Knowledge on the physicochemical properties of PM emitted from industrial installations is necessary for assessing current state of ambient air and selecting proper methods for preventing suspended PM from degrading the air quality. Similar to many other industries, fast developing ceramic tile industry releases some amounts of PM to the atmosphere. Samples of PM were taken from main technological operations of three tile manufacturing installations, located in three various plants. The collected PM was examined for granular composition, morphology, phase composition and heavy metal content by using instrumental methods.

Froin January 2006 on, a continuous experiment consisting in determinations of granulometrie composition of the airborne dust has been performed in the Institute of Environmental Engineering of PAS, Zabrze. The investigations include measurements of concentrations of PM1 - the suspended in ambient air particles of the aerodynamic diameter not grater than I μm - by using the PM10 Dekali impactor. The results of twelve month measurements (January - December 2006) arc presented in the paper: the granulometrie composition of total suspended dust (PM10, PM2.5, PM1) in winter and summer at an urban background site in the Silcsian Agglomeration. Monthly and seasonal average concentrations of PM I O, PM2.5 and PM1 were computed.

Ambient concentrations of 16 polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs), adsorbed on particles of PM2.5, were measured at 4 points located in Silesia and Małopolska Regions during 2004 through 2005 period. The fine dust was collected on filters at locations representing conditions of urban background, communication artery and industrial area. Distinctive differences between heating and summer season PAH concentrations were observed. The highest PM2.5 related PAH concentrations were observed in Krakow, within the effect of industrial and traffic sources, equally in summer and heating seasons. For selected cities, relations between the particular PM2.5 related PAHs were determined. The results show that contamination of the investigated PM2.5 with PAHs is considerable and comparable with that in other areas of similar degree of urbanization and industrialization.

The results of microbial oxidation under laboratory conditions of mixed pyrite mill tailings from power industry by Acidithiobacillusferrooxidans bacteria have been presented in the paper. The analysis of the dynamics of Fe(II)/Fe(III) concentration changes, oxidizing-reducing potential Eh and pH as well as phase analysis revealed that despite a significant activity of microorganisms in microbial oxidation process, the level of iron releasing from wastes is limited by the process of precipitation of low-soluble iron(III) compounds.

The objective of the study was to determine the possibility of using organic soil under willow for wastewater purification of excess nitrate and phosphates, and to estimate the applicability of redox potential for the assessment oftransformation ofnitrogen compounds in the soil under study. The study showed the suitability of organic soil and willow for wastewater purification under the conditions of the ,,Hajdów" experimental object. Also, significant relationships were shown between redox potential and nitrogen transformation occurring in soil irrigated with wastewater after 2nd stage of treatment.

Biodegradation of organic matter by sulphate-reducing bacteria (SRB) isolated from soil from military testing ground and petroleum plants were investigated. The isolated microorganisms utilized low molecular weight compounds and participation of SRB in biodegradation of these compounds was similar in marine sediments and in soil (40-55%).

In 2002 the circulation of nutrients and their balance was studied in a large, shallow, eutrophic Lake Gardno. It was determined that throughout a year 1516 Mg of total nitrogen and 155 Mg of total phosphorus reach the lake. Approximately 67% of nitrogen and 87% of phosphorus reaching the lake flows out of it, the rest remains in the lake. About 45% of the total loss of nitrogen results from denitrification, and about 53% from sedimentation. The greatest effect on the circulation of nutrients in Lake Gardno is exerted by the mixing of water caused by strong winds resulting in the upward movement of the surface layers of bottom sediments. This causes increased resuspension and sedimentation, which mask similar processes resulting from the outer load of nutrients and from autochtonie processes and products, which are one or two orders ofa magnitude smaller.

