. The ST and CL have increased by 8.6 % and 5.2% respectively. The monthly rainfall of Rathnapura and Kalutara (Source: Department of Meteorology, Sri Lanka) has increased with time, which is a main reason for the increasing peak water levels of these areas (Source: Department of Irrigation, Sri Lanka). However, a significant correlation also exists between the change of the settlement area with the peak river water levels in the lower basin (p=0.03, R2=99%; regression analysis). Rathnapura has experienced 3 major floods (floods above the high water alert level) from 2001-2020, while 16 major floods have occurred in Kalutara. During the major flood in 2017, the number of child deaths in Rathnapura was 14 while in Kalutara it was 24. Accordingly, the LULC changes of the whole basin along with rainfall seem to influence on the severity of floods in Kalutara more, as it is located in the lowest elevation level. When natural lands are transformed to anthropogenic- impacted areas with disturbances to the water cycle, increased impervious surfaces, reduced water storage capacities and loss of natural drainage, the flood risk tends to increase. Proactive approaches including proper land use planning and rainwater storage are urgently needed as the climate change too would trigger more floods. Thus, the flood mitigatory actions, especially, in the lower river basin should be a priority to ensure resilience and sustainability. \u0000Keywords: Kalu river basin, Land Use Land Cover (LULC) changes, Floods \u0000 \u0000 \u0000","PeriodicalId":205644,"journal":{"name":"Proceedings of International Forestry and Environment Symposium","volume":"5 4","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2024-02-15","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"139963085","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Economic Feasibility of Reverse Osmosis (RO) Water Treatment Plants: A Case Study from Dimbulagala, Polonnaruwa, Sri Lanka","authors":"Bandara T., Witharana A.","doi":"10.31357/fesympo.v27.6648","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.31357/fesympo.v27.6648","url":null,"abstract":"Social wellbeing is strongly linked with economic feasibility when it needs to attain with the technological advancements. Installation of Reverse Osmosis (RO) water treatment plants have been considered as a promising solution to provide clean water for human consumption, especially in the areas where the CKDu (chronic kidney disease of unknown etiology) prevails. At present, over 2,000 RO treatment plants were installed in the dry zone of Sri Lanka, yet economic feasibility for operation and maintenance of RO plants has not been assessed so far. The present study was intended to identify economic feasibility of operation and maintenance of RO plants. Investigations were carried out in six community RO plants which provided drinking water for over 17,000 people which accounts for 20% of total population in Dimbulagala Divisional Secretariat over a period of 12 months. Six in-depth interviews and questionnaire survey were caried out with RO plant operators. The operational cost per production of cubic meter of filtered water was computed by considering electricity consumption bills. The maintenance costs and service charges were also obtained from the records available with RO plant operators. The results found that the average electricity consumption to produce 1 cube of filtered water is approximately 9kWh and cost is LKR 734 (based on 2021 rates). The average water selling price ranged between LKR 1.00-2.50 per liter. The average monthly income generation from one RO plant is approximately between LKR 561- 875 per cube of filtered water and it largely depended on the type of water source, climatic conditions. It was found that the income generated from RO plants was sufficient enough to cover the operation cost (monthly electricity bill) and for the subsequent maintenance and service charges whenever required. It can be concluded that the use of RO treated water is an economically viable option to provide portable drinking water.  \u0000Keywords: CKDu, Economic sustainability, Drinking water, Purification cost","PeriodicalId":205644,"journal":{"name":"Proceedings of International Forestry and Environment Symposium","volume":"32 9","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2024-02-15","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"139963093","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Degradation Potential of Some Biodegradable Polymers: Do they Degrade?","authors":"Wijetunge D.S., Ranatunga R.R.M.K.P., Manage, P.M.","doi":"10.31357/fesympo.v27.6625","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.31357/fesympo.v27.6625","url":null,"abstract":"Biodegradable products were invented and commercially introduced to curb the catastrophic impacts of non-degradable plastics. These intend to act as a green solution since they are manufactured to degrade in the environment without accumulating as waste plastics. Three commercially available products labeled as ―biodegradable‖ i.e. salad plate (SPL), lunch sheet (LS), and garbage bag (GB), were tested for degradation potential in six different exposure media i.e. seawater (SW), beach-sand (BS), freshwater (FW), freshwater sediment (FWS), compost, and ultra- violate (UV) rays, with controlled and uncontrolled conditions simulating the natural