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In this study, the distribution of eight phthalate esters (PAEs), namely (dimethyl phthalate (DMP), diethyl phthalate (DEP), di-n-butyl phthalate (DBP), butyl benzyl phthalate (BBP), bis (2-ethylhexyl) phthalate (DEHP), and di-n-octyl phthalate (DnOP)) were examined across fifteen sampling stations in Yazd industrial Park. All the PAEs in dust deposited in the outdoor environment were analyzed using a Gas-mass chromatography (GC-MS/MS) device. Both probabilistic and deterministic approaches were utilized to assess the non-carcinogenic and carcinogenic health risks for adult occupational population groups. These risks were associated with three exposure pathways: inhalation, ingestion, and dermal exposure to six phthalates in the dust samples. The findings revealed, among the fifteen sampling stations, highest and lowest concentrations of the PAEs in dust deposited in the outdoor environment were observed in S8 and S6, with BEHP (326.21 ± 4.35) μg/g and DMP (0.00 ± 0.02) μg/g, respectively. The total hazard index (HI) values were below one in all samples, indicating that the combined non-carcinogenic health risk from exposure to phthalates via inhalation, ingestion, and dermal pathways is within acceptable levels in each studied area. The total cancer risk (CR) values for BBP across all exposure routes were consistently low, with magnitudes ranging from 10- x 10 -15 to 10 x 10 -11 . The order of cancer risk from phthalate exposure in outdoor environments was ingestion > dermal > inhalation. The sensitivity analysis (SA) results indicated that the influential parameters in the carcinogenic risk in adult occupational population groups were concentration for inhalation and dermal pathways, as well as ingestion rate for the ingestion pathway. The result of this study provides new insight in to PAEs pollution and risk assessments related to the dust deposited in the outdoor environment of industrial Park. Furthermore, this finding is beneficial to the controlling the exposure and promoting steps to reduce PAEs contamination and manage health in the industrial area., Competing Interests: The authors declare that they have no known competing financial interests or personal relationships that could have appeared to influence the work reported in this paper., (© 2024 The Authors.)

This study was aimed to survey toxicity of waterpipe wastes leachates on Peronia peronii in aquatic and sediment environments as two exposure media. For this, leachates of four tobacco types including burnt traditional tobacco (BTT), fresh traditional tobacco (FTT), burnt fruit-flavored tobacco (BFT) and fresh fruit-flavored tobacco (FFT)) were prepared and used to assess their toxic effects on P. peronei in two aquatic and sediment media. The in-vivo toxic effects of five different concentrations of waterpipe tobacco waste leachates on P. peronii were evaluated. The LC 50 values of BTTs leachates to P. peronii were 17.50, 16.05, 11.31 and 9.38 g/L at exposure times of 24, 48, 72 and 96 h, respectively in aquatic media. These values for BFTs leachates were 14.86, 12.38, 9.53 and 7.46 g/L at exposure times of 24, 48, 72 and 96 h, respectively. In the case of sediment media, the LC 50 values of BTTs leachates were 15.33, 13.70, 9.09 and 6.70 g/L at exposure times of 24, 48, 72 and 96 h, respectively while these values for BFTs leachates were 12.00, 10.32, 8.20 and 5.65 g/L. Fruit-flavored tobacco leachates had significantly higher toxicity than traditional tobacco leachates for P. peronii. The findings also showed significant differences between the LC 50 values of different leachates in different media of water and sediment. The results demonstrated that even small amount of tobacco waste (~ 5 to 6 g/L) can lead to P. peronii mortality and may also pose a hazard to other aquatic and benthic organisms. The results obtained from the present study can be used as a baseline data to assess local effects causing from unsafe disposal of post-consumption tobacco waste in beach areas. In addition, these findings can lead to encouraging decision-makers to focus more on the types of tobacco waste in the municipal solid waste management system and to implement a source separation process for these wastes., (© 2024. The Author(s), under exclusive licence to Springer Nature B.V.)

This investigation aimed to scrutinize the level of phthalate esters (PEs) in the landfill leachate of a coastal city in the north of the Persian Gulf and the sensitive ecosystem (soil and water) around it. Soil (two depths) and water samples were prepared from 5 stations in wet and dry seasons. The studied landfill leachate contained 114-303 μg/L of phthalates. The highest concentration of phthalates was related to bis (2-ethylhexyl) phthalate (3257 ng/g) in the wet season at surface soil (0-5 cm) in the landfill site, while the lowest one (6 ng/g) belonged to dimethyl phthalate at sub-surface soil at 700 m from the landfill in the dry season. A significant change in the level of Σ6PEs in the dry (303 μg/L) and wet (114 μg/L) seasons (P ≤ 0.05) was observed for water samples. The PE concentrations in wet times were higher in all soil depths than in dry times. With increasing depth, the content of phthalates decreased in all studied environments. A direct relationship was observed between the phthalates concentration and the pH value of leachate/water and soil. The PEs concentration was linked to electrical conductivity (leachate: R 2  = 0.65, P < 0.01 and surface soil: R 2  = 0.77, P < 0.05) and the soil organic content. The ecological risk of di-n-butyl phthalate, benzyl butyl phthalate, bis (2-ethylhexyl) phthalate, and di-n-octyl phthalate in the wet season was greater than one. The results showed that significant levels of phthalate esters are released from landfills to the surrounding environment, which requires adequate measures to maintain the health of the ecosystem and nearby residents., Competing Interests: Declaration of competing interest The authors declare that they have no known competing financial interests or personal relationships that could have appeared to influence the work reported in this paper., (Copyright © 2024 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.)

Increasing of tobacco consumption around the world has led to the production of a large volume of waterpipe wastewater that enter the environment (e.g., coastal areas)and threaten aquatic creatures. However, until now, no research has been carried out on the amounts of monocyclic and polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) in hookah wastewater. In the current study, the levels of PAHs and BTEX compounds in waterpipe wastewater resulting from the use of different tobacco brands were determined and their eco-toxicological effects were also evaluated. The mean levels of ƩPAHs in waterpipe wastewater of Al Tawareg, Al-Fakher, Nakhla, Tangiers and traditional tobacco brands samples were 3.48 ± 1.65, 3.33 ± 1.52, 3.08 ± 1.25, 2.41 ± 0.87 and 0.70 ± 0.13 μg/L, respectively. The mean levels of ƩBTEX in waterpipe wastewater of Al Tawareg, Al-Fakher, Nakhla, Tangiers and traditional tobacco brands samples were also 2.53 ± 0.61, 2.65 ± 0.78, 2.51 ± 0.72, 2.35 ± 0.56, and 0.78 ± 0.12 μg/L, respectively. The maximum level of PAHs and BTEX compounds in all brands/flavors samples were for naphthalene (Naph) and toluene, respectively. The concentrations of some PAHs (fluoranthene (Flrt), anthracene (Ant), benzo(b)fluoranthene (BbF), benzo(b)fluoranthene (BkF), benzo (g,h,i)perylene (BghiP) and dibenzo (a, h) anthracene (DahA)) and BTEX compounds (benzene) in the waterpipe wastewater samples were more than recommended guidelines and standards by the international reputable organizations such as World Health Organization (WHO) for water quality. Waterpipe wastewater can be introduced as an important origin for the release of these dangerous contaminants into the environmental matrixes. Therefore, more stringent regulations should be considered for the safe disposal of such hazardous wastes including waterpipe wastewater., Competing Interests: The authors declare that they have no known competing financial interests or personal relationships that could have appeared to influence the work reported in this paper., (© 2024 Published by Elsevier Ltd.)

