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Issue Addressed: Firefighting is physically and mentally taxing and recruits are expected to have optimal health and fitness. However, physical fitness tends to decline following initial training, placing firefighters at an increased risk for stress and injury. Efforts are needed to engage and support firefighters in maintaining adequate health and fitness to withstand the rigorous demands of their occupation. This study examined the feasibility of TARP, a pragmatic strength and conditioning intervention for metropolitan‐based firefighters, delivered in collaboration with a professional National Rugby League club. Methods: A mixed‐methods approach was utilised to examine program implementation, recruitment and sample characteristics, intervention satisfaction and acceptability, and participants' response to the intervention. Evaluation measures included field notes taken during steering committee meetings, participant flow data, baseline and follow‐up outcome measures, self‐report questionnaires, and telephone interviews with a sample of participants. Results: Participants (N = 113) were predominantly men (82%) with a mean age of 43 ± 9.3 years and BMI of 26.6 ± 2.9 kg/m2. Program satisfaction was high (95% very satisfied or somewhat satisfied) among program completers (42% retention). Key strengths of the program included delivery through the professional sports club, quality of facilities and equipment, and scheduling flexibility. Future programs should consider incorporating education or training to support behaviour change maintenance and strategies to retain participants at follow‐up. Conclusions: Results provide valuable insights into the design and delivery of interventions for firefighters and demonstrate the importance of strong partnerships between community stakeholders. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

We investigated how projected changes in land cover and climate affected simulated nitrate (NO3−) and organic nitrogen discharge for two watersheds within the Neuse River Basin, North Carolina, USA, for years 2010-2070. We applied the Soil and Water Assessment Tool watershed model to predict nitrogen discharge using (1) atmospheric carbon dioxide (CO2) concentrations predicted by the Intergovernmental Panel on Climate Change, (2) land cover change predicted by the Integrated Climate and Land Use Change project and (3) precipitation and temperature simulated by two statistically downscaled and bias-corrected Global Circulation Models. We determined the sensitivity of simulated nitrogen discharge to separate changes in each treatment [(1) CO2, (2) land cover and (3) precipitation and temperature (PT)] by comparing each treatment to a reference condition. Results showed that nitrogen discharges were most sensitive to changes in PT over the 60-year simulation. Nitrogen discharges had similar sensitivities to the CO2 and land cover treatments, which were only one-tenth the influence of the PT treatment. Under the CO2 treatment, nitrogen discharges increased with increasing ambient CO2. NO3− discharge decreased with increased urbanization; however, organic nitrogen had a varied response. Under the PT treatment, there was high spatial variability in nitrogen discharges. In a single year, certain sub-basins showed an 80% increase in nitrogen discharge relative to reference, while others showed a 400% decrease. With nitrogen discharge showing high sensitivity to PT change, we suggest that more emphasis should be placed on investigating impacts of PT on nutrient transport in the Neuse River Basin. Published 2015. This article is a U.S. Government work and is in the public domain in the USA [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The article investigates the spatial and temporal phosphorus (P) removal capacity under different hydrologic conditions along a stormwater treatment area (STA) flow path in the Everglades in South Florida. Significant spikes in porewater and surface-water concentrations of soluble reactive P (SRP), dissolved organic P, and total ammoniacal nitrogen were noted immediately after rehydration of the cell following an extended drought. Elevated total P concentrations continued at the outfall of the cell for several months thereafter. Aerobic oxidation of organic matter during prolonged dryout periods is reportedly a more significant biogeochemical process in compromising soil P retention in STAs.

The article presents a study which aims to examine processes that cause the observed spatial variation of total mercury (THg) in the soil O horizon in the Superior National Forest watershed of Minnesota. The study used principal component analysis to measure the spatial relationships of 42 chemical elements over 10 watersheds in three soil horizons. The study shows that soil organic carbon is the main factor that control the spatial variation of particular metals, such as arsenic (As), copper (Cu), tin (Sn) and cadmium (Cd), in the A and O soil horizons.