Browsing by Author "F. Marshall"

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Effect of air pollution on peri-urban agriculture: A case study
(Elsevier Ltd, 2003) M. Agrawal; B. Singh; M. Rajput; F. Marshall; J.N.B. Bell
Peri-urban agriculture is vital for the urban populations of many developing countries. Increases in both industrialization and urbanization, and associated air pollution threaten urban food production and its quality. Six hour mean concentrations were monitored for SO2, NO2 and O3 and plant responses were measured in terms of physiological characteristics, pigment, biomass and yield. Parameter reductions in mung bean (Vigna radiata), palak (Beta vulgaris), wheat (Triticum aestivum) and mustard (Brassica compestris) grown within the urban fringes of Varanasi, India correlated directly with the gaseous pollutants levels. The magnitude of response involved all three gaseous pollutants at peri-urban sites; O 3 had more influence at a rural site. The study concluded that air pollution in Varanasi could negatively influence crop yield. © 2003 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.
Effects of wastewater irrigation on physicochemical properties of soil and availability of heavy metals in soil and vegetables
(2009) Anita Singh; Rajesh K. Sharma; Madhoolika Agrawal; F. Marshall
The present study investigated the impact of irrigation with wastewater on nutritional property and heavy-metal concentrations in the soil and consequent accumulation in vegetables at sites having long-term uses of wastewater for irrigation. Samples of irrigation water, soil, and root and shoot parts of palak plants were analyzed to determine the concentration of heavy metals. Wastewater irrigation led to increases in the total and phytoavailable heavy-metal concentrations in the soil at all the sites. Heavy-metal concentrations in soil under wastewater irrigation were negatively and positively correlated with soil hydrogen potential (pH) and organic carbon (OC), respectively. The enrichment factor and metal pollution index were higher at wastewater-irrigated sites as compared to the clean water-irrigated ones. The study concludes that wastewater irrigation modified the physicochemical properties of the soil, leading to more availability of heavy metals in the soil and consequently to the plant. © Taylor & Francis Group, LLC.
Heavy metal contamination in vegetables grown in wastewater irrigated areas of Varanasi, India
(2006) R.K. Sharma; M. Agrawal; F. Marshall
[No abstract available]
The effect of air pollution on yield and quality of mung bean grown in peri-urban areas of Varanasi
(2006) M. Agrawal; B. Singh; S.B. Agrawal; J.N.B. Bell; F. Marshall
There is growing concern that air pollution may have adverse impacts on crops in developing countries, yet this has been little studied. This paper addresses this issue, for a major leguminous crop of the Indian sub continent, examining the effect of air pollution in and around an Indian city. A field study was conducted using a gradient approach to elucidate the impact of air pollutants on selected production characteristics of Vigna radiata L. cv. Malviya Jyoti (mung bean) plants grown from germination to maturity at locations with differing concentrations of air pollutants around peri-urban and rural areas of Varanasi. The 6 -h daily mean SO2, NO2 and O 3 concentrations valued from 8.05 to 32.2 ppb, 11.7 to 80.1 ppb and 9.7 to 58.5 ppb, respectively, between the sites. Microclimatic conditions did not vary significantly between the sites. Changes in plant performance at different sites were evaluated with reference to ambient air quality status. Reductions in biomass accumulation and seed yields were highest at the site experiencing highest concentrations of all three gaseous pollutants. The magnitude of response indicated that at peri-urban sites SO2, NO 2 and O3 were all contributing to these effects, whereas at rural sites NO2 and O3 combinations appeared to have more influence. The quality of seed was also found to be negatively influenced by the ambient levels of pollutants. It is concluded that the air pollution regime of Varanasi City causes a major threat to mung bean plants, both in terms of yield and crop quality, with serious implications for the nutrition of the urban poor. © Springer 2006.