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Article highlights - Inga edulis offer potential for biotechnological and environmental applications. - High protein and carbohydrate content in seeds support diverse agro-industrial uses. - edulis seeds enhance environmental education via forest nurseries schools. - Biotechnological potential of I. edulis seeds extends to ecosystem services. Abstract Inga edulis Martius is a native species of the Amazon Forest with great potential for urban afforestation in the cities of the Brazilian Amazon and widely used for the recovery of degraded areas. It is commonly cultivated by the Amazonian population for its edible fruit, quality wood, and excellent agroforestry components. This study aimed to select the matrices and obtain information about the behavior of the seeds in terms of drying, biometry, purity and germination, and chemical composition. The seeds collected in the environmental education action were recognized about potentialities of use for biotechnological products and environmental protection. The seed exploitation of this species is attractive due to its composition (protein and carbohydrates) and forest integration. I. edulis seedlings in the schools contribute to environmental education as a sustainable practice with biotechnological potential for the Amazon region.

Abstract Aim This study aims to analyze the scientific literature on phytoplankton in assessing lake water quality, based on bibliometric and network techniques. Methods PRISMA criteria were adopted to produce reliable results. The Scopus and Web of Science databases were consulted to retrieve the documents to be studied. The number of publications, citations and bibliographic coupling were techniques used to identify relevant journals, countries, authors, and articles. The conceptual evolution was analyzed by keywords co-occurrence and thematic mapping. Results Based on 2429 documents selected from the 1973-2023 annual period, the main results indicated 519 journals, 6450 authors, 54907 references, and 4844 keyword authors, among others. The annual growth index was 10.27%, reflecting the upward trend at the time. Erick Jeppesen resulted as the top influential author, China leaded in publications and collaborations with The United States of America. Hydrobiologia was the top journal. Top influential articles content theme related to cyanobacterial blooms. According to the results of the analysis of the conceptual framework, phytoplankton, water quality, eutrophication, and cyanobacteria were the most relevant themes. Furthermore, the trending topics were mainly climate change and degradation. Conclusions This comprehensive analysis allowed us to interpret the development of research related to the subject of assessing lake water quality.

Research conducted on an area of the deciduous seasonal forest at 20 sampling sites (headwaters and riparian areas), belonging to Project “Water Guardian” in the Andreas Stream Hydrographic Basin, RS, Brazil, and established the Payment for Environmental Services (PES). The research aimed at determing the floristic groups that characterize the study area, quantifying the species phytosociological parameters and their relationship with the studied areas. At each sampling site, we allocated a 10 × 10 m permanent sampling units (plots) and counting individuals until the species/plots curve stabilization. All forest individuals with a circumference ≥ 15 cm at 1.40 m above the ground level were inventoried. Statistical differences established using the nonparametric Kruskall-Wallis statistical test, followed by the Mann-Whitney paired comparisons test for multiple comparisons (α = 5%). Aiming at grouping the species according to their Importance Value Index (IVI) similarities, we applied the cluster analysis based on Ward's method. The results indicated 170 significative plots, which sampled 3,774 individuals distributed in 101 species, including 84 genera and 36 families. Three ecological groups detected, being group 1 (G-1) characterized by presenting the highest mean (±standard deviation) value of IVI equal to 4.5 ± 1.9%, and showing significant differences when compared to the other groups (p

Canopy height is an important attribute that allows characterizing the forest vertical structure and analyze changes in vegetation cover over time. The objective of this study is to develop an approach for a spatio-temporal analysis of the tropical forest canopy using multi-temporal photogrammetric images. The datasets based on film and digital cameras are used to generate canopy height models and extract structural variables (tree height, relative variance between tree heights, and density of higher trees in the upper canopy). The combination of these variables is used in the analysis. Each variable is segmented into ordinal categorical classes in its respective dataset with temporal class gradients being obtained between the periods of the multi-temporal datasets. Experiments were conducted in a tropical forest under regeneration and with diversity of tree species in different successional stages. Three sets of images (years 1978, 2010, and 2017) were used for analyzing canopy cover changes. A classification based on histograms of gradient classes indicated and quantified the most frequent behavior of the canopy over time. The results showed that the most significant variations in cover changes could be explained by 13 classes of temporal gradients, which described 88% of the canopy. This classification was validated with field data collected in sample plots. From the results, it can be concluded that the proposed approach provides accurate assessments of the spatio-temporal canopy cover changes for forest management.

AIM: This study aimed to assess the quality of water and sediment of urban streams (Lajeado, Preto, Pedras and Lewis-Pedroso) located in Santa Cruz do Sul County, RS, Brazil, using the microcrustacean Ceriodaphnia dubia as test-organism. METHODS: Quarterly scientific excursions to the streams were held on August and November 2011, February and May of 2012 in order to collect water and sediment samples, in the upper reaches (P1, P3, P5, P7) and lower reaches (P2, P4, P6, P8), totalizing 8 points. To evaluate the toxicity (acute and chronic), the microcrustacean C. dubia was used. RESULTS AND CONCLUSION: The results indicated high toxicity levels detected in samples P2, P6 and P8 (lower reaches), as they caused the mortality of 100% of organisms in the water samples (P6 and P8) and sediment samples (P2 and P8), denoting acute effect. Yet, all upstream sites showed chronic effects in sediment samples, at least for one collection period, with the highest significant toxicity level among all samples (55.2%), which indicates the presence of contamination even in upper areas. These results indicated a strong degradation of the water and sediment quality of urban streams coming from the wastewater and industrial discharges of the urban area, which can cause damage to the biota as well as the public health, due to the multiples uses of water that the local population does, highlighting many of them as inappropriate to the water quality detected, such as the primary contact recreation (balneability).