Plastic contamination is widely recognized as a major environmental concern due to the entry of small plastic particles into the food chain, thereby posing potential hazards to human health. However, the current understanding of microplastic (MP; < 5 mm) particles in livestock, which serve as an important food source, is limited. This study aims to investigate the concentration and characteristics of MPs in edible tissues of cow and sheep, namely liver, meat, and tripe, obtained from butcher shops in five areas of Bushehr port, Iran. The mean concentration of MPs in different tissues of cow and sheep were 0.14 and 0.13 items/g, respectively. Among the examined tissues, cow meat exhibited the highest concentration of MPs, with a concentration of 0.19 items/g. Nylon and fiber were identified as the predominant polymer types and shapes of MPs found in cow and sheep tissues, respectively. Furthermore, no statistically significant difference was observed in MP concentration across different tissues of cow and sheep. Significantly, this study highlights the elevated hazards associated with exposure to MPs through the consumption of edible cow and sheep tissues, particularly for children who consume meat. The results underscore the potential transfer of MPs from the environment to livestock bodies through their food, contamination during meat processing, and subsequent health hazards for consumers., (© 2024. The Author(s), under exclusive licence to Springer-Verlag GmbH Germany, part of Springer Nature.)

In this research, a total of 51 road dust samples were collected from three districts (Asaluyeh, Bushehr, and Goshoui) in the south of Iran from April to June 2022 and analyzed for the concentration of 7 phthalic acid esters (PAEs) compounds. Asaluyeh was considered as an industrial area (near gas and petrochemical industries), Bushehr as an urban area, and Goshoui as a rural area (far from pollution sources). The PAEs concentration of the street dust samples was determined using a mass detection gas chromatography (GC/MS). The mean ± SD levels of ƩPAEs in samples from industrial, urban, and rural sources were 56.9 ± 11.5, 18.3 ± 9.64, and 5.68 ± 1.85 μg/g, respectively. The mean concentration levels of ƩPAEs was significantly (P < 0.05) higher in samples from the industrial area than urban and rural areas. The mean levels of di(2-Ethylhexyl) phthalate (DEHP) in industrial, urban, and rural areas were 20.3 ± 8.76, 4.59 ± 1.71, and 2.35 ± 0.98 μg/g, respectively. The results of the PCA analysis indicate that the likely major sources of PAEs in the road dust in the studied areas are the application of various plasticizers in industry, solvents, chemical fertilizers, waste disposal, wastewater (e.g., agricultural, domestic, and industrial), and the use of plastic films and plastic-based irrigation pipes in greenhouses. As well as, it was found that the non-cancer risk of exposure to dust-bound PAEs was higher for children than for adults. These values were <1 for both age groups (children and adults) and the exposure of inhabitants to PAEs in road dust did not pose a notable non-cancer risk. The cancer risk from exposure to DEHP in road dust was below the standard range of 10 -6 in all three areas. Further studies that consider different routes of exposure to these contaminants are needed for an accurate risk assessment. Moreover, since higher PAEs level was found in industrial area, decision-makers should adopt strict strategies to control the discharging of pollution from industries to the environment and human societies., Competing Interests: The authors declare that they have no known competing financial interests or personal relationships that could have appeared to influence the work reported in this paper., (© 2023 The Authors.)

Waterpipe tobacco wastes (WTWs) may contain considerable levels of hazardous contaminants such as BTEX (benzene, toluene, ethylbenzene, o-xylene, and m/p-xylene). However, no research has been carried out on BTEX levels in WTWs and the release of these pollutants into the water environment. This research examined the levels of BTEX in WTWs of flavored/local tobacco and also the release rate of these toxins into three kinds of water, including seawater (SW), tap water (TW), and distilled water (DW) with different leaching times (15, 30 min, 1.2, 4, 8 h, and 1, 2, and 4 days). The mean contents of BTEX in WTW samples of Al-Mahmoud, Al-Fakher, Mazaya, Al-Ayan brands, and local tobacco samples were 17.0 ± 4.14, 19.1 ± 4.65, 19.6 ± 4.19, 18.8 ± 4.14, and 3.16 ± 0.63 μg/kg, respectively. The mean BTEX levels in flavored tobacco samples were considerably greater than that of local tobacco (p < 0.05). The WTWs leaching experiments showed that the levels of BTEX ranged from 5.26 to 6.12, 5.02-5.60, and 3.83-5.46 μg/L in DW, TW, and SW, respectively. All target compounds were found for all exposure times in DW, TW, and SW samples. After adding sodium azide as an antibacterial agent to water samples (simulating biodegradation processes), higher levels of BTEX compounds were detected in SW. Further research is needed to address the potential environmental hazards due to WTWs leaching into aquatic environments., Competing Interests: The authors declare that they have no known competing financial interests or personal relationships that could have appeared to influence the work reported in this paper., (© 2023 Published by Elsevier Ltd.)

Advanced oxidation processes (AOPs) based on oxidants have attracted attention for the degradation of organic pollutants. The combination of chalcopyrite with oxidants such as persulfate, peroxide, percarbonate, and others shows promise as a system due to its ability to activate through various pathways, leading to the formation of numerous radical and non-radical species. In this review, the generation of sulfate radical (SR) and hydroxyl radical (HR) in AOPs were summarized. The significance of chalcopyrite in various approaches including Fenton, photo-Fenton, and photo/Fenton-like methods, as well as its involvement in electrochemical Fenton-based processes was discussed. The stability and reusability, toxicity, catalyst mechanism, and effects of operational parameters (pH, catalyst dosage, and oxidant concentration) are evaluated in detail. The review also discusses the role of Fe 2+/3+ , Cu 1+/2+ , S 2- and S n 2- present in CuFeS 2 in the generation of free radicals. Finally, guidelines for future research are presented in terms of future perspectives., Competing Interests: The authors declare that they have no known competing financial interests or personal relationships that could have appeared to influence the work reported in this paper., (© 2023 The Authors.)

Secondhand smoke (SHS: a mixture of sidestream and mainstream smoke) and thirdhand smoke (THS: made up of the pollutants that settle indoors after smoking in closed environments) are a significant public health concern. SHS and THS contain various chemicals which can be released into the air or settle on surfaces. At present, the hazards of SHS and THS are not as well documented. In this review, we describe the chemical contents of THS and SHS, exposure routes, vulnerable groups, health effects, and protective strategies. The literature search was conducted for published papers on September 2022 in Scopus, Web of Science, PubMed, and Google Scholar databases. This review could provide a comprehensive understanding of the chemical contents of THS and SHS, exposure routes, vulnerable groups, health effects, protective strategies, and future researches on environmental tobacco smoke., (© 2023. The Author(s), under exclusive licence to Springer-Verlag GmbH Germany, part of Springer Nature.)

