Environmental Sustainability Issues in the South Texas Mexico Border Region

Environmental Sustainability Issues in the South Texas Mexico Border Region

David Ramirez Jianhong Ren Kim D. Jones Harriet Lamm Editors Environmental Sustainability Issues in the South Texas Mexico Border Region

Editors David Ramirez Department of Environmental Engineering Texas A&M University-Kingsville Kingsville, Texas 78363, USA Kim D. Jones Department of Environmental Engineering Texas A&M University-Kingsville Kingsville, Texas 78363, USA Jianhong Ren Department of Environmental Engineering Texas A&M University-Kingsville Kingsville, Texas 78363, USA Harriet Lamm Texas A&M Engineering Experiment Station Partner Outreach College Station, Texas 77845-3470, USA Logos reprinted with permission ISBN 978-94-007-7121-5 ISBN 978-94-007-7122-2 (ebook) DOI 10.1007/978-94-007-7122-2 Springer Dordrecht Heidelberg New York London Library of Congress Control Number: 2013947815 Springer Science+Business Media Dordrecht 2014 This work is subject to copyright. All rights are reserved by the Publisher, whether the whole or part of the material is concerned, specifically the rights of translation, reprinting, reuse of illustrations, recitation, broadcasting, reproduction on microfilms or in any other physical way, and transmission or information storage and retrieval, electronic adaptation, computer software, or by similar or dissimilar methodology now known or hereafter developed. Exempted from this legal reservation are brief excerpts in connection with reviews or scholarly analysis or material supplied specifically for the purpose of being entered and executed on a computer system, for exclusive use by the purchaser of the work. Duplication of this publication or parts thereof is permitted only under the provisions of the Copyright Law of the Publisher s location, in its current version, and permission for use must always be obtained from Springer. Permissions for use may be obtained through RightsLink at the Copyright Clearance Center. Violations are liable to prosecution under the respective Copyright Law. The use of general descriptive names, registered names, trademarks, service marks, etc. in this publication does not imply, even in the absence of a specific statement, that such names are exempt from the relevant protective laws and regulations and therefore free for general use. While the advice and information in this book are believed to be true and accurate at the date of publication, neither the authors nor the editors nor the publisher can accept any legal responsibility for any errors or omissions that may be made. The publisher makes no warranty, express or implied, with respect to the material contained herein. Printed on acid-free paper Springer is part of Springer Science+Business Media (www.springer.com)

Acknowledgements This material is based upon work supported by the National Science Foundation under Grant No. HRD-0734850. Any opinions, findings, and conclusions or recommendations expressed in this material are those of the authors and do not necessarily reflect the views of the National Science Foundation. Special thanks to the Center for Research Excellence in Science and Technology (CREST) Research on Environmental Sustainability of Semi-Arid Coastal Areas (RESSACA) funded by the National Science Foundation, and the Institute for Sustainable Energy and the Environment at Texas A&M University-Kingsville. v

vi Acknowledgements For more information contact: CREST RESSACA Texas A&M University-Kingsville 700 University Blvd., MSC-213 Kingsville, TX 78363 Phone: 361-593-5556 Fax: 361-593-2069

Contents 1 Introduction to Environmental Sustainability Issues in the South Texas Mexico Border Region... 1 Harriet Lamm, David Ramirez, and Jianhong Ren 2 Pollution and Lifestyle Causes of Asthma and Allergies Among School Children of Tamaulipas, Mexico in the U.S. Mexico Border Region... 11 Laura Guerrero-Medrano, Prajay Gor, Ruth Reyna-Caamaño, Gerardo M. Mejia-Velazquez, Jesus Santos-Guzman, and Alvaro Martinez 3 Environmental Health Indicators for the Border Region Between South Texas and Northeastern Mexico... 25 Prajay Gor, Alvaro Martinez, Ruth Reyna-Caamaño, Gerardo M. Mejia-Velazquez, Laura Guerrero-Medrano, and Jesus Santos-Guzman 4 Characterization of Ultrafine Particles and Other Vehicular Pollutants Near an International Bridge in United States Mexico Border Region... 43 Yungang Wang, Jayanth Kumar Pudota, and Yifang Zhu 5 Evaluating the Impacts of Emissions and Global Temperature Perturbations on Air Quality in South and Central Texas... 63 Neelesh Sule, Zuber Farooqui, Jhumoor Biswas, and Kuruvilla John 6 Manufacture and Physical Characterization of Wood-Derived Activated Carbon from South Texas Mesquite for Environmental Applications... 79 Amrutha Sakaray and David Ramirez vii

viii Contents 7 Assessment of Nutrient and Heavy Metal Levels in Manadas Creek, an Urban Tributary of the Rio Grande in Laredo, Texas... 97 Brianna Flores, Jianhong Ren, Sushma Krishnamurthy, and Wayne Belzer 8 Antimony and Arsenic Isotope Distribution in a Semi-Arid Creek During the Wet Season... 117 Marcia Baeza, Jianhong Ren, Sushma Krishnamurthy, and Thomas C. Vaughan 9 Characterization of Brackish Groundwater Desalination Concentrate Discharge Impacts on Water Quality in a Texas Coastal Area... 139 Yaneth P. Gamboa and Lee W. Clapp 10 Evaluation of Hydraulic Residence Time Distribution (RTD) Characterization and Monitoring in a Constructed Channel Wetland in South Texas... 159 Celia de la Mora Orozco and Kim D. Jones 11 Recovery of Aquaculture Treatment Constructed Wetlands Function After Prolonged Flood Inundation Events in South Texas... 179 Kim D. Jones and Brian Dyson Index... 197

