Recent Advances in Environmental Science from the Euro-Mediterranean and Surrounding Regions (3rd Edition)

This edited book includes over one hundred and eighty short papers that were presented during the third edition of EMCEI, which was held in Sousse, Tunisia, in June 2021. Nowadays, experts as well as most of the general public know that the Mediterranean and surrounding regions are facing environmental degradation that is accelerating at an unprecedented rate. The main causes are the natural and human induced climate change, increasing pollution, urban growth, and the overexploitation and unsustainable use of resources due to rapid population growth. The effects are seen in several indicators such as the warming, more frequent extreme events, severe droughts, water shortages, contraction of natural resources, changes in land use and landscape deterioration, decreasing agricultural yields, biodiversity loss, deterioration of the ecosystems, corrosion of the natural coastal environment, sea-level rise, and ocean acidification. In addition to these more recent issues, the Mediterranean and surrounding region naturally experience a number of hazards such as floods, droughts, desertification, fires, catastrophic forest diebacks, earthquakes, and volcanic eruptions.  By presenting a wide range of environmental topics and new findings relevant to a variety of problems in these regions, this book appeals to anyone working in the subject area and especially students interested in learning more about new developments in environmental research initiatives in light of the worsening environmental degradation of the Mediterranean and surrounding areas, making environmental and resource protection an increasingly important issue that impedes sustainable development and social well-being. The book addresses emerging environmental issues along with new challenges by focusing on innovative approaches that contribute to achieving a sustainable environment in and around the Mediterranean Sea and by highlighting to decision makers from relevant sectors the environmental considerations that should be integrated into their own activities.

Mohamed Ksibi:
High Institute of Biotechnology, University of Sfax, Tunisia

Mohamed Ksibi, completed his Ph.D. in 1993 in Applied Chemistry at the University of Poitiers, France. He also gained the Habilitation (HDR) in Chemistry from the University of Sfax, Tunisia, in 2003. He was appointed as Full Professor of Chemistry in 2009 at the Higher Institute of Biotechnology of Sfax (ISBS)). His areas of research interest include removal and toxicology assessment of persistent organic pollutants in the environment (water and sediment/soil). He has supervised 13 theses to completion and examined a further 4 Ph.D.s. He has also supervised 15 M.Sc. theses. He is Co-Editor-in-Chief of the Euro-Mediterranean Journal of Environmental Integration (h-index 27). He had been Institute’s Deputy Director of the ISBS from August 2011 until December 2017; he served as Director of the Department of Biotechnology and Health at ISBS from May 2008 until May 2011.

 

Abdelazim Negm:
Zagazig University, Zagazig, Egypt

Abdelazim Negm is Professor of Hydraulics (and Water Resources) at the Faculty of Engineering, Zagazig University, Egypt, since 2004. He got his Ph.D. in 1992 from Zagazig University (ZU) and his M.Sc. from Ain Shams University in the year 1990. He was Vice Dean of the Faculty of Engineering of ZU from 12/2008 to 12/2011 and was Head of the Environmental Engineering Department at Egypt-Japan University of Science and Technology (E-JUST), Egypt, from October 2013 to March 2016. Some of his papers were awarded the prize of the best papers. He is Editor of more than 35 Springer books with 12 volumes published in the Springer Handbook of Environmental Chemistry Series (HEC Series). He is Member of the scientific committee of several international conferences and Member of organizing committee of others and participated in more than 90 conferences as well.

 

Olfa Hentati:
Higher Institute of Biotechnology, Sfax, Tunisia

Dr. Olfa Hentati is Associate Professor (2019) at the Higher Institute of Biotechnology (ISBS), University of Sfax. She is Research Member in the Laboratory Environmental Engineering and Ecotechnology (GEET—LR16ES19) at the National School of Engineers of Sfax (ENIS) since 2006.  She received her Diploma in Biology and Functional Exploration from the Faculty of Medicine at the University of Tunis, Tunisia, in 1988 and her B.Sc. and M.Sc. in Cell Biology from the University of Poitiers, France, in 1993 and 1994, respectively, and Ph.D. in Cell Biology and Physiology from the University of Poitiers, France, in 1999.   In 2017, she earned her Habilitation in Biological Engineering. The focus of her research is on the use of terrestrial and aquatic organisms as bioindicators of chemical pollution, with particular emphasis to the influence of biological and environmental factors on the bioaccumulation of trace metals, raw and chemically treated dying wastewater, phenols and pharmaceutical residues.

