Mussel meal is a potential source of protein, with a good composition of amino acids, for laying hens and broiler chickens, and may replace the use of fish meal in organic poultry production. Lead and cadmium are heavy metals which occur in the environment and can be accumulated in mussels. When poultry are exposed to heavy metals, the metals are absorbed in the small intestine and distributed in the body in the form of ions, complexes or bound to proteins. In poultry, lead accumulates in bone tissue, liver and kidneys, while cadmium accumulates in liver and kidneys. Generally very low concentrations of these heavy metals occur in muscles of broilers which have been exposed to feed contaminated with cadmium or lead.

Yeast and Clostridia is a problem in silage for farmers as contaminated silage may result in poor animal health and milk quality. Clostridia can produce toxins that, when consumed, acts as neurotoxins, it may also cause blown cheeses if the Clostridia contaminates milk. The purpose of this study was to investigate the cause, effect and interaction of yeasts and Clostridia in silage. Clostridia are microorganisms which are strictly anaerobic and consume carbohydrates and protein in the silage. Yeast is a fungus that is facultative aerobic and feed on carbohydrates in the silage.

During the last ten years the cultivation of maize in Sweden has increased and is expected to grow further. Most of the maize in Sweden becomes silage which is used to feed animals at farms. Maize has in other countries been shown to be a substrate for growth of mould and especially Aspergillus spp., Fusarium spp. and Pencillium spp. has been reported.

Background: Postoperative infections are a serious patient safety problem and affects about 3 % of all patients undergoing surgery. The consequences are prolonged hospital stays, high social costs, increased use of antibiotics and impaired quality of life for the patient. It has been shown that postoperative infections may be caused by contamination already in the operating room. Today we know that there is growth of microorganisms on the instrument table´s top, but there is a research gap about the instrument table's edges.Aim: To examine if the sterile drape on the instrument table´s edges are sterile after finished surgery.Method: Contact plates are printed on strategically selected areas on the sterile drapes top and edges. In the pilot study, a total of 51 cultures were taken at the end of three operations which lasted over three hours.Results: Growth on the top surface and the edges of the sterile drape were detected.

Neospora caninum is an intracellular parasite that was first recognized in dogs in 1984. The parasite is now one of the most commonly diagnosed infectious causes of abortion in cattle word wide. N. caninum is transmitted to cattle in two ways. They may be infected from eating food contaminated with oocysts from a definitive host or they may be infected in utero from an infected mother. The infection is transmitted efficiently from cow to her offspring and this can occur for generations.

In the country of Jordan, egg production is very important economically, but several bacte-ria are involved in food borne diseases transmitted from eggs or other poultry products. The most important are Salmonella spp., Campylobacter jejuni and Escherichia coli. In Jordan two different housing systems are used for hens in large scale egg production; con-ventional cages and litter floor systems. Eggs from four different farms were analysed and compared to see if a difference could be found regarding the presence of pathogenic bacte-ria on the egg surfaces between these two systems. Total number of aerobic bacteria was analysed, the presence of Salmonella spp., C.

Stormwater run-off from surfaces such as roads or rooftops is often polluted with heavy metals and nutrients. Many of these substances can cause great damage in biota if they end up in the recipient. In Sweden constructed wetlands and ponds for treatment of stormwater are frequently used, since research has shown that these treatment ponds are reducing stormwater pollution considerably to a low cost. The knowledge of these pollutant removal mechanisms and how follow-up and assessment of the ponds should be performed is still limited.To determine the pollutant removal efficiency of the stormwater ponds it is recommended that flow-weighted water samples are collected from both the inflow and the outflow of the pond. This method demands considerable resources of time and money for installations and analysis.

The aim of the study was to map the extent of Fe, Cu, Pb, As, Zn and S contamination in the area surrounding the Nasa silver mine. The mine operated between 1635 and 1810 with some prospecting performed in 1889, and has become infamous for the gruesome ways that the indigenous people were treated during the early years of operation. This study tested three hypotheses through a geochemical survey: 1) sulfide oxidation is still active in the abandoned mine, 2) the soil downslope of the mine is contaminated by mine drainage, and 3) the stream downslope of the mine is affected in the same way. All three hypotheses were valid, as the results showed that still, >200 years after mining operations ceased, signs of the historical mining are clearly visible in the surrounding environment. Acidic conditions were discovered in surface waters close to the waste rock piles, which indicates active sulfide oxidation.