environment. Cellulose filter paper (CFP) was the positive control. SW, FW, FWS, and BS were placed in four separate glass tanks while compost was prepared in a 100L plastic storage box. A UV chamber was fabricated to expose samples to UV radiation. SW tank was equipped with a wave pump, and FW tank was continuously aerated. All samples were cleaned, cut into manageable sizes, inserted in synthetic mesh pockets (except for those exposed to UV), labeled, and placed inside the media in triplicates. UV-exposed samples were directly placed in boiling tubes inside the chamber equipped with 15 W LED UV bulbs providing 280-320 nm irradiation. Initial weights were measured and the weight loss over five months was recorded. Physical parameters including temperature, pH, salinity, and conductivity were measured in each sampling. RAMAN spectroscopy and Scanning Electron Microscopy were performed initially to find out the test samples‘ chemical composition and surface structure. CFP and SPL contained cellulose, LS contained Poly Lactic Acid (PLA) and Poly Butylene Adipate Terephthalate (PBAT), and GB contained Poly Ethylene (PE) as major components. Degradation potential was calculated in terms of percentage weight loss with time, and visual remarks of degradation were recorded. The highest weight-loss percentages of CFP (100%), and SPL (100%) were observed in FWS (both in 122 days) and compost (in 92 days, and in 122 days respectively) media. LS showed faster degradation (20% weight loss in 92 days) in compost while GB showed slight fragmentation (2% weight loss in 57 days) under UV during the first five months of sampling. Comparatively minimum signs of degradation were observed in GB in all exposures. CFP, SPL, and LS samples were discoloured and fragmented into small pieces during the degrading process. All products showed lesser degradation potential in SW, FW, and UV exposures. The experiment will be continued further to understand the degradation process.  \u0000Keywords: Degradation, Biodegradable products, Abiotic degradation, Plastic pollution","PeriodicalId":205644,"journal":{"name":"Proceedings of International Forestry and Environment Symposium","volume":"9 3","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2024-02-15","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"139963136","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Water Table Estimation in Attaragoda GN Division in Galle, Sri Lanka","authors":"Prabhashvi W.A.A., Senanayake S.A.M.A.I.K.","doi":"10.31357/fesympo.v27.7212","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.31357/fesympo.v27.7212","url":null,"abstract":"The fluctuation of the groundwater table depends on geology, topography, climate and human consumption pattern. Long-term reduction of groundwater table caused by global climatic changes and overexploitation. However, short-term fluctuation is caused by climatic variations such as rainfall patterns and evaporation. Groundwater consumption is increasing at an alarming speed due to the increasement in the population, and it directly affects the reduction of the water table. Attaragoda GN division is considered a rural area in the wet zone of Sri Lanka. Most households utilize groundwater as their principal water source. There is no research conducted to assess the water table in the Attaragoda GN division. A preliminary study tried to determine the water table in Attaragoda GN division, Galle to fill this research gap. As a tropical country, the month of November is considered the second inter-monsoon season in Sri Lanka. Randomly selected 33 groundwater wells were considered as the sample size from 142/A Attaragoda GN division. The study was conducted in November 2021 from 8.00 am to 2.00 pm. Elevation was recorded using ―My elevation mobile app,‖ and the depth of the wells was measured using the measuring rope at the field in November 2021. The water table was calculated using the standard formula for all 33 sampling locations (Z=h–X; Z=depth of water table, X=elevation, h=depth measured in well). Data analysis was done using plotting the water table graph against elevation. Regarding land elevation, the water table fluctuated in the 4 m-20 m range in the Attaragoda GN area due to geographic locations. The lowest water table was recorded at a well in the highland area, and the highest was recorded at a well in the lower land. Based on the results in a plotted graph indicated that the same elevation had different groundwater table levels. Main reasons for this different water table recorded in the same elevation identified as overused groundwater for maintaining a fish farm, watering flower nurseries, and animal husbandry practices. At the same elevation, the well that recorded the low water table caused overexploitation of groundwater than the well which had a higher water table level. Water table levels can change in the same area due to their native geographic features. However, at the same elevation water table might be adjusted according to the consumption pattern of the households.  \u0000Keywords: Elevation, Geology, Ground water, Water table ","PeriodicalId":205644,"journal":{"name":"Proceedings of International Forestry and Environment Symposium","volume":"34 3","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2024-02-15","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"139963201","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Preliminary Investigation on the Effect of Termites on Wood Decay in Selected Sri Lankan Timber Species","authors":"Arachchi C.I.M., Muthumala C.K., Jayalath J.A.C.S.","doi":"10.31357/fesympo.v27.7154","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.31357/fesympo.v27.7154","url":null,"abstract":"\u0000 \u0000 \u0000Wood in suitable environmental conditions can be attacked by bacteria, fungi, insects, marine borers and some other biological organisms. Wood is the main biodegradation material which is naturally occurred in surrounding environment. As heartwood of wood consist most of the nonliving cells it shows more resistance to decay than sapwood. But insects can cause degrade in both heartwood and sapwood which are not preserved well. Termites belong to Class: Insecta, Order: Isoptera which are one of the most important as ecological contributors by breaking down the organic material of the wood structures directly. This study was done to analyze the effect of termites of selected 27 species with having different densities varying from 400 kg/m3 to 1100 kg/m3 at 12% moisture content. Ten pieces of each and every species of Wewarana, Jack, Badidel, Halmilla, Dawata, Walukeena, Hulanhik, Kaluwara, Hora, Pihimbiya, Damaniya, Godakirilla, Pelan, Hik, Etamba, Lunumidella, Diya Na, Palu, Mora, Kirihembiliya, Nedun, Kon, Kumbuk, Dummala, Milla, Kirikon and Burutha were stored in a separate same type wooden boxes and kept in same environmental conditions where termites can be seen in high densities for one year of time period in Head Office premises of State Timber Corporation at Battaramulla. According to the naked eye observations taken after one year time period Hora, Dummala, Godakirilla species were severely attack by termites while Halmilla, Walukeena, Pihimbiya, Damaniya, Pelan, Etamba, Lunumidella, Diya Na, Kirikon also attack at considerable level by termites. Other species were not attack by termites. Therefore altogether out of 27 species 12 were degraded by termites for the allocated one year time period. The other species of Wewarana, Jack, Bedidel, Dawata, Hulanhik, Kaluwara, Hik, Palu, Mora, Kirihembiliya, Nedun, Kon, Kumbuk, Milla, Burutha species were resistant to the termite attack during one year time period. However further studies are underway to develop the relationships of degradation due to termite attack with climatic conditions, geographical conditions, timber properties such as strength properties as well as the densities, mechanical properties with considerable time period which allocated to degrade. \u0000Keywords: Ttermites, Decay, Density, Time period \u0000 \u0000 \u0000","PeriodicalId":205644,"journal":{"name":"Proceedings of International Forestry and Environment Symposium","volume":"25 10","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2024-02-15","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"139963322","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Influence of Biochar on Plant Uptake of Personal Care Products: Caffeine and Triclosan","authors":"Keerthanan S., Jayasinghe C., Vithanage, M.","doi":"10.31357/fesympo.v27.6602","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.31357/fesympo.v27.6602","url":null,"abstract":"The use of personal care products (PCPs) extends a person's longevity. Nonetheless, because of its uncontrolled burden on the environment, it is regarded as an emerging contaminant. The goal of this research is to determine the influence of cinnamon wood biochar (CWBC) on plant uptake of caffeine (CFN) and triclosan (TRI) from the soil. Ipomeoa aquatica was cultivated for 4 weeks in soil with a 2.5% CWBC amendment and spiked with 100 mg/kg CFN and 200 mg/kg TRI. Ultra- High-performance liquid chromatography (UHPLC) was used to quantify the CFN and TRI in the plant. The surface morphology of CWBC was investigated by scanning electron microscopy (SEM) and Brunauer–Emmett–Teller (BET) surface area. The gasification of biomass which increased the CWBC's surface area to 589 m2/g, due to the development of a porous structure. The CFN accumulated more in the shoot of the plant whereas TRI accumulated in the root. The addition of 2.5% CWBC significantly (p<0.05) decreased the root and shoot accumulation of CFN by 40.4% and 70.9%, whilst those for TRI by 38.9% and 19.9%, respectively. The relative bioconcentration factors (RBF) of CFN and TRI in shoot and root was calculated by the ratio of bioconcentration factor (BCF) using RBF=〖BCF(CWBC amended soil)⁄〖BCF_soil and the results suggested that the addition of 2.5% CWBC decrease the RBF below the one indicating the effectiveness of CWBC towards mitigating the plant uptake of PCPs. Overall, the present study suggested the application of biochar to soil significantly decreased the plant uptake of PCPs, thus, can reduce the potential risk caused by the unintentional consumption of contaminated vegetables.  \u0000Keywords: Personal Care Products, Soil amendment, Health risk, Plant uptake ","PeriodicalId":205644,"journal":{"name":"Proceedings of International Forestry and Environment Symposium","volume":"13 6","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2024-02-15","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"139963376","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Relationship of Physico-chemical Properties of Water with Phytoplankton Abundance in Peraru Village Tank in Vavuniya District","authors":"Samarawickrama R.A.D., Nanthakumaran A., Sivakumar P.","doi":"10.31357/fesympo.v27.7200","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.31357/fesympo.v27.7200","url":null,"abstract":"The village tank cascade system, predominantly found in the Vavuniya district, satisfies the water demand for agriculture and domestic needs considerably. Among them, the Peraru village tank lies in a cascade line in the Vavuniya district. The water resource of Peraru village reservoir is treated by the National Water Supply and Drainage Board, Vavuniya, and distributed to the local public. As Peraru a drinking water fountain, the study of phytoplankton and water quality is important. The study's objective was to identify the phytoplankton and estimate the abundance of phytoplankton in the Peraru village tank along with the Physico-chemical characteristics of water. A phytoplankton sampling was done by using plankton net at the selected three locations of Peraru village reservoir weekly from March to April 2021. Totally, 24 samples were analyzed during the study period. Simultaneously, water samples were also collected at each site to determine dissolved oxygen, electrical conductivity, pH, turbidity, temperature, nitrate, and phosphate concentrations. Identification of phytoplankton was made based on standard guides, and the abundances of phytoplankton were estimated using Sedgewick- rafter counting cells. The results of Physico- chemical parameters were statistically tested using ANOVA and found correlations between the abundance of phytoplankton and Physico-chemical parameters. Phylum Bacillariophyta and genus Aulacoseira were the dominant phylum and genus in the Peraru village tank. Dissolved Oxygen (DO), Electrical Conductivity (EC), nitrate, and phosphate positively influenced the abundance of phytoplankton in the Peraru village tank, while turbidity negatively affected the same.  \u0000Keywords: Phytoplankton abundance, Correlation, Physico-chemical parameters ","PeriodicalId":205644,"journal":{"name":"Proceedings of International Forestry and Environment Symposium","volume":"14 8","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2024-02-15","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"139963687","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Therapeutic Uses of Mee Tree (Madhuca longifolia)","authors":"Risla M.H.F., Muthalib A.M.","doi":"10.31357/fesympo.v27.7213","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.31357/fesympo.v27.7213","url":null,"abstract":"In the past, our ancestors maintained a close relationship with the environment. They knew the value of many plants. One tree that our ancestors preserved is the Mee tree. Madhuca longifolia belonging to the family Sapotaceae, is one of those multipurpose forest tree species that provide an answer for the food, fodder and fuel. It is widely distributed in the South Asian countries, Especially in Sri Lanka. Mee tree is a large deciduous tree growing widely under dry tropical and sub-tropical climatic conditions. The tree has religious and aesthetic value in the tribal culture. The trees with best girth in forest are often Mee trees as it is protected and cared by forest dwellers. Aim of the study is to identify the therapeutic uses of this plant in Sri Lanka. Ancient classical texts were used to collect data on Mee tree especially, Medicinal plants (Indigenous and Exotic) used in Ceylon. Articles were filtered through journals, magazines and newspapers. Databases such as Google scholar, Springer and Agroforestry were used to search journal articles. The journal articles from 2010-2022 were considered as eligible for this review. Search terms such as Madhuca longifolia, Mee tree, Medicinal uses were used to search journal articles. The final summary was formulated after a thorough reading of all above materials. As the results, the plant contains Vitamins, Ethylcinnamate, Amyrin acetates, Hexacosanol, Linoleic acid, Palmitic acid and many more chemical constituents. The Mee tree has analgesic, diuretic, tonic, aphrodisiac, astringent and demulcent properties with various parts of the plant. The parts are used in certain treatments in Ayurvedic medicine. The flowers, leaves, bark, roots, and seeds of the Mee tree are used to prepare medicines for rheumatism, bronchitis, headache, skin diseases, and worm infestations. The study was concluded as, this tree was so close and familiar to the lives of the people. This tree has many benefits for mankind, and many people have been interested in preserving it. However, due to the deforestation that has taken place in the country in the last few decades, the existence of Mee trees has been severely threatened. Today, Mee tree is a scarce resource in Sri Lanka. People should aware about protecting the plant for future generation.  \u0000Keywords: Madhuca longifolia, Mee tree, Medicinal uses, Deforestation ","PeriodicalId":205644,"journal":{"name":"Proceedings of International Forestry and Environment Symposium","volume":"12 6","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2024-02-15","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"139963727","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Eichhornia crassipes Leaves as a Waste-derived Bio-Sorbent to Remove Organics and Nutrients from Rice Mill Wastewater","authors":"Farwin A.F.S., Pratheepkumar M., Devaisy S.","doi":"10.31357/fesympo.v27.6598","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.31357/fesympo.v27.6598","url":null,"abstract":"The increased rate of population growth resulted in the increased number of rice mill industries to fulfill the demand for rice. The rice mill wastewater contains a high load of organics and nutrients. Therefore, the direct discharge of wastewater into the environment may degrade the quality of the environment as well as causes adverse effects on human health. Among various methods to treat waste effluent, bio-sorption is a cheap and environmentally sound approach. Eichhornia crassipes is a noxious weed that spreads rapidly. Most of the tanks in Vavuniya are polluted by E. crassipes and it needs a sustainable solution. This study uses the leaves of E. crassipes to produce waste-derived bio-sorbent to treat rice mill wastewater. The wastewater was collected from one of the rice mills in the Vavuniya town area. The adsorption isotherm and adsorption kinetics experiments were conducted to find out the removal efficiencies of COD, nitrate, and phosphate from wastewater. The effect of the dosage of bio-sorbent (1-6 g/L) and the contact time (30-180 min) with the wastewater was studied to determine the optimum dosage and optimum contact time. The bio-sorbent showed maximum removal efficiencies of COD (54.5%), nitrates (58.1%), and phosphates (29.5%) at the optimum dosage of 4 g/L at 120 min. Based on the t-test, E. crassipes leaves significantly reduce COD, nitrate, and phosphate (p-value<0.05). However, COD and nitrate showed higher removal rates than phosphate. Further, long-term column studies should be conducted to apply the above technique in wastewater treatment plants in treating the rice mill wastewater in the real world. This study emphasizes that E. crassipes leaves have the potential to remove contaminants from wastewater as well as this would also help to minimize the spread of the weed to safeguard the environment.  \u0000Keywords: Eichhornia crassipes, Bio-sorption, Vavuniya tank, Water quality ","PeriodicalId":205644,"journal":{"name":"Proceedings of International Forestry and Environment Symposium","volume":"11 5","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2024-02-15","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"139963747","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}

{"title":"Characterization of Thermostable Cellulase Enzyme Isolated from a Hot Spring Bacterium: Bacillus sp.","authors":"Herath M.N., Sadeepa, H.D.D., Manage, P.M., Sirisena, K.A.","doi":"10.31357/fesympo.v27.7171","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.31357/fesympo.v27.7171","url":null,"abstract":"Cellulase is a complex of enzymes which consists of β-1,4-endoglucanase, cellobiohydrolase, and β-glucosidase. Cellulase contributes a significant share to the world enzyme market and is used in number of industries viz; paper and pulp, food and beverage, bioethanol, detergent and textile. The harsh industrial conditions such as high temperature, extreme pH levels and high substrate concentration etc. which is used in such industries adversely effect on structure and activity of enzymes. Therefore, huge amount of chemical catalysts which cause chemical wastes are used in industrial settings instead of enzymes. Since the chemical wastes adversely affect the ecosystem, isolation and characterization of thermostable cellulase enzyme-producing bacteria and exploring the industrial perspective of thermostable enzymes is a better approach towards green chemistry. The present study focused on characterization of cellulase enzyme produced by Bacillus sp., which shows optimum activity at 60 C under neutral conditions, isolated from Gomarankadavala hot spring in Sri Lanka. The effect of different Carbon sources: glucose and lactose, Nitrogen sources: peptone, tryptone, yeast extract and urea on enzyme production and different Carboxymethylcellulose (CMC) concentrations; 0.5%, 1.5% and 2%, on enzyme activity were measured using the DNS method. Under the optimum conditions, cellulase enzyme activity on different substrates: corn cob, rice bran and raw leaves were measured. The highest enzyme production was recorded in the culture medium which added tryptone as the nitrogen source and adding carbon sources to the culture medium showed an increase of cellulase enzyme production. The optimum CMC concentration for the enzyme activity was recorded as 1% and from all the optimized parameters, the substrate; raw leaves showed the highest enzyme activity of 11.305 U/ml. Further, a considerable amount of enzyme activity was recorded on corn cobs and rice bran as well. Thus, the thermostable cellulase enzyme produced by bacterium identified as Bacillus cereus isolated from Gomarankadavala hot spring could be successfully used in industrial settings such as kitchen/industrial waste management, bioethanol production, paper and pulp industry and textile industry which use high temperatures and cellulosic substrates as raw materials.  \u0000Keywords: Thermostable enzymes, Cellulase, Industrial applications, Hot springs ","PeriodicalId":205644,"journal":{"name":"Proceedings of International Forestry and Environment Symposium","volume":"7 2","pages":""},"PeriodicalIF":0.0,"publicationDate":"2024-02-15","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"139963772","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}