 

Achraf Ghorbal:
ISSAT, Gabes, Tunisia

Professor Achraf Ghorbal is Co-founder of the Advanced materials, Applied mechanics, Innovative processes and Environment Research Unit. He was for 7 years (2013–2020) Vice-Director of the Higher Institute of Applied Sciences and Technology of Gabes—University of Gabes—Tunisia. He obtained his M.Sc. in Processes and Materials Engineering (2003) and Ph.D. in Chemistry of Materials (2006) from the University of Haute Alsace–Mulhouse–France. Then, he joined in 2007 the French Atomic Energy Commission (Commissariat à l'énergie atomique) in Saclay—France, as Postdoctoral Fellow. In 2008, he was hired as Assistant Professor, in 2015 had been promoted to Associate Professor, and in 2022 has been promoted to Full Professor in Materials Sciences at the University of Gabes—Tunisia. His research focuses on wastewater treatment, biopolymers, eco-materials, and bio-composites for environmental applications. His work has been internationally recognized by several prestigious distinctions such as the Springer Best Reviewer Award (2017, Euro-Mediterranean Conference for Environmental Integration).

 

Arturo Sousa:
Department of Plant Biology and Ecology, Universidad de Sevilla, E-41012 Seville, Spain

Arturo Sousa has a Ph.D. in Biology since 2004 and has worked as Faculty Member for 20 years in the Department of Plant Biology and Ecology of the Faculty of Pharmacy at the University of Seville (Spain), where he teaches different subjects related to Pharmaceutical Botany and Plant Biology. He is specialised in the temporal evolution of hygrophytic plant communities, landscape ecology, climate change, and wetlands. His research lines, which began with the study of diachronic changes in the hygrophytic vegetation of Doñana (Southwestern Spain), allowed him to establish multidisciplinary collaborations with specialists in limnology, climatology, and atmospheric physics. Such works eventually led him to diagnose the anthropogenic and climatic impacts on wetlands and vegetation of Southwestern Europe. Moreover, he stands out as Author and/or Editor of several books.

Jesús Rodrigo-Comino:
University of Granada, Spain, Spain

Jesús Rodrigo Comino, Ph.D. D.Eng., is a graduate in Geography, currently works as Assistant Professor at the University of Granada and was included for the second time in the World's Top 2% Scientists ranking by Stanford University. He got a Master in Territorial Planning and Geographic Information Systems (2013) at the University of Málaga/Granada, whose final work was divided into 3 national publications and a monograph. During his predoc stage, he obtained three scholarships for doctoral studies: DAAD (German Academic Exchange Service), La Caixa Foundation, and FPU (Ministry of Education, Spain). During this period, he completed his first doctoral thesis in geography between the University of Trier (Germany—2 years-) and Malaga (2 years) in 2018: “Actual geomorphological processes in sloping vineyards. A comparison between Ruwer-Mosel Valley (Trier, Germany) and Montes de Málaga (Málaga, Spain)”.

Sandeep Panda:
Gujarat Biotechnology University (GBU), Gandhinagar, Turkey

Dr. Panda is currently working as Assistant Professor of Industrial Biotechnology at the Gujarat Biotechnology University, India. His main research areas include (Bio) hydrometallurgical approaches for metal extraction from primary and secondary resources, bio-desulphurization, bio and chemical approaches for mine water treatment, and application of eco-friendly approaches for sustainable mineral-metal waste recycling and management. He has been involved (as Principal/Co-Principal Investigator and as Team Member) in many R&D and industrial research projects. As of today, he has published 54 international journal papers; 4 chapters and 5 Editorial books of high quality and impact that have received over 1650 citations, h-index—23. In 2020, he published an article in NATURE which is receiving much attention and appreciation from global leaders working in his area. His research works have been inviting the attention of several press and media.

José Lopes Velho
Aveiro University, Aveiro, Portugal

José Lopes Velho graduated in Geology from the University of Coimbra. He is an Associate Professor at the Department of Geosciences at the University of Aveiro in Portugal. He holds a Master's Degree in Economic and Applied Geology from the University of Lisbon and a Doctor's Degree in Geosciences, specializing in Mineralogy, from the University of Aveiro. He is a member of the Industrial Minerals and Clays Research Unit. He published 23 papers in international journals (Scopus h-index 8).

