Critical Analysis of Stakeholders in the Municipality of Tarija, Bolivia, in Search of Strategies for Adequate Water Governance to Implement Reverse Osmosis as an Alternative for Generating Safe Water for Its Inhabitants

[EN] The accelerated deterioration of water quality in the city of Tarija, Bolivia, has caused several water sources in the Municipality of Tarija to be discontinued due to the presence of toxic contaminants. The current water purification systems that are used in Tarija do not guarantee the elimination of heavy metals; in addition, political and social interest conflicts are a serious problem in the execution of projects and new public investment alternatives, with these being the main problems found in the sector. Reverse osmosis (RO) water purification technologies are one of the most effective contemporary alternatives for the elimination of contaminants in water, such as heavy metals; however, their application and implementation in countries with little or no experience in this type of technology require acceptance and knowledge on behalf of the interested parties. Political and social conflicts between interested parties generate scenarios that affect hydrological planning. Analysis of the actors in the urban and municipal sphere of the city of Tarija, Bolivia, provides a case study for adequate water governance and enabled us to come to a consensus for the implementation of RO. The results show 23 fundamental actors in water management in the Municipality of Tarija, with local actors being those with the greatest influence and power in decision-making. Our analysis of social networks showed an important polarization in the power of decision makers, with municipalities and legislative entities being those that decide on public investments. The interested parties showed considerable interest in the application of RO as a technology that can provide definitive, short-term solutions to the problems of water stress and the water crisis in the Municipality of Tarija and its application in small towns with a high level of social and environmental vulnerability.This study was supported by Subproject 2 of the Agreement for the Implementation of Phase 2 of the Institutional Cooperation Project VLIR UOS IUC-Universidad Católica Boliviana San Pablo between 1 September 2022 and 31 August 2027.Villena Martínez, EM.; Alvizuri-Tintaya, PA.; Lo-Iacono-Ferreira, VG.; Lora-García, J.; Torregrosa López, JI.; Sánchez Barrero, L.; Leigue Fernández, A.... (2023). Critical Analysis of Stakeholders in the Municipality of Tarija, Bolivia, in Search of Strategies for Adequate Water Governance to Implement Reverse Osmosis as an Alternative for Generating Safe Water for Its Inhabitants. Water. 15(17). https://doi.org/10.3390/w15173164151

Granulation and microbial community dynamics in the chitosan-supplemented anaerobic treatment of wastewater polluted with organic solvents

The effect of chitosan on the development of granular sludge in upflow anaerobic sludge blanket reactors (UASB) when treating wastewater polluted with the organic solvents ethanol, ethyl acetate, and 1-ethoxy-2-propanol was evaluated. Three UASB reactors were operated for 219 days at ambient temperature with an organic loading rate (OLR) of between 0.3 kg COD m−3 d−1 and 20 kg COD m−3 d−1. One reactor was operated without the addition of chitosan, while the other two were operated with the addition of chitosan doses of 2.4 mg gVSS−1 two times. The three reactors were all able to treat the OLR tested with COD removal efficiencies greater than 90%. However, the time required to reach stable operation was considerably reduced in the chitosan-assisted reactors. The development of granules in the reactors with chitosan was accelerated and granules larger than 2000 μm were only observed in these reactors. In addition, these granules exhibited better physicochemical characteristics: the mean particle diameter (540 and 613 μm) was approximately two times greater than in the control reactor (300 μm), and the settling velocities exceeded 35 m h−1. The extracellular polymeric substances (EPS) in the reactors with the chitosan was found to be higher than in the control reactor. The protein-EPS content has been correlated with the granule size. The analyses of the microbial communities, performed through denaturing gradient gel electrophoresis and high-throughput sequencing, revealed that the syntrophic microorganisms belonging to genus Geobacter and the hydrogenotrophic methanogen Methanocorpusculum labreanum were predominant in the granules. Other methanogens like Methanosaeta species were found earlier in the chitosan-assisted reactors than in the control reactor

« Les Décideurs et l'aviation », dossier préparé par le Service historique de l'armée de l'Air

d'Abzac-Epezy Claude. « Les Décideurs et l'aviation », dossier préparé par le Service historique de l'armée de l'Air. In: Histoire, économie et société, 1998, 17ᵉ année, n°2. pp. 330-331

La reconstruction dans l'industrie aéronautique : l'exemple français, 1944-1946

[eng] Abstract In the fall of 1944, the French Communist Air Minister, Charles Tillon, set ambitious goals for rebuilding the aeronautics industry, despite having little to build on except confiscated machine-tools and an industrial sector which had been badly damaged by allied bombing (20- 25% of available surfaces). At the price of a considerable financial effort, aeronautics factories were rebuilt, and their total surface was greater in 1946 than it had been in 1940. Yet the results were positive in apperance only: although full employment was insured and production was up, the planes being built were neither up-to-date nor in accordance with the demands of peace time. An overly hasty reconstruction of the aeronautics industry only delayed its inevitable reconversion, which began with difficulty in 1947. [fre] Résumé Dans le contexte d'une très forte demande, la reconstruction de la sidérurgie européenne se réalise le plus souvent avec une stratégie de court et de moyen termes. Pour certaines sidérurgies, la question n'est pas celle de la reconstruction (Royaume-Uni, Suède, Belgique, Luxembourg, Allemagne fédérale) mais celle de retrouver des marchés ou un mode de fonctionnement «normal». Les sidérurgies françaises et italiennes se distinguent par un vrai débat stratégique. La sidérurgie française bénéficie de la stratégie offerte par le Plan Monnet et en profite beaucoup au moyen terme. La sidérurgie italienne voit aboutir le grand effort ouvert par O. Sinigalia avant guerre et entame une mutation fondamentale, gage de ses succès futurs.