Praca obejmuje wyniki trzyletnich badań liczebności bakterii wskaźnikowych stopnia zanieczyszczenia (ogólna liczba bakterii oznaczana na agarze bulionowym w temperaturze 22 i 37°C) i stanu sanitarnego (liczba bakterii grupy coli - TC, bakterii grupy coli typu kałowego - FC, paciorkowców kałowych- FS i beztlenowych bakterii przetrwalnikujących redukujących siarczyny - Clostridium pcrfringensi w wodzie Jeziora Długiego Wigierskiego w warunkach bytowania kormorana czarnego tPhaiocrocorax carbo). Badania przeprowadzono w latach I 998-200 I w 530 próbach wody pobieranych na I 4 stanowiskach wyznaczonych w charakterystycznych miejscach jeziora, ze szczególnym uwzględnieniem miejsc lokalizacji siedlisk kormoranów. Większość (powyżej 60%) przebadanych prób wody Jeziora Długiego Wigierskiego mieściła się w l klasie wód o bardzo dobrej jakości. Okolo 20-30% prób wody mieściła się w Il klasie wód dobrej jakości, tylko niewielki procent prób wody wykazywało nieznacznie większy stopień zanieczyszczenia i zaklasyfikowano je do Ill klasy czystości, tzn. wód o zadowalającej jakości. Wyższym stopniem zanieczyszczenia charakteryzowały się próby wody pobierane zazwyczaj w pobliżu dopływu i odpływu rzeki Dłużankijak też w sąsiedztwie bytowania kormoranów-w pobliżu wyspy Ostrówek i w strefie przybrzeżnej. Próby wód bardziej zanieczyszczonych bakteriologicznie pobierano częściej w okresie wiosenno-letnim, kiedy aktywność ptactwa wodnego i innych zwierząt w rejonie jeziora była większa. Wskazuje na to niski stosunek FC : FS w większości pobieranych w tym czasie prób wody z jeziora. Niski stosunek liczbowy kałowych bakterii grupy coli do paciorkowców kałowych w większości badanych prób wody sugeruje przeważający udział ptactwa wodnego w zanieczyszczaniu tego zbiornika.

On the Polish-Czech Odra river section between Chalupki (Poland) and the Olza river mouth there are unique in European scale meanders (km 21.3 - 26.8). In the 20th century the break-up of two meanders caused by floods in 1967 and 1997 occurred. The total length ofmeandering section has become shorter and the hydraulic gradient increased. The sediments eroded and transported by the stream have settled in different zones of the meandering section. In 1997 the inlet to the meander I was blocked by settled sediments causing the break-up of this meander. The paper presents the preliminary estimation ofmorphological changes of the river bed and the physical and rheological characteristics for settled sediments.

The aim of this study is to determine natural and anthropogenic threats and their effects concerning the lakes situated within the coastal zone of the southern Baltic. The shore zone is a place of contact of the sea waters and the inland waters. This results in the formation of special water relationships and special circulation water. Macroscale conditions overlap local hydrological conditions and morphometric features of basins and hydrological features of catchments specific to particular lakes. All the natural conditions have been affected by human activity for over eight centuries. As a result. numerous natural and anthropogenic threats occur and cause not only periodic changes in the structure of lakes but such that even endanger their existence.

Emission or air pollutants from fluidized bed furnaces is not as well known as emission from the traditional technologies of energetic combustion of fuels, the main source of air pollution in Poland. Boilers with circulating fluidized beds (CFB), working in Poland, proved their technical, technological economical and ecological advantages, gaining good perspective for their applications in municipal, industrial and national energetic - the more so. as they may be fueled with coal, coal slime, recycled wastes and bio-fuels. To fulfil the gap in knowledge concerning properties of dust and gases emitted to the atmospheric air from such boilers, measurements. analyses and investigations of emissions from four selected CFB boilers were performed. The examined CFB boilers belonged to the Polish heat generating plants Tychy, Chorzów ELCHO, Katowice and Jaworzno Ill (Department li). Emission of dust from cach of these four CFB boilers was measured, the dust granulometrie composition was determined and hazardous substances. such as polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAI-ls). compounds of trace elements (including heavy metals), polychlorinated dibenzodioxins (PCDD) and polychlorinated dibcnzofurans (PCDF), accumulated on the dust particles, were analysed. Emissions of sulphur dioxide. nitrogen dioxide. carbon monoxide, hydrogen chloride, hydrogen fluoride and volatile organic compounds (VOCs) were measured. The granulometrie composition of dust was determined by using a cascade impactor - this allowed avoiding errors due to dust coagulation occurring when measuring filters are used. The investigations, with their approach and methodology, are continuation of the authors' earlier investigations of emissions from combustion of coal. They present actual information on gas and dust emissions from the CBF boilers, allowing for complete evaluation of these emissions from the perspective of the environmental hazard. A synthetic result of the work is the factors for emission of total dust, PM2.5, PM I O, sulphur dioxide, nitrogen dioxide, carbon monoxide, hydrogen chloride, hydrogen fluoride, PAI-ls. YOCs, dioxins and furans from the CFB boilers, expressed in grams of emitted substance per I Mg of combusted fuel. All received results confirmed ecological advantages of combusting coal and coal slime in the CFB boilers- particularly, the low emissions of sulphur dioxide and nitrogen dioxide as well as minimal emissions of hydrogen fluoride, dioxins and heavy metals. Also, due to application of highly efficient electro-filters, the dust emission is low. The results revealed the effect of conditions of fuel combustion on emissions of some pollutants, especially PAIis and carbon monoxide.