Ahmed M. El-Kenawy:
Mansoura University, Mansoura, Egypt

Prof. Kenawy is Assistant Professor of Climatology at Mansour University, Egypt. He was graduated with an M.Sc. degree in Environmental Informatics (UK) and a Ph.D. in Climatology (Spain). He has authored or co-authored more than 105 peer-reviewed contributions, 4 books, and 6 chapters, with almost 3100+ citations and a Hirsh index of 28 (Google Scholar). His research focuses on assessing, attributing, and projecting climate extremes in arid and semi-arid regions and their socioeconomic and environmental implications. The research that Dr. Kenawy and his collaborators undertake has spanned the Arabian Peninsula, Syria, Iraq, and Jordan in the Middle East, North Africa (Libya and Egypt), and Ethiopia, throughout Spain and also South America: a testament to the global reach and application of his research activity. He has also acted as Reviewer for more than 65 leading SCI journals in the area of climatology, hydrology, and environmentalsciences. He acts as Member in the editorial board of a range of SCI journals (e.g., Hydrosphere, Scientific African, Journal of Water and Climate Change, the Open Atmospheric Sciences Journal).

Nicola Perilli
University of Pisa, Italy

Nicola Perilli is an Italian professor at the Department of Earth Sciences, part of the Faculty of Mathematical, Physical and Natural Sciences at Pisan University. He is an expert in research studies of Paleoclimatology and Paleontology with skills and expertise in geological mapping, sedimentary basins, stratigraphy, geological processes, sedimentology, and quaternary geology. He published 36 papers in international journals (Scopus h-index 13).

 

Philippe Michaud:
Université Clermont Auvergne,  Clermont Ferrand, France

Philippe Michaud, Full Professor of biochemistry since 2005, is Head of the “4Bio” research group at the Institut Pascal, an interdisciplinary research laboratory of Clermont Auvergne University. He was Head of the biological engineering department of Polytech Clermont, a school of engineering of the Clermont Auvergne University, between 2012 and 2020. His scientific skills focus on the development of bioprocesses for obtaining polysaccharides from various sources and analysis of structure-function relationships. He has published 238 research papers and 21 chapters. He is Co-inventor of 14 patents, 3 of them leading to industrial exploitation. He has been Advisor or Co-advisor for 25 Ph.D. students. Since 2005, he has been in charge of more than 20 national and international research projects, funded or co-funded by the industry.

 

Riheb Hadji:
Setif 1 University, Algeria

Prof. Riheb Hadji currently works at the Department of Earth Sciences, University of Setif 1. He is Editor-in-Chief of the Journal of Water Engineering and Environmental Sciences and Head of the Laboratory of AppliedResearch in Engineering Geology, Geotechnics, Water Sciences, and Environment, Setif 1 University. He does research in geomorphology, geoinformatics (GIS), and remote sensing. His current project is “Risk management in Northeast of Algeria”. He has Scopus award of Earth and Planetary Sciences of Algeria for 2022. He has 123 research items and 18 projects. His skills and expertise are in geographic information systems, landslides, mining, mapping, slope stability, engineering geology, geotechnical engineering, geotechnics, soil mechanics, spatial analysis, environment, modeling, rock mechanics, geomechanics, numerical modeling in geotechnical engineering, soil stabilization, geoenvironmental engineering, digital mapping, geoinformation, geospatial science, geomatics, spatial statistics, numerical modeling, geomorphology, natural disasters, geological mapping, and finite element.

 

Giulia Guerriero:
University of Naples Federico II, Naples, Italy

Giulia Guerriero, Ph.D., is Professor of Comparative Anatomy and Cytology and of Cytotoxicology, Advisory Board Member for the “Interdepartmental Center for Environmental Research” and the Inter-university “Center for Studies on Bioinspired Agro-Environmental Technology” at the University of Naples Federico II, Italy. Further, she is Member for the “Center of Excellence for Research and Applied Studies on Climate Change and Sustainable Development (C3SD-NRC)” at the National Research Centre, Egypt, and the “Navrachana University Centre for Environment, Research, Innovation (NUCERI)”, India. She has published over one hundred research studies focused on the development and validation of oxidative stress biomarkers for non-invasive biomonitoring and bioremediation assessment; on the determination and monitoring of physiological fertility defenses; on biological pollution and biodiversity control and on repro-toxicology. Since 2021, she is Coordinator of the Mediterranean and Middle East Universities Network Agreement (MUNA) on the Board of Coordinators.