Waterpipe is a common form of tobacco smoking, and recently, its use has been increasing globally. Therefore, concern arises regarding the large quantity of post-consumption waterpipe tobacco waste produced and released into the environment and which can contain high levels of dangerous pollutants such as toxic meta(loid)s. This study reports the concentrations of meta(loid)s in waste from fruit-flavoured and traditional tobacco smoking as well as the release rate of these pollutants from waterpipe tobacco waste into three types of water. These include distilled water, tap water, and seawater and contact times ranging from 15 min to 70 days. The mean concentration levels of Ʃmetal(loid)s in waste samples of Al-mahmoud, Al-Fakher, Mazaya, Al-Ayan brands and traditional tobacco brands were 212 ± 92.8, 198 ± 94.4, 197 ± 75.7, 214 ± 85.8 and 40.6 ± 16.1 μg/g, respectively. The concentration levels of Ʃmetal(loid)s in fruit-flavoured tobacco samples were significantly higher than for traditional tobacco samples (p < 0.05). It was found that waterpipe tobacco wastes leached toxic metal(loid)s into different water samples with similar trends. In addition distribution coefficients showed that most metal(loid)s are highly likely to enter the liquid phase. The concentration levels of these pollutants (except Ni and As) in deionized water and tap water exceeded the surface fresh water standards for sustaining aquatic life during long contact time (up to 70 days). In seawater, concentration levels of Cu and Zn exceeded the recommended standards for maintaining aquatic life in the sea. Therefore, due to the possibility of contamination by soluble metal(loid)s through disposal of waterpipe tobacco waste in wastewater, there is concern that these toxic chemicals might enter the human food chain. Appropriate regulatory measures for disposal of waterpipe tobacco waste are necessary to prevent environmental pollution due to discarded wastes into aquatic ecosystems., Competing Interests: Declaration of competing interest The authors declare that they have no known competing financial interests or personal relationships that could have appeared to influence the work reported in this paper., (Copyright © 2023. Published by Elsevier B.V.)

The present research was aimed to assess the urinary levels of potentially toxic elements (PTEs) in female beauticians and its correlation with oxidative stress/inflammation and kidney injury. To this end, the urine samples were collected from 50 female beauticians from beauty salons (exposed group) and 35 housewives (control group), and then, the level of PTEs was determined. The mean levels of the sum of urinary PTEs (∑PTEs) biomarkers in before and after exposure and control group were 83.55, 114.27 and 13.61 μg/L, respectively. Results also showed that the urinary level of PTEs biomarkers is significantly higher in women occupationally exposed to cosmetics compared to control group. The urinary levels of arsenic (As), cadmium (Cd), lead (Pb), and chromium (Cr) biomarkers have high correlation coefficients with early oxidative stress effects such as 8-Hydroxyguanosine (8-OHdG), 8-isoprostane and Malondialdehyde (MDA). Moreover, As and Cd biomarker levels were positively and significantly associated with kidney damages such as urinary kidney injury molecule-1 (uKIM-1) and tissue inhibitor matrix metalloproteinase 1 (uTIMP-1) (P < 0.01). Therefore, women who working in beauty salons can probably be categorized as high - exposure and high-risk workers in terms of DNA oxidative and kidney damages., Competing Interests: Declaration of competing interest The authors declare that they have no known competing financial interests or personal relationships that could have appeared to influence the work reported in this paper., (Copyright © 2023 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.)

Post-consumption waterpipe tobacco waste (PWTW) is an unrecognized type of hazardous waste that is produced and released in large quantities into the aquatic environment. It may contain high amounts of various pollutants including PAH, and to date, there has been no research on the potential for contamination by PAH from PWTW leaching into aquatic environments. In this study, the concentrations of PAH via PWTW of fruit-flavored and traditional tobacco leachate into three water types, including distilled water (DW), tap water (TW) and sea water (SW) at different contact times were evaluated. There were significantly higher concentration levels of ƩPAH in waters with leachates from fruit-flavored PWTW than traditional tobacco (P-value<0.05). The concentration levels of ƩPAH in DW, TW and SW at a total contact time of two months ranged from 0.13 to 3.51, 0.12 to 3.63 and 0.11-3.64 μg/L, respectively. Lower molecular weight PAH such as naphthalene (Naph), acenaphthylene (Acen) and fluorine (Flu) were detected in leachates immediately after a short contact time of 15 min. Higher molecular weight PAH including benzo [a]anthracene (BaA), benzo [b]fluoranthene (BbF), benzo [k]fluoranthene (BkF), chrysene (Chr), and benzo [a]pyrene (BaP) were detected after one month contact time, while indeno [1,2,3-cd] pyrene (Indp), benzo [ghi]perylene (BghiP) and dibenz [a,h]anthracene (DahA) were only observed at the contact time measurement of two months. By adding sodium azide as an antimicrobial agent and chemical preservative to SW samples, higher concentrations of PAH including IP, DahA and BghiP were observed. The concentration levels of PAH in water samples after two months contact time were higher than water quality standards provided by the World Health Organization (WHO) and other international organizations., Competing Interests: Declaration of competing interest The authors declare that they have no known competing financial interests or personal relationships that could have appeared to influence the work reported in this paper., (Copyright © 2023 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.)

The main goal of the current investigation was to decontaminate ibuprofen (IBP) from hospital wastewater using sea mud as an H 2 O 2 activator. Sea sludge was converted into catalysts at different temperatures and residence times in furnaces, and then tested in the removal of IBP, and the most efficient ones were reported for the production of catalysts. The catalyst was optimized at 400 °C and 3 h. SEM-mapping, FTIR, EDX, BET, and BJH experiments were used to characterize the catalyst. Experiments were done at two pulsed and continuous ultrasonication modes in a photoreactor, and their efficiencies were statistically compared. The designed variables included IBP concentration (10-100 mg/L), the catalyst concentration (0-3 g/L), pH (4-9), and time (10-90 min). The oxidation process had the maximum efficiency at pH 4, treatment time of 60 min, catalyst quantity of 5 g/L, and IBP content of 50 mg/L. The catalyst was recycled, and in the fifth stage, the removal efficiency of IBP was reduced to 50%. The amount of energy consumed for treating IBP laden-wastewater using the evaluated catalyst in two modes of continuous and pulsed ultrasonic was calculated as 102 kW h/m 3 and 10 kW h/m 3 , respectively. IBP oxidation process was fitted with the first-order kinetic model. The system can be proposed for purifying hospital and pharmaceutical wastewaters., (© 2022. The Author(s), under exclusive licence to Springer-Verlag GmbH Germany, part of Springer Nature.)

Fresh tobacco or the smoke resulting from waterpipe and cigarette contains large amounts of polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs), which consumption can cause releasing of these contaminants into the indoor air of cigarette and waterpipe cafés. This study was conducted to investigate the urinary concentrations of unmetabolized PAH compounds among the employed workers as well as the customers in waterpipe and cigarette cafés along with its association with oxidative stress factors plus kidney injury biomarkers. For this, 35 staffs and 35 customers in these cafés (as an exposed group (EG)), 20 staffs in non-smoking cafés (as 1st control group (CG-1)), and 20 of the public population (as 2nd control group 2 (CG-2)) were chosen and their urine specimens were collected. The results indicated that there is a significant difference between urinary concentration of ƩPAHs in the exposed and control groups (P value < 0.05). Also, "type of tobacco" can be considered as an influential and determining factor for the urinary levels of PAHs among the subjects. Considering the contribution of PAHs to the total toxic equivalents, benzo[a]pyrene (BaP), dibenzo[a,h]anthracene (DahA), and fluoranthene (Flrt) with 32.76%, 27.62%, and 18.65% claimed the largest share in waterpipe/cigarette cafés. The results also indicated a positive and significant relationship between some PAHs and oxidative stress biomarkers as well as uKIM-1 (biomarker for assessing and diagnosing glomerular damage) and TIMP-1 (biomarker of stress in primary steps of injury in tubular cell). Thus, it can be expressed that the workers of these smoking cafés are prone to the detrimental health impacts. Accordingly, proper policies and decisions should be taken to limit the activity of these cafés or proper protective strategies should be adopted to protect the health of exposed individuals., (© 2022. The Author(s), under exclusive licence to Springer-Verlag GmbH Germany, part of Springer Nature.)

