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Zinc, major ion, and other trace metal (V, Cr, Co, Ni, Cu, Cd, and Pb) concentrations were measured within 172 street and stream runoff samples in the Atlanta metropolitan region and in relatively undeveloped watersheds within the Georgia Piedmont and Blue Ridge Provinces. Peachtree Creek, draining a densely populated area of Atlanta, was the primary sampling location and samples were acquired under a wide range of hydrological conditions. Zinc concentrations within street runoff [median (Zn)urban street runoff=905 µg/l] were significantly greater than zinc concentrations within storm runoff [median (Zn)Peachtree Creek=60 µg/l], which were, in turn, greater than zinc concentrations within non-storm runoff [median (Zn)Peachtree Creek=14 µg/l]. Zinc concentrations were not significantly greater within urban base flow than within non-urban base flow, indicating that the primary source of pollution is "event water" or street runoff. Zinc was the only heavy metal present in greater than "background" concentrations (i.e., >10 µg/l), which is likely the result of automotive pollution that is omnipresent within the study area. Analysis of storm alkalinity dilution trends indicate that simple mixing between polluted street runoff and groundwater cannot account for the zinc concentrations observed within storm and recession flows. A two end member mass balance model suggests that a large proportion of the zinc present in the street runoff is adsorbed and transported on surfaces of the suspended sediment. Adsorption is readily possible at the near neutral pH (~6.5) of turbid storm discharge. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

All schools possess a duty of care towards their students. However, this duty of care falls unevenly across schools, with those serving low-income communities often responding to the material and psychological effects of poverty as a priority. This duty of care for such schools was placed into stark relief during the period of COVID-19 school closures, when structural inequalities in society became particularly pronounced. Previous research has drawn distinctions between different forms of caring enacted in schools serving low-income communities. These range from practices centred on children’s academic learning to those more concerned with children’s welfare and well-being—which, for the purposes of this paper, we term as academic nurturing and affective nurturing respectively. Others recognise the need for schools in low-income communities to perform a dual role and engage in both forms of nurturing simultaneously—which we term as critical nurturing. This paper presents findings based on case studies from three designated disadvantaged primary schools in Ireland during pandemic-related closures. It draws on interviews from the Children’s School Lives longitudinal study with the teachers, principals, and families of four Junior Infant children (typically aged four to five years). Our findings suggest a typology of nurturing pedagogies, with academic and affective nurturing emphasised to varying degrees across our three schools during this period. Narratives from interviewees also demonstrate the central role of school culture and leadership in achieving critical nurturing, with significant social justice implications for the education of children in schools serving low-income communities. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]