 

Rim Ben Arfi:
ENIG, University of Gabes, Tunisia

Dr. Rim Ben Arfi obtained her M.Sc. in Processes and Materials Engineering (2003) and Ph.D. in Chemistry of Materials (2007) from the University of Haute Alsace–Mulhouse–France. In 2008, she was hired as Assistant Professor at the University of Gafsa and then promoted to Associate Professor in Materials Sciences in 2022 at the University of Gabes—Tunisia. Her research focuses on wastewater treatment, bio-materials, and eco-composites for environmental applications. She authored and co-authored over 30 scientific papers (peer-reviewed papers, books, and chapters), and serves as Peer Reviewer for several journals (e.g. Euro-Mediterranean Journal for Environmental Integration; Advances in Materials Science and Engineering ). She played an instrumental role in national and international research projects.

 

Giuseppe Suaria:
Institute of Marine Science, National Research Council, Italy

Giuseppe Suaria is Early Career Researcher and Former Secretary of the OYSTER young scientist working group of EuroMarine. He is currently working as Full-time Research Scientist at the Institute of Marine Sciences of the Italian Research Council (CNR-ISMAR) in Lerici, Italy. Since 2013, his work has been focusing on the spatial and temporal patterns of abundance, distribution, composition, transport, and accumulation of plastic litter in the marine environment as well as on the harmonization of survey methods and sampling techniques for macro and microplastics in marine ecosystems. He has authored or co-authored 30 publications about plastic pollution in the marine environment, and in recent years, he has participated to 25 research expeditions in Antarctica, in the Arctic, the Atlantic Ocean, in the Mediterranean, and in the Black Sea, totaling well over 600 days of fieldwork at sea. In 2017, he had an active role during the Antarctic Circumnavigation Expedition (ACE), being responsible for sampling microplastics during the entire voyage.

 

Sebastiano Candamano:
University of Calabria, Rende, Italy

Candamano Sebastiano is Assistant professor in Materials Science and Technology (SSD ING-IND/22) and affiliated with the Department of Mechanical Engineering, Energy and Management (DIMEG) of University of Calabria from December 2011. He obtained the National Scientific Qualification (ASN) to function as Associate Professor in Materials Science and Technology (SSD ING-IND/22) from The Italian Ministry of Education Universities and Research (MIUR) in November 2020. He graduated in Chemical Engineering at the University of Calabria. He received his Ph.D. in Chemistry of Materials for Special Uses XVII Cycle at the University of Mediterranea of Reggio Calabria in 2005.  He is Member of AIMAT—Italian Association of Materials Engineering, CINCOMINET—Cementitious and INnovative COnstruction Materials Interdisciplinary NETwork, and ACI—American Concrete Institute-Italian Chapter.

 

Moncef Khadhraoui:
Higher Institute of Biotechnology, University of Sfax, Tunisia

Dr. Khadhraoui is a diploma of engineering in analytical chemistry holder and had earned his master’s degree in the same major from Tunis-Elmanar University, Tunisia, and got his Ph.D. in analytical and environmental chemistry from Gunma University of Japan. Then, he has been working for Sfax University at the Higher Institute of Biotechnology of Sfax (ISBS) for more than 25 years. His responsibilities include teaching theoretical and applied courses in the field of analytical chemistry and environmental pollution (pollution characterization, treatment, and abatement). Moreover, he is one of the ISBS founders and one of the pioneers who had participated in the creation of several license and master’s programs in the field of environmentand analytical chemistry. Further he is lecturing for master students at the Faculty of Medicine of Sfax in the above-mentioned fields.    He is also Very Active Researcher in the Laboratory of Environmental Investigation and Eco-technology and has published several research papers, books, and chapters.

Sihem Jebari:
National Research Institute for Rural Engineering, Water and Forestry (INRGREF), Tunisia

Prof. Sihem Jebari’s original background is Agricultural Engineering. She has been working as Researcher at INRGREF (Tunisian National Research Institute for Rural Engineering, Water and Forestry) since 1999. Her research work is focused on semiarid and arid areas. It involves water erosion modeling, climate change impacts on water availability, agricultural environment degradation, reservoir siltation, and transboundary water management.

 

Stefano Falcinelli:
University of Perugia (Italy), Italy

Stefano Falcinelli is Co-author and Co-editor of 3 books; Co-author of 188 scientific publications (134 full papers, 3 review articles, 21 short/abstract papers, and 30 chapters of books-proceedings)—h index=35; citations = 2343 (by ISI Web of Knowledge and SCOPUS); Corresponding Author on 66 papers.