Rice is a widely consumed food worldwide; however, it can be a source of pollutants, such as potentially toxic elements (PTEs), mycotoxins, and pesticides. Sixty rice samples imported from Pakistan (PAK), India (IND), and Thailand (THAI), as well as domestic Iranian (IRN) rice, were collected from Bushehr, Iran, and investigated for the contamination of PTEs, including arsenic (As), lead (Pb), cadmium (Cd), and nickel (Ni); pesticides, including chlorpyrifos, trichlorfon, diazinon, fenitrothion, and chlorothalonil; mycotoxins, such as aflatoxin B1 (AFB1), zearalenone (ZEN), ochratoxin A (OTA), and deoxynivalenol (DON); and molds. Estimated daily intake (EDI) and hazard quotient (HQ) of pollutants and hazard index (HI) and incremental lifetime cancer risk (ILCR) of rice types for the Iranian adult population were calculated. The content of PTEs in Iranian rice was not higher than Iran's national standard limits. In contrast, other types of rice (imported) had at least one PTE above the permissible level. OTA content was below the detection limit, and all other mycotoxins were within the allowable range in all rice types. Thai rice was the only group without pesticides. The HI order of rice types was as follows: HI PAK = 2.1 > HI IND = 1.86 > HI IRN = 1.01 > HI THAI = 0.98. As was the biggest contributor to the HI of Iranian and Thai rice, and diazinon in the HI of Pakistani and Indian rice. The calculation of ILCR confirmed that the concentrations of Ni and Pb in Pakistani and Ni and As in Indian, Thai, and Iranian rice were not acceptable in terms of lifetime carcinogenic health risks.

Polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) are a group of chemical compounds which interest to human biological monitoring researches because of their potential carcinogenic, mutagenic, and teratogenic properties. However, the exposure of female beauticians to these contaminants is not well-reported. For biomonitoring of potential exposure of female cosmeticians to PAHs in beauty salons, urine samples were taken from cosmetologist women (n = 50.00) and housewives (n = 35.00) as the exposure group (EG) and control group (CG), respectively. Next, unmetabolized PAHs levels as well as the concentration of - 1-hydroxypyrene (1-OHP) were analyzed in these specimens. In addition, since benzene has some common source with PAHs, in this study t, t'-Muconic acid (TTMA) level was also determined as the metabolite and indicator of exposure to benzene. The results indicated a high detection frequency of the target compounds (PAHs, 1-OHP and TTMA) in the urine specimens of beauticians. The results also showed that there is a significant difference between the concentration of these pollutants in the urine specimens of the exposure and control groups. The median concentration of ΣPAHs, 1-OHP, and TTMA in the before exposure (BE) specimens collected from the exposure group were 337.42 ng/L, 593.92 ng/L, and 247.90 μg/L, respectively. However, a higher concentration of these contaminants was observed in the after exposure specimens with a median concentration of 423.29 ng/L, 745.03 ng/L, and 310.97 μg/L, respectively. In terms of contribution of PAHs compounds in total toxic equivalents, DahA, BaP, and IndP with 59.03, 28.73, and 2.86 % had the largest share. In this study, it was also observed that some kidney damage biomarkers as well as some oxidative stress injury biomarkers are positively and significantly correlated with the urinary values of ∑PAHs. Thus, it can be concluded that high health risks threaten the female beauticians regarding kidney injury and DNA oxidative stress., Competing Interests: Declaration of competing interest The authors declare that they have no known competing financial interests or personal relationships that could have appeared to influence the work reported in this paper., (Copyright © 2022 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.)

The current work is documented as the first record of the characteristics, removal efficiency, partitioning behavior, fate, and eco-toxicological effects of paraben congeners in a municipal wastewater treatment plant (WWTP, stabilization ponds) and hospital WWTPs (septic tank and activated sludge), as well as seawater-sediments collected from runoff estuarine stations (RES) and coastal stations (CS) of the north of the Persian Gulf. The median values of Σparabens at the raw wastewater and effluent of the studied WWTPs were 1884 ng/L and 468 ng/L, respectively. The activated sludge system had a greater removal efficiency (56.10%) in removing ∑parabens than the septic tank (45.05%) and stabilization pond (35.54%). The discharge rates of methyl paraben (MeP) was computed to be 2.23, 21.18, and 9.12 g/d/1000 people for stabilization ponds, septic tank, and activated sludge, respectively. Median concentrations of Σparabens in seawater (103.42 ng/L) and sediments (322.05 ng/g dw) from RES stations were significantly larger than from CS stations (61.2 and 262.0 ng/g dw in seawater and sediments, respectively) (P < 0.05). The median of field-based k oc for Σparabens was 130.81 cm 3 /g in RES stations and 189.51 cm 3 /g in CS stations. It was observed that the concentration of parabens could have negative impacts on some living aquatic populations (invertebrates and bacteria), but the risk was not significant for fishes and algae., (© 2022. The Author(s), under exclusive licence to Springer Nature B.V.)

One of the environmental effects of COVID 19 is the contamination of ecosystems with antibiotics due to their high consumption to treat this disease. Many years ago, the distribution of antibiotics including azithromycin (Azi) in wastewater treatment plants in Bushehr city, seawater, and sediment of the Persian Gulf has been investigated. As Azi has been prescribed to COVID 19 patients, contamination of the environment with this drug can also be assumed. Thus, we decided to examine this hypothesis by repeating our previous study during COVID 19 period. We collected wastewater samples from influent, effluent, and different units of three wastewater treatment plants (WWTPs) including one municipal WWTP (Plant A) and two hospital-WWTPs (Plant B and C). Seawater and adjusted sediments were gathered from 8 stations located in the Persian Gulf in two seasons to evaluate the special and temporal variation. The results showed a huge growth of Azi pollution in all studied matrixes. The mean Azi values in the influent of Plant A, B, and C were 145 ng/L, 110 ng/L, and 896 ng/L, which represented an 9, 6, and 48-time increase compared with those obtained in 2017 (before COVID 19). The Azi removal efficiency had a different behavior compared to before COVID 19. The mean concentration of Azi in seawater and sediment samples was 9 ng/L and 6 ng/g, which was 3 and 4-fold higher than the previous study. Opposed to our former study, the Azi amount in the aqueous phase was less subjected to temporal seasonal variations. Our observations indicated the wide distribution of Azi in the environment and a future threat of intense growth of antibiotic resistance in ecosystems., Competing Interests: Declaration of competing interest The authors declare that they have no known conflict of interest that may obscure or affect their judgment to influence the work reported in this paper., (Copyright © 2022 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.)

The increase in annual usage of plastics for different purposes has led to an increase in microplastics (MPs) particles in various environments including inside of buildings. In the present study, levels and characteristics of MPs in the indoor dust of buildings with different uses including residential house, mosque, hospital, kindergarten, and university in two cities, Bushehr port and Shiraz in Iran, were determined. Thirty dust samples from various buildings were collected. The average numbers of MPs in the indoor dust of buildings of Shiraz and Bushehr were 90.8 and 80.8 items/mg, respectively. Fiber and polyethylene (PE) were the most common shape and polymer types of identified MPs, respectively. The highest number of MPs was observed in the indoor dust of kindergartens with a mean number of 121 items/mg in Bushehr and 104 items/mg in Shiraz. Except for mosques, a significant difference (p-value <0.05) were not observed between the MPs levels of buildings with similar applications in Bushehr and Shiraz cities. In addition, the high daily intake to MPs via indoor dust ingestion and inhalation were found for infants in kindergartens and mosques. The results of this study showed that MPs are present in high concentrations in indoor environments and may pose a high exposure risk for different age groups., Competing Interests: Declaration of competing interest The authors declare that they have no known competing financial interests or personal relationships that could have appeared to influence the work reported in this paper., (Copyright © 2022 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.)