Environmental monitoring studies in the Hydrographical Basin of Pardo River, RS, Brazil, in the time series from 2007 to 2009, showed no agreement between the water quality evaluation obtained through the Water Quality Index (WQI - NSF), which ranged from "regular" to "good", and the Environment National Council (CONAMA) Resolution 357/2005, which was bad ("class 4"), highlighting as critical variables for this classification the thermotolerant coliforms and the phosphate concentration, indicating process of water eutrophication, related to the large amount of nutrients and organic load from domestic sewage and excess fertilizers used in agriculture. AIM: This research aimed to calibrate the WQI - NSF for the Pardo River Basin, based on the CONAMA Resolution 357/2005. METHODS: Using the database (2007 a 2009) from the Laboratory of Limnology of the University of Santa Cruz do Sul (UNISC), RS, corresponding to the environmental monitoring studies realized in the Hydrographical Basin of Pardo River new weights of the relative importance of the variables used to calculate the WQI were attributed, by means of principal component analysis. RESULTS: There was a significant agreement between the results of the assessment of water quality using the CONAMA Resolution 357/2005 and the new WQI calibrated. CONCLUSION: The results certify the use of the calibrated WQI in environmental monitoring programs in lotic systems belonging to Guaíba Hydrographical Basin, RS.Estudos de monitoramento ambiental na Bacia Hidrográfica do Rio Pardo, RS, Brasil, na série temporal 2007 a 2009, mostraram que não há concordância entre a avaliação da qualidade da água obtida através do Índice da Qualidade da Água (IQA - NSF), que oscilou entre boa e regular, e da Resolução 357/2005 do Conselho Nacional de Meio Ambiente (CONAMA), que foi ruim (classe 4), destacando como variáveis críticas para esta classificação os coliformes termotolerantes e a concentração de fosfato, indicando processos de eutrofização da água, relacionados ao aporte de nutrientes e carga orgânica oriundos de esgotos domésticos e de fertilizantes utilizados na agricultura. OBJETIVO: A presente pesquisa objetivou calibrar o IQA - NSF para a Bacia Hidrográfica do Rio Pardo, baseando-se na Resolução 357/2005 do CONAMA. METODOLOGIA: Usando o banco de dados (2007 a 2009) do Laboratório de Limnologia da Universidade de Santa Cruz do Sul (UNISC), RS, correspondente aos estudos de monitoramento ambiental realizados na Bacia Hidrográfica do Rio Pardo, novos pesos da importância relativa das variáveis usadas para calcular o IQA foram atribuídos, por meio de análise de componentes principais. RESULTADOS: Houve uma significativa concordância entre os resultados da avaliação da qualidade da água utilizando a Resolução 357/2005 do CONAMA e o novo IQA calibrado. CONCLUSÃO: Os resultados obtidos certificam o uso do IQA calibrado em programas de monitoramento ambiental em sistemas lóticos da Bacia Hidrográfica do Guaíba, RS.

Esse estudo avaliou a produtividade dos criadouros de Aedes aegypti (Linnaeus) e Aedes albopictus (Skuse) no município de Parati através dos dados da vigilância entomológica obtidos pelos métodos preconizados pelo Programa Nacional de Controle da Dengue (PNCD). O maior número de pupas de A. aegypti foi coletado nos ralos (31%), garrafas e latas (23%); e com A. albopictus o maior número foi nas garrafas, latas (24%) e vasos de planta (21%). Do total de pupas obtidas, 84,3% e 79,3% das pupas de A. aegypti e A. albopictus respectivamente foram coletadas em pequenos reservatórios: garrafas, vasos de plantas, pneus, bromélias, oco de árvores e ralos. Essas produtividades contradizem a literatura e podem ser explicadas pelas limitações de acesso aos grandes reservatórios e falha na capacitação dos agentes. Esse estudo chama atenção para a importância que os pequenos reservatórios podem ter na densidade do vetor no meio urbano nacional e conclui que a metodologia de vigilância entomológica usada tem sido ineficaz para identificar os grandes e mais produtivos criadouros. Essa conclusão sugere que essa ineficácia pode ser um fator importante pelos insucessos no combate a dengue no Brasil. Evaluation of Breeding Productivity from Surveillance Data for Aedes aegypti (Linnaeus) and Aedes albopictus (Skuse) in Parati, RJ, Brazil Abstract. This study evaluated the pupa-productivity of the entomologic surveillance according methodology used by the official Program for Dengue Control in Brazil (PDCB) for Aedes aegypti (Linnaeus) and Aedes albopictus (Skuse) in Parati, RJ, Brazil. The highest number of A. aegypti pupae were found in drains (31%), bottles and cans (23%); and the highest number of A. albopictus pupae were found in bottles and cans (24%), and plant vases (21%). Of the total pupae identified 84.3% and 79.3% of A. aegypti and A. albopictus respectively were collected in small receptacles: bottles, plants vase, tires, bromeliads and tree holes. These productivities are not supported by literature and can be explained by the restrictions of access for the bigger receptacles and lack of training of the agents. The study points out the importance which the small receptacles can have on vector densities in urban environment despite of their productivity and conclude that the entomology surveillance methodology for dengue used in PDCB has no efficacy to identify the bigger and more productive receptacles. This conclusion suggests that this inefficacy can be an important factor for the failures on dengue vector control in Brazil.