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Body condition scoring, an indirect measure of the level of subcutaneous fat in dairy cattle, has been widely adopted for research and field assessment or for management purposes on farms. The feasibility of utilizing digital images to determine body condition score (BCS) was assessed for lactating dairy cows at the Scottish Agricultural College Crichton Royal Farm. Two measures of BCS were obtained by using the primary systems utilized in the United Kingdom (UKBCS) and the United States (USBCS). Means were 2.12 (±0.35) and 2.89 (±0.40), modes were 2.25 and 2.75, and ranges were 1.0 to 3.5 and 1.5 to 4.5 for the UKBCS (n = 2,346) and USBCS (n = 2,571), respectively. Up to 23 anatomical points were manually identified on images captured automatically as cows passed through a weigh station. Points around the hooks were easier to identify on images than points around pins and the tailhead. All identifiable points were used to define and formulate measures describing the cow's contour. For both BCS systems, hook angle, posterior hook angle, and tailhead depression were significant predictors of BCS. When the full data set testing only the angles around the hooks was used, 100% of predicted BCS were within 0.50 points of actual USBCS and 92.79% were within 0.25 points; and 99.87% of predicted BCS were within 0.50 points of actual UKBCS and 89.95% were within 0.25 points. In a reduced data set considering only observations in which the tailhead depression angle was available, adding the tailhead depression to models did not improve model predictions. The relationships of the calculated angles with USBCS were stronger than those with UKBCS. This research demonstrates the potential for using digital images for assessing BCS. Future efforts should explore ways to automate this process by using a larger number of animals to predict scores accurately for cows across all levels of body condition. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The article presents an overview of chromium contamination issues in the South-East of Glasgow and the potential for remediation. Chromite ore processing residues arising from the works were used as infill material across large tracts of south-east Glasgow. Glasgow City Council (GCC) identified 15 sites where elevated concentrations of hexavalent chromium extended to depths of 10m in places. The investigation of remedial options for the Glasgow sites followed on from this series of investigations, which were undertaken by Dames and Moore on behalf of GCC in 1993.

The article focuses on the modelling of chromium behaviour and transport at sites contaminated with chromite ore processing residue. The presence of approximately 2.5 million tonnes of chromite ore processing residue on several sites in the vicinity of Glasgow has led to concern about the leaching of the known toxin, Cr(VI), into surface and ground waters and ultimately, into the River Clyde. Examination of the modelled mineralogical composition as a function of pH shows that the hydrogarnet dissolves first followed by the hydrocalumite in the pH range 11.5-10.5.

Abstract: Chromite ore processing residue (COPR) waste from a former chromium chemical works (1830–1968) is still contaminating groundwater in Glasgow, Scotland, with carcinogenic hexavalent chromium, Cr(VI). An integrated analytical, experimental and modelling approach has identified and accounted for mineral phases and processes responsible for the retention and release of Cr(VI) under prevailing field conditions. Both the nature of mineral phase retention and the buffered high pH of the sites, however, militate against direct remediative treatment of the source material, for example by the application of generic methods (e.g. FeSO4) that have been successfully employed elsewhere for the reduction of Cr(VI) to Cr(III) in other matrices. The interception and treatment of groundwater to remove Cr(VI) and the capping of sites to reduce human exposure to airborne Cr(VI)-contaminated dust may well be more realistic and effective, at least in the short to medium term. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

Abstract: The human bioaccessibility of lead (Pb) in Pb-contaminated soils from the Glasgow area was determined by the Unified Bioaccessibility Research Group of Europe (BARGE) Method (UBM), an in vitro physiologically based extraction scheme that mimics the chemical environment of the human gastrointestinal system and contains both stomach and intestine compartments. For 27 soils ranging in total Pb concentration from 126 to 2160mgkg−1 (median 539mgkg−1), bioaccessibility as determined by the ‘stomach’ simulation (pH ~1.5) was 46–1580mgkg−1, equivalent to 23–77% (mean 52%) of soil total Pb concentration. The corresponding bioaccessibility data for the ‘stomach+intestine’ simulation (pH ~6.3) were 6–623mgkg−1 and 2–42% (mean 22%) of soil Pb concentration. The soil 206Pb/207Pb ratios ranged from 1.057 to 1.175. Three-isotope plots of 208Pb/206Pb against 206Pb/207Pb demonstrated that 206Pb/207Pb ratios were intermediate between values for source end-member extremes of imported Australian Pb ore (1.04) – used in the manufacture of alkyl Pb compounds (1.06–1.10) formerly added to petrol – and indigenous Pb ores/coal (1.17–1.19). The 206Pb/207Pb ratios of the UBM ‘stomach’ extracts were similar (<0.01 difference) to those of the soil for 26 of the 27 samples (r=0.993, p<0.001) and lower in 24 of them. A slight preference for lower 206Pb/207Pb ratio was discernible in the UBM. However, the source of Pb appeared to be less important in determining the extent of UBM-bioaccessible Pb than the overall soil total Pb concentration and the soil phases with which the Pb was associated. The significant phases identified in a subset of samples were carbonates, manganese oxides, iron-aluminium oxyhydroxides and clays. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

Abstract: The Unified Bioaccessibility Method (UBM), which simulates the fluids of the human gastrointestinal tract, was used to assess the oral bioaccessibility of Cr in 27 Glasgow soils. These included several contaminated with Cr(VI), the most toxic form of Cr, from the past disposal of chromite ore processing residue (COPR). The extraction was employed in conjunction with the subsequent determination of the bioaccessible Cr by ICP-OES and Cr(VI) by the diphenylcarbazide complexation colorimetric procedure. In addition, Cr(III)-containing species were determined by (i) HPLC-ICP-MS and (ii) ICP-OES analysis of gel electrophoretically separated components of colloidal and dissolved fractions from centrifugal ultrafiltration of extracts. Similar analytical procedures were applied to the determination of Cr and its species in extracts of the <10μm fraction of soils subjected to a simulated lung fluid test to assess the inhalation bioaccessibility of Cr. The oral bioaccessibility of Cr was typically greater by a factor of 1.5 in the ‘stomach’ (pH ~1.2) compared with the ‘stomach+intestine’ (pH ~6.3) simulation. On average, excluding two COPR-contaminated soil samples, the oral bioaccessibility (‘stomach’) was 5% of total soil Cr and, overall, similar to the soil Cr(VI) concentration. Chromium(VI) was not detected in the extracts, a consequence of pH- and soil organic matter-mediated reduction in the ‘stomach’ to Cr(III)-containing species, identified as predominantly Cr(III)-humic complexes. Insertion of oral bioaccessible fraction data into the SNIFFER human health risk assessment model identified site-specific assessment criteria (for residential land without plant uptake) that were exceeded by the soil total Cr (3680mgkg-1) and Cr(VI) (1485mgkg-1) concentration at only the most COPR-Cr(VI)-contaminated location. However, the presence of measurable Cr(VI) in the <10μm fraction of the two most highly Cr(VI)-contaminated soils demonstrated that inhalation of Cr(VI)-containing dust remains the most potentially harmful exposure route. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]