Previous researches have reported significant levels of heavy metals in indoor air of smoking cafés. The current research aimed to evaluate the potential exposure of smoking cafés workers to heavy metals through quantifying amounts of these pollutants in urine samples. To this end, 35 waterpipe/cigarette cafés workers were selected as the exposed population, 35 employees from non-smoking cafe' as the control group 1 (CG1) and 25 cases of the normal citizens as the control group 2 (CG2); and their urine samples were taken. Samples were then prepared by acid digestion approach and measured by the ICP in order to determine amount of heavy metals in them. The findings of the current work show the significant difference among urinary levels of metals in the exposed and both CG1 and CG2 (P value < 0.05). Furthermore, urinary metal levels in samples collected from smoking café workers after the exposure were considerably higher than those were collected before the exposure (P-value <0.05). According to the findings, "tobacco type" could be considered as a leading factor for heavy metal exposure in studied smokers. Additionally, a positive and significant association was found between urinary metals and urinary levels of 8-OHdG (a markers of DNA degradation through oxidative stress). Therefore, workers in waterpipe/cigarette café can be classified as high risk people in terms of DNA oxidative damage., (Copyright © 2021 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.)

Polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs) bounded in indoor dust have significant effects in residents' health. Although various researches has evaluated exposure to PAHs in some indoor areas around the world, no work has been conducted on bioaccessibility of indoor PAHs in the buildings of Bushehr city. Therefore, dust samples were collected from various indoor microenvironments including residential buildings (RB), office buildings (OB), commercial buildings (CB), industrial buildings (IB), school classroom (SC), laboratory (LR), drugstores (DS), beauty salons (BS), smoking cafés (SC) and restaurants (Res) - 10 from each microenvironment. In order to determine the levels of polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons (PAHs), bioaccessible PAHs, and sink sorption PAHS were analyzed in them. The results showed that the highest level of these contaminants was detected in SC and the lowest in Lab. The median concentration of dust-bound ΣPAHs, bioaccessible ΣPAHs, and sink sorption ΣPAHs in the SC samples were 10,890.00, 1157.92, and 297.28 ng/g, and they were 1160.00, 19.69, and 0.75 ng/g in Lab samples. The results also indicated that the ΣPAHs concentration had a negative and significant association with the ventilation rate (pvalue <0.05 in most cases), as well as a positive and significant relationship with smoking inside buildings (pvalue <0.05). The estimated daily intake (EDI) values calculated for residential buildings (RB) were higher compared to most of the other studied microenvironments. These observations can be due to the fact that people spend much more time in residential buildings (50% of the entire day) compared to occupational settings (22%). Thus, they intake more dust within a longer time, and are hence exposed to larger amounts of pollutants bound with these particles., (Copyright © 2021 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.)

Urban runoff seems an obvious pathway for the transfer of microplastics (MPs) and phthalate acid esters (PAEs) from land-based sources to the marine environment; an issue that still lacks attention. This study presents the first results on MP and PAE levels in the urban runoff into the northern part of the Persian Gulf during the dry season. Average concentrations of MPs and PAEs in the urban runoff of eight selected sampling sites (N = 72) along the Bushehr coast were 1.86 items/L and 53.57 μg/L, respectively. MPs with a size range of 500-1000 μm had the highest abundance, and the mean levels of PAEs in MPs were 99.77 μg/g. The results of this study show that urban runoff is a main source of MP and PAE contaminants that are discharged into the Persian Gulf. Therefore, to decrease these pollutants from entering the aquatic environment, decision-makers in the area should consider this problem and stop the direct discharging of urban runoff into water bodies., Competing Interests: Declaration of competing interest The authors declare that they have no known competing financial interests or personal relationships that could have appeared to influence the work reported in this paper., (Copyright © 2021 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.)

Parabens are a group of chemical additive extensively utilized in various health care products and ubiquitously observed in the different environmental matrixes. Nevertheless, the exposure of women working in beauty salons to these pollutants is not well-documented. For this purpose, 50.00 women working in beauty salons were chosen as the exposed group (EG) and 35.00 housewives were chosen as the control group (GC). The concentration of methyl paraben (MeP), ethyl paraben (EtP), butyl paraben (BuP), propyl paraben (PrP), benzyl paraben (BzP), heptyl paraben (HepP), and para-hydroxybenzoic acid (4-HB) metabolite were quantified in the collected urine samples. It was seen that paraben sexist with a high detection frequency (DF) in the urine of women working in beauty salons. The results also revealed that the significant difference between the urinary parabens level in the EG and CG (P value < 0.05). The median concentration of Σparaben and HB-4 metabolite in the before exposure (BE) samples was 124.00 and 219.00 μg/L, while in the after exposure (AE) samples, it was 156.00 and 249.00 μg/L, respectively. Moreover, the parabens levels in the AE samples were considerably higher than in BE samples in women working in beauty salons (P value < 0.05). This research also documented that "personal care products (PCPs) usage" can be known as a leading factor for the urinary paraben level in the studied individuals. The median total estimated daily intakes (TEsDI) for MeP, EtP, and PrP for the studied women were obtained as 8.02, 4.57, and 7.88 μg/L respectively. Also, a significant and positive association was observed between EtP, PrP as well as BuP and 8-OhdG (as a DNA oxidative stress biomarker) (P value < 0.01). Further, a significant and positive association was found between EtP as well as BuP and some biomarkers of kidney damage (like uTIMP-1 and uKim-1). Accordingly, it can be stated that women working in beauty salons are at a high risk in terms of DNA oxidative stress and kidney damage., (Copyright © 2021 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.)

Tobacco smoke is known for releasing metals in indoor air of waterpipe/cigarette cafés. However, the worker exposure to metals, and its association with oxidative stress in these cafés are still unclear. To this end, 54 workers and 38 customers from waterpipe/cigarette cafés (the exposed group), 30 workers from non-smoking cafés (the control group 1 (CG&#95;1)) and 32 individuals from the general population (the control group 2 (CG&#95;2)) were selected and toenails samples were then taken from them. Our findings revealed a significant difference in terms of toenail-bounded metal levels between the exposure and control groups (CG&#95;1 and CG&#95;2) (Mann-Whitney U test, P value  < 0.05). This study has also indicated that "type of tobacco" could be considered as a predictor for toenail-bounded heavy metals. Furthermore, our research's results suggest that toenail-bounded heavy metals are positively and significantly correlated with urinary levels of 8- hydroxy-2'-deoxyguanosine (8-OHdG, as a biomarker for the degradation of deoxyribonucleic acid (DNA) oxidative stress). Therefore, it can be concluded that workers of waterpipe/cigarette cafés are at high risks of adverse health of DNA oxidative degradation.

The present study evaluated the concentrations, spatial distribution, seasonal variations, potential sources, and risk assessment of organic/inorganic pollutants in ambient air of Tehran city. Totally, 180 air samples were taken from 9 sampling stations from March 2018 to March 2019 and were analyzed to determine the concentrations of organic pollutants (BTEX compounds and PM 2.5 -bound PAHs) plus inorganic pollutants (PM 2.5 -bound metals and asbestos fibers). The results revealed that the mean concentrations of ∑ PAHs, BTEX, ∑ heavy metals, and asbestos fibers were 5.34 ng/m 3 , 60.55 µg/m 3 , 8585.12 ng/m 3 , and 4.13 fiber/ml in the cold season, respectively, and 3.88 ng/m 3 , 33.86 µg/m 3 , 5682.61 ng/m 3 , and 3.21 fiber/ml in the warm season, respectively. Source apportionment of emission of the air pollutants showed that PAHs are emitted from diesel vehicles and industrial activities. BTEX and asbestos are also released mainly by vehicles. The results of the inhalation-based risk assessment indicated that the carcinogenic risk of PAHs, BTEX, and asbestos exceeded the recommended limit by The US environmental protection agency (US EPA) and WHO (1 × 10 -4 ). The risk of carcinogenesis of heavy metal of lead and chromium also exceeded the recommended limit. Thus, proper management strategies are required to control the concentration of these pollutants in Tehran's ambient air in order to maintain the health of Tehran's citizens.

