The Kerala State Pollution Control Board is a body of the Department of Health and Family Welfare, Government of the State of Kerala, India. The board is charged with enforcing laws related to environmental protection. The Pollution Control Board has been established as a regulatory authority for implementing various pollution control laws. The board is committed to provide pollution free environment to the people of state. The Board has undertaken various studies of underground water, solid and air to take remedial steps to control pollution..
Urbanized tropical coastal lakes face increasing sediment contamination from industrial, agricultural, and domestic sources, yet quantitative assessments integrating source apportionment with probabilistic health risks remain limited for many ecosystems, including Kerala’s Kayamkulam Lake (KKL) (area = 16.52 km2). Surface sediments from ten stations in KKL were analyzed for grain size, organic carbon (OC), total nitrogen (TN), and heavy metals (Fe, Mn, Cd, Cu, Zn, Cr, and Pb). Contamination indices (CF, EF, Igeo, PLI, and mHQ), multivariate statistics (PCA, correlation), positive matrix factorization (PMF) for source apportionment, and Monte Carlo simulation-based health risk assessment (both non-carcinogenic and carcinogenic) were employed. Sand dominated (69.8 ± 5.9
The tropical coastal lakes and estuarine systems frequently experience eutrophication and heavy metal accumulation, especially in the sediments. The present study focuses on surface sediments of Kadinamkulam-Anchuthengu Lake (KAL), a coastal lake in southern India. There was a lack of well-defined scientific studies conducted in KAL system especially in sedimentology and heavy metal contamination from the last few decades. A comprehensive range of sediment quality indices, combined with statistical analysis, was used to identify the origins and pathways of heavy metals, estimate their potential risks to aquatic ecosystem, and understand the spatial distribution of heavy metals in the surface sediments. The surface sediment samples collected from 18 designated locations from KAL and estimated contamination levels of six heavy metals were assessed by using Atomic Absorption Spectrophotometer (AAS). Geochemical parameters such as Organic Carbon (OC) (2.00 +/- 0.99 %) and Total Nitrogen (TN) (0.26 +/- 0.09 %) were also analyzed. Sediment quality indices, including the Geo accumulation index (I-geo), were calculated, revealing I-geo value for Cd ranging from -0.87-1.15, with one site (S2) indicating moderately polluted sediment (I-geo =1.15). Ecological risk assessment (E-r(i)) for Cr, Zn, Pb, and Cu indicated low risk (<40) across the study area, while Cd posed a considerable ecological risk. Furthermore, a modified Potential Ecological Risk Index (PERI) assessment highlighted regions of varying degrees of risk, with areas in the southern KAL showing high to moderate risk levels. The present study provides a baseline data insights into the ecological health of aquatic ecosystems. These findings underscore the necessity for targeted risk management and mitigation efforts to protect this vulnerable coastal ecosystem from further degradation. The study also establishes significant and thorough management criteria to address heavy metal pollution in the KAL.
Present study provides first report of scyphozoan jellyfish bloom (Lobonemoides gracilis Light, 1914) near the coastal waters of Gahirmatha sea turtle rookery spanning around 20 km2 area having abundance ranges between 200 and 700 numbers per bloom patch during monsoon (27th 28th September 2022) in the northwestern Bay of Bengal region. Despite sporadic patches reported in Palk Bay and Chennai coast, swarming events of L. gracilis is new to Indian context however such bloom reports prevailed in Bangladesh coastal waters. Synchronized events associated with plankton and jellyfish blooms, followed by sea turtle congregation decipher intricate prey-predator relationship subtly functions at Gahirmatha. Since, this species is edible therefore jellyfish fishery of this particular species may offer economic potential to the impoverished fishermen.
Mesoporous solids possessing open framework, tunable pores, high surface area, and considerable thermal stability provide an ideal environment to be employed as solid catalysts, host material, adsorbent, etc. Herein, we report the study about the insertion of iron into the mesoporous silicate framework of SBA-1 and utilize the material as a potential heterogeneous catalyst for the selective oxidation of lignin model non-phenolic monomer, i.e. veratryl alcohol under mild reaction conditions. Veratraldehyde and veratric acid were obtained as the oxidation products. FeSBA-1 in combination with hydrogen peroxide was selective towards veratraldehyde, on the other hand, veratric acid was selectively obtained when tert-butyl hydroperoxide was used as the oxidant under identical reaction conditions. X-ray diffraction pattern of FeSBA-1 revealed the formation of a cubic, three-dimensional SBA-1 structure. HRTEM shows uniform and ordered pore structure having dimensions of ∽ 2.3 ̶ 3.4 nm and wall thickness of ∽ 3.5 nm. FESEM showed regular-shaped FeSBA-1 with spherical morphology having a dimension of ∽ 1.6 μm. BET surface area of 1337 m2 g−1 and pore diameter of ∽ 19 Å was determined by N2 adsorption-desorption measurements. The mesoporous nature of FeSBA-1 was further supported by TGA studies. EPR studies indicated the presence of Fe(III) both in tetrahedral and octahedral coordination within the framework of FeSBA-1. DRUV-VIS studies revealed the presence of Fe(III) in both framework and extra-framework locations of the SBA-1 silicate network. IR studies supported the linkage of Fe–O–Si within FeSBA-1. The absence of the Fe2O3 phase was evidenced by Raman studies.
Present study provides first live occurrence of a mantis shrimp Lysiosquilla tredecimdentata Holthuis, 1941 (Total length—238 mm and Total wet weight—110 g) from the intertidal sea grass bed of Haripur creek (19°15′ 45″ N and 84°54′ 52″ E) of Gopalpur-on-sea, Odisha coast being noticed on 21st June 2022. This study reports about the Lysiosquilla tredecimdentata range extension from Andhra Pradesh in south and West Bengal in north to Odisha coast of India. Although the creek ecosystem is not completely free from the impact of pollution stress and natural calamities such as tropical cyclone, the factors responsible for such occurrence have not been identified yet. Conversely, habitat suitability and availability of preferred food substance due to the newly formed sea grass meadow might have supported such type of stomatopod species for migrating towards the creek waters. Indeed, this record has increased the Odisha coast’s stomatopod species diversity to fifteen.
