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Groundwater is a crucial drinking water resource for rural communities; however, the absence of adequate monitoring programs in these regions often results in uncertainties about groundwater quality. This study focuses on assessing the impact of nitrogen compounds from domestic wastewater on groundwater in rural communities within the province of Al Hoceima. The hydrochemistry of 33 groundwater samples was analyzed using various methods, including descriptive statistics, the Nitrate Pollution Index (NPI), the Chronic Health Risk Index (CHR), and a GIS-based spatial analysis. The investigation revealed significant contamination by nitrogen compounds in regions characterized by high population density. In these areas, nitrate (NO3-) and nitrite (NO2-) concentrations exceeded 50 mg/l and 0.2 mg/l, respectively, surpassing the WHO recommended limits. Notably, NO3- levels ranged from 0 to 89.63 mg/l, with 84.84% of groundwater samples contained more than 10 mg/l. The NPI values ranged from -1 to 3.48, with 33.33% of the samples were categorized as significantly and very significantly polluted. Additionally, CHR values ranged from 0 to 2.43 for adults, 0 to 2.03 for children, and 0 to 2.51 for infants. The CHR values exceeded 1 suggests that the contamination observed in the samples can be attributed to the widespread use of septic tanks in densely populated regions. Thus, to ensure the safety of rural communities, further assessments of health risks are mandatory.

One solution to the shortage of drinking water in Morocco is the development of reverse osmosis (RO) desalination plants. However, the quality of the permeate produced is corrosive, unbalanced, and does not meet the standards required for its use. The post-treatment process at the Al-Hoceima desalination plant in northern Morocco consists of the addition of carbon dioxide (CO2) and hydrated lime (Ca (OH)2). In this study, various analyses were utilized to assess the physical-chemical quality parameters of the water produced after remineralization. The results revealed that the remineralization method adopted by the plant is relatively complex and associated with difficulties in maintaining optimal remineralized water parameters such as pH, TAC, TH, and Ca2+. However, the water produced re-establishes its calcocarbonic balance and is of satisfactory quality for human consumption.

This study aims to assess the sustainability of healthcare waste treatment systems using surrogate weights and the Preference Ranking Organization METHod for Enrichment Evaluations (PROMETHEE). For this purpose, ten treatment systems, including land disposal, incineration and non-incineration systems, were evaluated in terms of environmental, financial, social, and technical criteria. Firstly, fifteen reputed experts assigned their preferred rankings for the groups of criteria and the sub-criteria. The conversion of these rankings into numerical weights was performed using the SR function, which is an additive combination of Sum and Reciprocal weight functions. Secondly, the alternatives' performance with regards to each criterion allowed PROMETHEE to generate the outranking flows for each alternative. The complete ranking revealed that the rotary kiln (A4) is the most sustainable system followed by steam disinfection (A8), dry heat disinfection and microwave disinfection. However, the municipal landfill is the least sustainable system, while chemical disinfection is ranked in the penultimate position of sustainability. The partial ranking indicated that A4 and A8 are incomparable and both were ranked as most sustainable. Therefore, the sustainability of a system cannot be assessed properly without the exact specification of the system itself. In addition, it is preferable to act on the criteria that affect negatively the system to improve its performance. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

In this paper, molecular dynamics (MD) simulation of surface morphology during homoepitaxial growth of Copper was investigated. For this purpose, simulations of Cu deposition on the Cu(111) substrate with an incidence energy of 0.06 eV at 300K were performed using the embedded-atom method (EAM). The grown thin film on Cu(111) reveled a rough surface morphology. During deposition, the important fraction of atoms intended for the upper layers undergone a rising rate of about 40% starting from the 2nd period and continued to increase until 65%, while the lower level reached a permanent rate of only 25% by the 4th period. Otherwise, except at the first layer level, the lower layers are incomplete. This void in the lower layers has favored the growth of the upper layers until a rate of 143% and has accelerated their time appearance. Th incidence energy has favored the filling of lower layers by reducing this surface roughness. However, the temperature effect needs more relaxation time to fill the lower layers. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

This study aims to establish susceptibility maps for the Moroccan Safi region, which is affected by karstification processes. This process is the predisposing factor for various landslide types such as debris flows and rock falls. In the first phase of this study, a landslide inventory was prepared by geomorphological approach based on visual interpretation of aerial photographs combined with direct observations in the field. The obtained inventory included 234 landslides: 14 rock slides and 75 debris flows in Brown Clay Formation, 74 rock falls in sandstone and 71 rock topples in Dridrat Limestone Formations. The inventory map showed that landslide phenomena occur mainly in the northwest and along the active coastal cliffs in the south of Safi. In the second phase, four landslide susceptibility maps were realized using the bivariate statistical method of Geographical Information System (GIS) matrix method (GMM). The established landslide susceptibility maps were validated by the degree of fit method. Obtained results showed that landslide phenomenon occurs mainly in the northwest and along the coastal cliffs in the south of the study area. Moreover, very high and high susceptibility levels were limited to the area including industrial and touristic activities as well as historical monuments. Overall, landslides were associated to karstification, lithology, karstic rocks and karstic spring presence, which are considered as predisposing and causal factors. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The article discusses a study on the progress and transition towards a green economy in Morocco. Topics covered include the environmental communication practices of Moroccan companies, challenges that have hampered the country's efforts to anchor the principles of sustainable development, such as the adverse effects of climate change and the loss of biodiversity, and environmental report or a sustainable development report that Moroccan companies are obliged to publish.