Like other dangerous pollutants in the air, asbestos has negative and adverse effects on human and animal health. The present study is designed to determine the concentration of asbestos in the air of the most industrial city of Iran (Karaj) in 2018-2019. For this purpose, 4 samples were taken from different areas of the air of Karaj during a year with an SKC pump and flow of 6 L/min for 8 h and in 45 days, and a total of 68 samples of asbestos fibers were collected. Then, the samples were analyzed by phase-contrast microscope (PCM) and scanning electron microscopy (SEM). Eventually, the health effects of asbestos fibers were evaluated by the IRIS EPA method. The average concentration of asbestos fibers was 1.84 f/L PCM and 18.16 f/L SEM. Also, the results of statistical correlation analysis indicated that asbestos fibers are positively correlated with wind speed but negatively correlated with the other three parameters (temperature, relative humidity, and pressure). On the other hand, the average annual risk of asbestos fiber in the ambient air of Karaj for all samples was in the range of 4.32 × 10 -6 to 1.81 × 10 -4 which in some places had more danger than the recommended risk range. According to the EPA guidelines, carcinogenicity acceptable levels are in the range of 10 -4 and 10 -6 . Values higher than 10 -4 have more carcinogenic risk and values lower than 10 -6 have a lower carcinogenic risk.

Background: Few studies have shown that smokers are more likely than nonsmokers to contract COVID-19, while others report that smokers are underrepresented among those requiring hospital treatment for this illness. This study was designed and implemented for investigating the severity and outcome of COVID-19 based on underlying smoking status., Materials and Methods: This was a case-control study that was implemented in Tehran and Ahvaz with all COVID-19 patients from February to July 2020. Patients were divided into two groups of COVID-19 positive (1044 cases) and negative (1231 controls) randomly based on entrance number., Results: The frequency of smokers in the case group is significantly lower than the control group (15.4% vs. 28%). However, the number of days of hospitalization and the use of more than 3 medications in the group of smokers were significantly higher. A comparison between groups of case and control based on smoking indicates that the death rate was significantly higher in smokers with COVID-19., Conclusions: The results of this study showed that although the number of smokers in COVID-19 patients is significantly lower, smokers run an aggresive curse and have higher mortality., Competing Interests: None

This work aimed to explore the concentration of nickel, manganese, iron, copper, chromium, and lead in the milk of goat herds in the industrial area of Asaluyeh (southern Iran) and the non-industrial area of Kaki. The milk of 16 goat herds (each herd had at least ten goats) was collected in several villages in each area, and at the same time, the drinking water and forage of goats were sampled. The concentration of elements in the samples was determined by ICP-OES. The mean concentrations of chromium, copper, iron, manganese, lead, and nickel in milk samples of the Asaluyeh area were 16.423 ± 0.349, 0.146 ± 0.118, 6.111 ± 0.501, 0.239 ± 0.016, 0.141 ± 0.030, and 1.447 ± 0.101 mg/kg, respectively. Concentrations of heavy metals (except for copper) in the milk of goats in the industrialized area of Asaluyeh were significantly higher than that of Kaki (P < 0.05). Also, the content of heavy metals was significantly correlated with lactose levels (P < 0.05). The hazard index for drinking the goat milk was computed to be 0.444 and 0.386 for the Asaluyeh and Kaki area, respectively, which shows a minimal effect of this exposure pathway.

Air pollution associated with particulate matters results in different types of disease including allergy, lung destruction, heart failure, and related problems. This study has been designed and performed to examine the concentration of PM 2.5 -bound heavy metals, risk assessment, possible sources and effect of meteorological parameters on 17 sites of the air of the most industrial city of Iran (Karaj) in 2018-19. For this purpose, four samples were taken from every point of Karaj air over one year using a pump (Leland Legacy (SKC)) with flow rate of 3 L/min on PTFE filter for 24 h. Overall, 68 samples of PM 2.5 -bound heavy metals were collected. Note that during the sampling, atmospheric parameters including temperature, pressure, humidity, and wind speed were regularly recorded using PHB318 portable device. In examining the chemical composition of these particles, the concentration of metals (Al-Zn- Ar-Cd-Cr-Cu-Fe-Hg-Mn-Ni-Pb) was determined after digestion of the collected samples and through injection into ICP-OEC device. The results indicated that the mean annual concentration of PM 2.5 particles range from 21.84 to 72.75 µg/m 3 . The mean concentration of heavy metals lied within the range of 25.63 to 336.27 ng/m 3 . Among heavy metals, the maximum concentration belonged to aluminum (277.95 ng/m 3 ) and iron (336.27 ng/m 3 ), which are known as elements with a ground source (sources such as car fuels, exhaust gases, decorative materials, batteries, indoor smoking, the paint used for painting walls, erosion and corrosion of rubber of cars). Meanwhile, there was a positive relationship between heavy metals and temperature(r: 0.418, p < 0.019), pressure (r: 0.184, p < 0.0.402), as well as wind speed (r: 0.38, p < 0.017), while an inverse relationship was observed with relative humidity (r: -0.219, p < 0.018). The ecological risk of the metals calculated was very notable, with the maximum environmental risk being related to cadmium in children (6.61) and manganese in adults (0.82). The largest HQ in children and adults was associated with Cr. Finally, ILCR values for cadmium in both children (1.19 E-04) and adult (4.81 E-04) groups indicated high risk of developing cancer in humans., Competing Interests: Conflict of interestThe authors of this article declare that they have no conflict of interests., (© Springer Nature Switzerland AG 2021.)

Asthma is a common chronic respiratory disease in the world. Short-term exposure to ambient air pollutants is closely related to acute respiratory diseases and asthmatic symptoms. The purpose of this research was to estimate the correlation between exposure to three air pollutants (O 3 , NO 2 , and SO 2 ) and hospital admission because of asthmatic disease (HAAD) in the city of Shiraz, southern Iran. The data were collected from the two real-time monitoring stations located in this city. The acquired information was used for developing predictive models by the AirQ software. The findings of this study were reported for two age groups (<15 and 15-64 years old). The highest levels of O 3 , NO 2 , and SO 2 were obtained 187.33 μg/m 3 , 34.1 μg/m 3 , and 491.2 μg/m 3 in 2016, respectively, and 227.75 μg/m 3 , 92.26 μg/m 3 , and 190.21 μg/m 3 , respectively, in 2017. Among the mentioned pollutants, the yearly average concentration of SO 2 was 8.62 times more than the WHO guideline, during the studied times. The number of extra cases of HAAD for <15 years and 15-64 years caused by the air pollutants in Shiraz were estimated to be 273 and 36, respectively, in 2016, and 243 and 30 for 2017, respectively. The results of this work displayed that air pollutants have caused respiratory problems in Shiraz city. The AirQ model is a facile and potential tool for the prediction of asthma disease to reduce the health risk of atmospheric pollutants in the worldwide., Competing Interests: Declaration of competing interest The authors declare that they have no known competing financial interests or personal relationships that could have appeared to influence the work reported in this paper., (Copyright © 2020 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.)