The paper projects the potential of agricultural waste Saraca indica leaf powder (SILP) in biosorbing chromium from aqueous system. The influence of pH, contact time, metal concentration, biomass dosage and particle size on the selectivity of the removal process was investigated. The maximum sorption efficiency of SILP for Cr(lll): 85.23% and Cr(VI): 89.67%was found to be pH dependent giving optimum sorption at pH 6.5 and 2.5 respectively. The adsorption process fitted well to both Freundlich and Langmuir isotherms. Morphological changes observed in Scanning Electron Micrographs ofmetal treated biomass confirm the existence of biosorption phenomenon. Fourier Transform Infra-red Spectrometry confirms that amino acid-Cr interactions contribute a significant role in the biosorption of chromium using target leafpowder. The successful applications of easily abundant agricultural waste SILP, as a biosorbent have potential for a low technological pretreatment step, prior to economically not viable high-tech chemical treatments for the removal of Cr from water bodies.

The paper presents results of investigations carried out in 2005 at six crossroads in Zabrze. The investigations comprised determinations of vehicular traffic intensity, observations of meteorological conditions and, as a main subject, determinations of concentrations of PM2.5 and PM 10 at all observed sites. Structure of ambient aerosol in the vicinity of crossroads was compared with the structure of aerosol at a reference measuring point, located beyond effects of vehicular traffic, by determining a share of PM2.5 in PM 10 for cach site. At a selected crossroad the measurements lasted 11 days and the sampled dust was analyzed for chemical composition of surface of its particles with the use of the X-ray photoelectron spectroscopy (XPS). Both the most abundant and trace elements in the surface layer of dust sampled at the crossroads were identified.

Activated sludge systems designed for enhanced nutrients removal are based on the principle of altering anaerobic and aerobic conditions for growth ofmicroorganisms with a high capacity of phosphorous accumulation. To avoid return of large parts of accumulated phosphorous in the processes of sludge conditioning chemical precipitation is often applied. This can be not be the case, at least for a part, if prior to other processes of sludge handling, the sludge will be disintegrated. It was demonstrated that disintegration of surplus activated sludge permits removal of a substantial part of nutrients in the form of struvite. The effects of sludge disintegration on metals ions release and poly-P destruction were elucidated. Appropriated handling of disintegrated sludge allows for removal of at least 25% of the inflowing phosphorous load without addition of chemicals.

The paper presents the results of laboratory tests concerning the possibility of utilizing activated carbons produced in Poland, as well as of non-conventional adsorbents, such as modified Clarion clay and clinoptylolite, for removing methylene blue from water. The objective of tests carried out was a quantitative formulation of the adsorption process, as well as the determination of the effects of various factors on its course. The attempt was taken to solve the tasks defined in the objective of the study using model experimental systems. The methylene blue solution in concentration 20 mg/dm', prepared on the basis of distilled water, was used as adsorbate. Adsorption processes, conducted in batch mode (in no-flow conditions), were best described by the Freundlich isotherms. On the basis of the isotherms the adsorptive capacity of tested adsorbents was calculated. The throughflow conditions were realized by a columnar filtration method. On the basis of obtained results the breakthrough curves (isoplanes) were plotted. The adsorptive capacities, determined on the basis of isoplanes reached 27--41 mg/g, 14.89 mg/g and 5.54 mg/g for activated carbons, modified Clarion clay and clinoptylolite, respectively. Exit curves (isoplanes) served for defining the mass transfer zone (the adsorption front height), a., well as for calculating the mass-exchange-zone moving rate. Despite their inferior adsorptive characteristics the modified Clarion clay and clinoptylolite may be taken into account as shielding materials in relation to activated carbons.

This paper presents a comparative analysis of feed phosphates production processes using the Life Cycle Assessment (LCA) methodology and process analysis in the quantification of cumulated calculation. Three feed phosphates production processes were compared: a modified thermal process and two different low temperature endothermic units (one working in the "Bonarka" Inorganic Works (BIW) in Cracow and the other in the Phosphoric Fertilizers Works (PFW) "Fosfory" in Gdańsk). The LCA results indicated that the most advantageous technology is the feed phosphates production unit in "Fosfory". It was shown that LCA can be an efficient instrument for evaluating environmental impact, though it should be compared with other estimation methods.