Plastic pellets are worldwide contaminants that accumulate in the ocean, especially in sandy beaches, where their historic standing-stock quantification relies on surface sediment samples. We demonstrated these particles present a three-dimensional instead of a simple along-across shore distribution, being found as deep as 2.0 m, with surface layers accounting for <10% of the total abundance in the sediment column. This gradient seemed to be more related to oceanographic rather than anthropic processes, suggesting a general pattern whose applicability to microplastics and sedimentary environments as a whole should be investigated. This poses criticism in the exactness of standing-stock records and demands urgent discussion of sampling protocols.

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Microplastic contamination of coastal environments is a global problem and pellets used in industrial processes are a persistent and worldwide form of microplastic pollution. Regions that host port and petrochemical facilities are well known sources of plastic pellets to local and adjacent coastal areas. This study assessed pellet densities over regional and local scales to provide a greater understanding of the spatio-temporal variation in inputs to sandy beaches. Pellets were used as a proxy to undertake a multiscale assessment of the spatial (local vs. regional) and temporal (tides and weather) stranding of microplastics. Microplastic variability differed between local and regional scales. Regional variation was driven by weather (i.e., rainfall) and distance from source. Local-scale variability was driven by distance from source (along shore), tidal cycle, and beach hydrodynamics. Our results address the drivers of large spatio-temporal variability in microplastic pollution and provide useful information for monitoring programs by pointing to the need to consider variability in inputs over both regional and local scales.

RESUMO: Diante de perspectivas bastante pessimistas a respeito da disponibilidade dos recursos hídricos nas próximas décadas e da tecnologia disponível atualmente, deve-se lançar mão dessas tecnologias com vistas ao uso eficiente da água. A NBR 16782 (ABNT, 2019) propõe que os edifícios possuam um gestor de água, alguém, entre outras funções, seja responsável por acompanhar o consumo de água da edificação, identificar possíveis desvios neste consumo e conduzir a tomada de decisões para corrigir essas anomalias. Este artigo descreve uma lógica para o uso da automação predial como uma ferramenta no auxílio na detecção de anomalias no consumo de água. A partir da integração entre um sistema de automação predial já existente e os hidrômetros também já existentes, é proposta a implementação de lógicas de alarme que levam em consideração o histórico de consumo dos últimos cinco dias úteis para identificar desvios na demanda de água dentro de janelas de 15 minutos. Essa lógica pode ser útil para a tomada de decisões do gestor de águas sem necessariamente investir em novos equipamentos.

The objective of this work was to engage students from public schools of São Paulo coast (Brazil) in the study and control of litter on beaches. Two public schools from coastal cities of São Paulo State (Peruíbe and Ubatuba) had students trained to sample and quantify marine litter on beaches. After this training, using Google Earth images, two beaches of each city were chosen to be studied. On each beach, samples were taken in the 100 meters of the selected stretch. The residues were classified by type of material and type of item (seeking to associate to sources). After the sampling surveys, the students were oriented to the data analysis. The students prepared a presentation with sampling results, hypotheses to explain the possible origin of the marine litter and measures that could be taken to reduce the problem on the studied beach. For both schools, this workshop revealed great students’ involvement during all process, from the field-work and data analysis, to the development of hypothesis and solution propositions. The beaches of Peruíbe were more isolated and in one of them most of the waste was coming from the sea, which carried litter from boats and nearby villages. Meanwhile, the beaches of Ubatuba were urbaner and had high occurrence of construction materials, indicating a miss-managed discard of litter by local residents. The main outputs of these workshops were: (1) giving the students an experience of how a scientific project is developed, (2) generating reliable data on marine litter in the school areas, (3) stimulating discussion about sources and proposing solutions and (4) establishing a cooperation network between the school and the university.Keywords: marine litter, monitoring, beaches, citizen science

Este artigo busca investigar, perfunctoriamente, os moldes da instituição, restituição, compensação e isenção das contribuições previdenciárias no que tange ao trabalhador incapacitado ao exercício laboral. O acidente do trabalho e as doenças ocupacionais causadores da incapacidade permanente se relacionam intensamente com o direito previdenciário e, sendo assim, estes influenciam na concessão dos benefícios por incapacidade, quando possuírem natureza acidentária. O percurso metodológico do trabalho concentra-se na pesquisa exploratória bibliográfica, tomando-se como referência a análise de indicadores nacionais.

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