Contributors Marcia Baeza Department of Environmental Engineering, Frank H. Dotterweich Wayne Belzer Environmental Management Division, International Boundary and Water Commission, United States Section, Clean Rivers Program, El Paso, TX, USA Jhumoor Biswas Indian Institute of Social Welfare and Business Management (IISWBM), Kolkata, West Bengal, India Lee W. Clapp Department of Environmental Engineering, Frank H. Dotterweich Brian Dyson Department of Environmental Engineering, Frank H. Dotterweich U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, Washington, DC, USA Zuber Farooqui Department of Mechanical and Energy Engineering, University of North Texas, Denton, TX, USA California Air Resources Board, Sacramento, CA, USA Brianna Flores Department of Environmental Engineering, Frank H. Dotterweich Surface Mining and Reclamation Division, Railroad Commission of Texas, Austin, TX, USA Yaneth P. Gamboa Department of Environmental Engineering, Frank H. Dotterweich College of Engineering, Texas A&M University-Kingsville, Kingsville, TX, USA Prajay Gor Department of Environmental Engineering, Frank H. Dotterweich ix

x Contributors Laura Guerrero-Medrano Instituto Tecnológico y de Estudios Superiores de Monterrey (ITESM), Monterrey, Nuevo León, Mexico School of Medicine and Health Sciences, Tecnologico de Monterrey, Monterrey, Nuevo León, Mexico Kuruvilla John Department of Mechanical and Energy Engineering, University of North Texas, Denton, TX, USA Kim D. Jones Department of Environmental Engineering, Frank H. Dotterweich Institute for Sustainable Energy and the Environment, Texas A&M University- Kingsville, Kingsville, TX, USA Sushma Krishnamurthy School of Sciences, University of Louisiana at Monroe, Monroe, LA, USA Harriet Lamm TAMUS LSAMP Project, Texas A&M Engineering Experiment Station, College Station, TX, USA Alvaro Martinez Department of Environmental Engineering, Frank H. Dotterweich Gerardo M. Mejia-Velazquez Instituto Tecnológico y de Estudios Superiores de Monterrey (ITESM), Monterrey, Nuevo León, Mexico Center for Environmental Quality, School of Engineering and Information Technologies, Tecnologico de Monterrey, Monterrey, Nuevo León, Mexico Celia de la Mora Orozco Institute for Sustainable Energy and the Environment, Texas A&M University-Kingsville, Kingsville, TX, USA National Research Institute for Forestry, Agriculture and Animal Production, Mexico D.F., Mexico Department of Environmental Engineering, Frank H. Dotterweich College of Engineering, Texas A&M University-Kingsville, Kingsville, TX, USA Jayanth Kumar Pudota Department of Environmental Engineering, Frank H. Dotterweich College of Engineering, Texas A&M University-Kingsville, Kingsville, TX, USA David Ramirez Department of Environmental Engineering, Frank H. Dotterweich Center for Research Excellence in Science and Technology Research on Environmental Sustainability of Semi-Arid Coastal Areas (CREST-RESSACA), Texas A&M University-Kingsville, Kingsville, TX, USA Jianhong Ren Department of Environmental Engineering, Frank H. Dotterweich

Contributors xi Ruth Reyna-Caamaño Instituto Tecnológico y de Estudios Superiores de Monterrey (ITESM), Monterrey, Nuevo León, Mexico Center for Environmental Quality, School of Engineering and Information Technologies, Tecnologico de Monterrey, Monterrey, Nuevo León, Mexico Amrutha Sakaray Department of Environmental Engineering, Frank H. Dotterweich FutureNet Group, Inc, Detroit, MI, USA Jesus Santos-Guzman Instituto Tecnológico y de Estudios Superiores de Monterrey (ITESM), Monterrey, Nuevo León, Mexico School of Medicine and Health Sciences, Tecnologico de Monterrey, Monterrey, Nuevo León, Mexico Neelesh Sule Providence Engineering & Environmental Group, Irving, TX, USA Thomas C. Vaughan Department of Biology and Chemistry, Texas A&M International University, Laredo, TX, USA Yungang Wang Environmental Energy Technologies Division, Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory, Berkeley, CA, USA Yifang Zhu Environmental Health Sciences Department, Jonathan and Karin School of Public School, University of California, Los Angeles, Los Angeles, CA, USA Center for Clean Air in the Institute of Environment and Sustainability, University of California, Los Angeles, Los Angeles, CA, USA