A variety of food is produced and passes the whole chain by processing, transport and trade and finally it ends up with the consumer. But in many cases, the food is disposed before it is eaten. Some of the produced food does not even pass the whole entire chain before it turns to waste. The question about food waste in debates is a case of access to food for every human beeing. It is question of consumption of the resources, waste management and an issue of environmental impact.

Farmers are required to make sure that cattles basic needs are met, but still every year cases of neglect occur where the farmer has not complied within the animal welfare law and regulations. The aim of this study was to investigate how cattle are affected physically and behaviourally by neglect in the form of underfeeding, starvation and lack of sanitation, which animals are most vulnerable to the impact and what prospects they have to recover. The study was conducted as a literature study and the results show that these types of neglect have a large impact on the cattle welfare. Underfeeding and starvation causes physical changes leading to reduced milk production, reduced muscle mass, impaired immune function, poor reproductive performance and changes in rumen microflora leading to decreased number of microbes and pH change. Physical changes due to the lack of sanitation consist of increased vulnerability to hoof diseases and mastitis, burns, and increased sensitivity to temperature.

Due to global climate change and the rising levels of greenhouse gases (GHG) in the atmosphere, the interest for seeking solutions for mitigation has increased. While much attention has been directed towards technical solutions such as carbon capture and storage (CCS), biogenic carbon sinks has also garnered significant attention. Previous studies have shown that coastal ecosystems such as seagrass meadows and mangroves have a much greater capacity for storing carbon (C) compared to terrestrial ecosystems. That raises the question if other coastal ecosystems, such as coastal wetland forests, that previously haven?t been considered as blue carbon habitats also contribute to coastal carbon sink capacity.

Agricultural drainage ditches are links between fields, lakes and oceans, having the potential to transport e.g. sediment and nutrients. When in a good condition, drainage ditches can act as sinks for e.g. phosphorus and sediments and prevent eutrophication downstream. The aim of this study was to determine the condition of one agricultural drainage ditch and to come up with suggestions for appropriate measures. The aim was also to determine which of the ditch?s properties that were possible to evaluate visually, which processes they represented as well as which properties required complementary physical analysis. This in order to contribute to the work of developing a method for determining the status/condition of agricultural drainage ditches.

Due to the climate change natural disasters expects to increase and in some areas the conditions for dissemination of hazardous pollutants from contaminated areas could be affected. Different inventories and mapping has been made to identify areas of risk for flood or avalanche around the country. At the same time inventory and treatment of potential polluted areas (MIFO objects) is progressing. In Ljungans run of area in Västernorrlands county is a exposed area due to the amount of clay and silt in the ground that are sensitive in the context avalanche. The area has also a lot of MIFO objects and risks of flood.This essay aims to investigate what data material that is available regarding MIFO objects, flood- and avalanche risks in Ljungans run of area in Västernorrlands county.

In times of increased flooding, enhanced by climate change, polluted stormwater poses an increased threat to the environment through contaminated water entering waterways. Bioretention utilizes natural processes in soil and vegetation to treat pollutants and combat this threat. Biochar produced through pyrolysis, has a high cation exchange capacity (CEC) and could therefore increase treatment in bioretention systems. This research applies a literature review, interview, and a model to explore the benefits and disadvantages of biochar in order to specify a soil-mix through an understanding of the production process and preferred application rate. High purification through CEC, increased water holding capacity, and carbon sequestration being the benefits discussed.

One of the most serious and economically important defects caused by clostridia in milk products is the late blowing of semi-hard cheeses.Clostridia occur naturally in soil and can contaminate milk through crops contaminated by dung and soil followed by a less successful silage process, that give them opportunity to grow unaerobically. When anaerobic conditions occur, such as storage of semi-hard cheese, they ferment lactic acid to butyric acid and the gases CO2 and H2.At the fusion of Arla and MD Foods, a series of changes were conducted on the MPN method for lactic acid fermentation for clostridia in milk. These changes resulted in an increased accuracy due to an increased number of test tubes and the change of media from MRCM to BBB, Bryant & Burkey Broth, that was thought to be more selective for Cl. tyrobutyricum, the organism mostly found in hard cheese. When the number of dairy farmers that were given quality reduction fines increased, the new method was suspected and a validation was conducted.The validation included inoculation of different clostridia and bacillus strains into BBB substrate and enzymatic testing of positive samples with Rapid ID 32A.