Indoor dust samples were collected from 42 microenvironments of residential buildings (RB, 15 samples), official buildings (OB, 10 samples), laboratory rooms (LR, 7 samples), and school classroom (SCR, 10 samples) in Bushehr, whereby the concentration of zinc, copper, lead, cadmium, nickel, and chromium was studied. The results of this study indicated that the mean concentrations of Zn, Cu, Pb, Cd, Cr, and Ni in the indoor dust samples were 567.18, 186.09, 209.01, 5.31, 143.20, and 57.09 mg/kg in RB, 1077.34, 539.67, 274.89, 8.12, 155.30, and 92.55 mg/kg in OB, 246.40, 149.56, 127.2, 1.96, 43.45, and 91.09 mg/kg in LR and 271.43, 189.84, 164.44, 3.06, 124.20, and 70.09 mg/kg in SCR. The results of principal cluster analysis showed that the heavy metals in indoor environments were mostly originated from smoking tobacco and cigarette, traffic sources, old building materials, and building paint colors. The results of this study also revealed that the concentration of heavy metals in indoor dust had a negative and significant relationship (P value < 0.05 in most cases) with rate of ventilation, and a positive and significant relationship with smoking inside buildings (P value < 0.05 in most cases). The bioaccessibility for zinc, copper, lead, cadmium, nickel, and chromium was 69.12, 40.08, 43.33, 79.81, 31.10, and 6.31%, respectively, in indoor dust. Further, risk assessment showed that the risk values of carcinogenicity and non-carcinogenicity resulting from heavy metals inside the studied microenvironments had exceeded the recommended safe limit by EPA. In terms of potential ecological risks, it was found that heavy metals in these microenvironments have exceeded the hazardous ecological levels presented by different indices and can have considerable negative ecological effects. Thus, it is essential that further and better studies and monitoring be performed on these environments, and suitable control recommendations and solutions should be regulated for this public health threat.

According to the epidemiological surveys, ambient air pollution has directly related to mortality and different diseases such as cardiovascular and respiratory defects. Among the atmospheric contaminants, criteria air ones (NO 2 , O 3 , PM 2.5/10 , SO 2 ) demonstrated that have particular importance in the community disease. The overall goal of this paper was to study the impact of criteria air contaminants on the health of the inhabitants of Shiraz city, Iran. To accomplish this, the AirQ 2.2.3 software was applied. The results of the study revealed that the annual average NO 2 , SO 2 , PM 2.5 , PM 10, and O 3 concentrations are 39.98, 27.6, 14.35, 46.16, and 120.03 μg/m 3 in 2016 and 30.27, 23.97, 16.45, 51.65, and 52.58 μg/m 3 in 2017. The total International Classification of Diseases (ICD), cardiovascular, and respiratory mortalities caused by air contaminants in Shiraz was predicted as 911, 628, and 182 cases in 2016, and 346, 370, and 82 cases in 2017, respectively. Sulfur dioxide (SO 2 ) had the greatest rate of total mortality with the attributable equivalent of 4.3% in 2016, but this value has been decreased to 0.42% in 2017. The findings of this research revealed that air contamination has caused problems in Shiraz city according to the predicted results. The findings of this work provide useful data for regional and national health policymakers, who should take decisions to develop strategies for control air contaminants and estimate the cost-effectiveness of interventions., Competing Interests: Declaration of competing interest None., (Copyright © 2020 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.)

To determine the concentration of carbon monoxide (CO) and particulate matter (PMs), indoor air samples were collected from 60 waterpipe cafés in Ardabil city of Iran. Moreover, the influence of several structural, operational, and ventilation system were evaluated on the concentration of the selected pollutants. The results showed that the mean concentration of CO (12.0 ± 7.2 mg/m 3 ) and PMs (PM 1  = 171.5 ± 119.6 μg/m 3 , PM 2.5  = 303.3 ± 201.9 μg/m 3 , PM 10  = 440.3 ± 272.2 μg/m 3 ) were notably higher than the guideline levels. According to the results, open face/café area was influenced by the natural ventilation rate and the mean air exchange rate was 3.1 ± 1.1 min -1 . The natural ventilation has a functional role on air quality of the cafes, and fan-type mechanical ventilation was influencing factor on CO concentration when the natural ventilation was restricted. "Type of used charcoal" had the highest influence on the releasing of pollutants inside the cafés as the pollutant concentrations were lower for simple (raw) charcoal compared with the favored (aromatic) one. The results indicated that the building characteristics and natural ventilation considerably affect air quality of the cafes.

The transfer of water from the source to the consumption point is always associated with the possibility of contamination in any of its various components. To resolve this problem, the World Health Organization has considered a water safety plan. The purpose of this study is to implement water safety plan in the water supply system of Bukan city. This study was performed on Bukan's water supply system in 2019-20 using a software to guarantee the quality of the water safety plan and the WHO and IWA guidelines. The software checklists were prepared and after confirming the validity of the translation and its facial and content validity, it was completed based on the records of the Water and Sewerage Company and interviews with experts. Out of a total of 440 points of full-application of the program and 392 points for the reviewed phases, 183.6 points were acquired and 43.7% of WSP-coordinated implementation was observed. The highest percentage of WSP-coordinated implementation (75.2%) was assigned to the validation stage with the highest point, and the support program stage had the lowest percentage of performance (1.1%). Among the major components of the water supply system, the final consumption point received the most attention from the system. Given the lifespan of the introduction and use of WSP in the world, it was expected that better results would be obtained from evaluating the implementation and progress of this approach in Bukan's water supply system. However, the implementation rate of this program in this city compared to other cities in Iran, showed that according to the implementation time (one year), the obtained results are relatively convincing and good and the water supply system has a moderate level of safety., Competing Interests: Conflict of interestThe authors confirm no conflicts of interest associated with this publication., (© The Author(s) 2020.)

There is limited information about pesticide contamination in Iran's agricultural land, particularly in plains producing exportable fruits. The aim of this investigation was to evaluate the concentration of organochlorine pesticides (OCPs) including hexachlorocyclohexane (HCH), heptachlor, dichloro-diphenyl-trichloroethane (DDT), chlordane (CHL), and their isomers compounds in agricultural soils of southern Iran. A total of 28 topsoil samples were collected from agricultural lands of Dalaki and Shabankare areas, Bushehr, Iran. In Dalaki area, the mean value of ΣHCH (α, β, γ, δ), ΣDDT (o,p-DDE, o,p-DDD, o,p-DDT, p,p-DDE, p,p-DDD, p,p-DDT, and DDT), and ΣCHL (Trans-chlordane, Cis-chlordane, Heptachlor-exo-epoxide, and Heptachlor) was found to be 0.411 ng/g (dry weight, dw), 4.37 ng/g dw, and 2.04 ng/g dw, respectively. In Shabankare area the mean value of ΣHCH, ΣDDT, and ΣCHL was measured to be 1.38 ng/g dw, 11.99 ng/g dw, and 1.62 ng/g dw, respectively. The concentration trend of pesticides in both areas was as follows: DDT > CHL > HCH. Source identification indicated recent usage of HCH and DDT in the studied areas. Obtaining a cis-chlordane/trans-chlordane ratio greater than one in Shabankare farmlands showed that chlordane was not used recently. The health risk assessment showed that children and adults groups in both areas are exposed to negligible cancer risk. More serious attempts are necessary to reduce usage of OCPs during the agricultural process and the protection of soil and human health in the studied areas., (Copyright © 2019 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.)

Bushehr, a port along the northern part of the Persian Gulf, has repeatedly encountered dust storms in recent years but there is not been a comprehensive study on the PM 2.5 contents in this region. The present study reports the characteristics and health risks of atmospheric PM 2.5 -bound heavy metals (HMs) in Bushehr from December 2016 to September 2017. A total of 46 samples were analyzed, and a high volume air sampler equipped with quartz fiber filters was used for sampling. Inductively coupled plasma optical emission spectroscopy (ICP-OES) was also used for HMs analyses. Risk assessment and hazard index (HI) of these metals were computed by using USEPA's exposure parameters. The results showed that the average 24-h mass concentration of PM 2.5 ranged from 22.09 to 292.45 μg/m 3 . The results also indicated that 95.65 and 82.61% of the samples were higher than WHO and EPA guidelines for 24-h PM 2.5 . Also there was no statistically significant relationship between wind direction and PM 2.5 .The average concentration levels of seven measured metals (Cd, Co, Cr, Fe, Ni, Pb, and V) in the PM 2.5 samples were in the range of 6.03 ng/m 3 to 1335.94 ng/m 3 , and the order of their concentration was Fe > Ni > Pb > Cr > Cd > V > Co. Principal component analysis (PCA) showed that PM 2.5 -bound heavy metals were categorized in three groups. The ecological risk level of calculated metals was very significant, and the major contribution of the ecological risk was related to Cd. The highest HQ in children and adults was related to Cr, and overall HI in children was higher than adults. Also the RI values of Cr in both groups of children and adults were indicated high risk of developing cancer in human.

The natural clay is an abundant, accessible, and low-cost material that has the potential for use in the water and wastewater industry. In this paper, Iranian natural clay and clay/Fe-Mn composite were used to remove toxic arsenic from the liquid environment. The natural clay and clay/Fe-Mn composite were characterized by scanning electron microscopy (SEM), Fourier-transform infrared spectroscopy (FTIR), energy-dispersive X-ray (EDX), X-ray diffractometry (XRD), thermo-gravimetric analysis (TGA), and atomic force microscopy (AFM) techniques. The effects of parameters (initial pH, temperature, sorption dose, and contact time) on the efficiency and behavior of the arsenic(V) adsorption process were studied. Freundlich (R 2 = 0.945 and 0.989), Langmuir (R 2 = 0.922 and 0.931), modified Langmuir (R 2 = 0.921 and 0.929), and Dubinin-Radushkevich (R 2 = 0.706 and 0.723) models were fitted to evaluate the equilibrium data of arsenic(V) adsorption process by natural clay and clay/Fe-Mn composite, respectively. The Langmuir adsorption capacity of arsenic(V) by the natural clay and clay/Fe-Mn composite was determined to be 86.86 mg/g and 120.70 mg/g, respectively. The arsenic(V) adsorption process followed the pseudo-second-order model. Negative values of ΔG° and ΔH° showed that the arsenic(V) sorption by the studied materials is thermodynamically spontaneous and exothermic. According to the findings, the natural clay and clay/Fe-Mn are suitable and recyclable sorbents for arsenic(V) adsorption from aqueous solutions. Also, the composite of clay with iron and manganese can improve the efficiency of clay in the removal of arsenic.

To determine the concentration of particulate matters (PM 2.5 and PM 10 ), 36 samples were collected from indoor/outdoor air of hookah cafés (HS), cigarette cafés (CS), both hookah and cigarette (HCS), and no-smoking building (NS) in Tehran City from December 2017 to March 2018. The mean ± SD of PM 10 concentration in the indoor air of the cafés in terms of HS, CS, HCS, and NS sites has been 702.35, 220.20, 1156.60, and 60.12 μg/m 3 , while for PM 2.5 , the values have been 271.92, 111.80, 619.10, and 22.25 μg/m 3 , respectively. It was also found that the PM concentration inside the cafés was higher during weekend session (with a higher number of active smokers), than during the weekday sessions. Moreover, the PM levels in the indoor air of the cafés were considerably higher than those of the outdoors (p < 0.05). Based on path analysis, the number of "active smokers" had the highest influence on production of PM inside the cafés, followed by the tobacco type. Finally, the mean excess lifetime cancer risk (ELCR) for PM 2.5 in the indoor air of cafés was observed in the range of 0.64 × 10 -5 -14.98 × 10 -5 . Also, the mean of hazard quotient (HQ) for PM2.5 and PM 10 was calculated in range of 0.82-18.4 and 0.16-3.28, respectively, which corresponds to an unacceptably high risk for human health. The PM levels in the indoor air of smoking cafés in Tehran are significantly high, such that it can cause serious risks for the health of both the customers and personnel. Thus, it is necessary that suitable controlling strategies be adopted for this public health threat.

Asbestos, as with other pollutants in the air, has adverse effects on the health of human beings and animals. Today, the relationship between presence of asbestos fibers in the air breathed by humans and developing serious diseases such as lung cancer (asbestosis) and mesothelioma has been proven. This study was designed and conducted within the time period of August 2017 and June 2018 to determine the concentration of asbestos fiber in the ambient air of Shahryar City and to evaluate their health effects for the general population of the city. For this purpose, samples were taken from four points, and overall 32 air samples were taken along the year. The samples were then analyzed by the phase contrast microscopy (PCM) method. Also, to investigate the type of asbestos and for more accurate counting of fibers, SEM analysis was utilized. Finally, based on the EPA IRIS method, the health effects resulting from asbestos risks were also evaluated. The results of this study indicated that the mean annual concentration of asbestos fiber in the ambient air of Shahryar City was obtained as 0.0019 f/ml PCM and 0.0072 f/ml SEM. Furthermore, the most polluted point was S1 point (0.0119 -0.0026 f/ml, PCM), while the lowest concentration was related to S4 point (0.001 f/ml PCM-0.0021 f/ml SEM). The mean annual risk resulting from airborne asbestos fiber in the ambient air of Shahryar City for all samples was obtained as 1.72 × 10 -6 to 2.2 × 10 -4 , which was higher than the recommended risk range in some points.

Phthalate acid esters (PAEs) are widely used as plasticizers in various plastic products and have aroused considerable concern over their ubiquitous presence and potentially hazardous effects on the environment. This research provides the first data on PAEs distribution in the sediments of northern part of the Persian Gulf. To determine the concentration of 16 PAEs, 26 samples of sediments were collected from industrial stations (IS), urban stations (US), agricultural stations (AGS), and natural field stations (NS) from Asalouyeh Harbor coasts from Nov 2016 to Jan 2017. The mean values of Ʃ16PAEs in the samples taken from IS, AGS, US, and NS were 78.08, 11.69, 46.56, and 5.180 µg/g, respectively. The results indicated that the mean concentrations of Ʃ16PAEs in the samples taken from IS and AGS areas were significantly higher (p < 0.05) than the ones taken from US and NS areas. The order of PAEs concentrations in sediment samples were as di(2-ethylhexyl) phthalate (DEHP), di-n-butyl phthalate (DnBP), butylbenzyl phthalate (BBP), and di-n-octyl phthalate (DnOP), respectively. DEHP was detected in all collected samples and the mean ± SD of its concentration in the IS, US, AGS, and NS regions were as 28.15 ± 4.9, 4.040 ± 0.53, 11.58 ± 1.2, and 1.780 ± 0.78 µg/g, respectively. The major sources of PAEs in the sediments collected from the study region were associated with the industrial and agricultural activities. The findings of this study indicated that the sediments of the Asalouyeh coasts are heavily contaminated with PAEs. They have shown potential ecotoxicological effects on the aquatic organisms and benthic. Therefore, more attention should be paid to prediction of the marine ecosystem in this region by the authorities., (Copyright © 2018 Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.)