Vicente Vergara-Flórez

Water pollution caused by petroleum-derived volatile organic compounds such as benzene, toluene, ethylbenzene, and xylenes (BTEX), as well as methyl tert-butyl ether (MTBE), poses a growing threat to aquatic ecosystems and human health. These contaminants, together with the organic matter and nutrients present in municipal wastewater, highlight the need for sustainable treatment technologies adapted to tropical conditions. This study evaluated the removal efficiency of BTEX, MTBE, and conventional pollutants using hybrid constructed wetlands (HCWs) that combine vertical subsurface flow (VSSF-CW) and horizontal subsurface flow (HSSF-CW) systems. Two plant species—Heliconia latispatha and Phragmites australis—were tested, along with a polyculture and an unvegetated control. The hybrid systems treated synthetic influents formulated to simulate contaminated municipal wastewater. Parameters including COD, TSS, N–NH₄⁺, N–NO₃⁻, P–PO₄³⁻, BTEX, and MTBE were monitored and analyzed using ANOVA and Tukey’s test (p < 0.05). Vegetated systems achieved COD removal efficiencies exceeding 85%, compared with 72% in the control. Phragmites australis obtained the highest removal of suspended solids (92 ± 3%) and ammonium nitrogen (88 ± 2%), whereas Heliconia latispatha exhibited superior phosphorus removal (84 ± 4%). The polyculture displayed a synergistic effect, achieving removal rates of 93% for benzene, 91% for toluene, and 88% for MTBE, with statistically significant differences relative to the control (p < 0.05). In conclusion, hybrid constructed wetlands planted with Heliconia latispatha and Phragmites australis demonstrated high efficiency and stability in removing BTEX, MTBE, and conventional pollutants under tropical conditions, positioning themselves as a sustainable, low-cost, and esthetically valuable treatment alternative.

Untreated domestic wastewater from rural areas poses significant risks to ecosystems and human health. Constructed wetlands (CWs) are a viable alternative for this wastewater treatment, enhancing nitrogen removal using substrates as carbon sources. This process is particularly beneficial for wastewater with low carbon-to-nitrogen (C/N) ratios, making the treated water suitable for agricultural irrigation. In this study, a Horizontal Subsurface Flow CW (HSF-CW) was evaluated using Canna hybrids and a mixed substrate of gravel and endocarp from oil palm fruit (EOP) as a carbon source to leverage its abundance in the region. It was also determined that the effluent complies with the permissible limits set by Resolution 1207 of 2014 from the Colombian Ministry of Environment and Sustainable Development, which establishes environmental standards for wastewater treatment to ensure environmental protection and enable safe reuse in agricultural irrigation. The key parameters analyzed included organic contaminants, heavy metals, nutrients, and microbiological indicators. Removal efficiencies of up to 91%, 94%, 98%, 52%, 73%, 78%, and 75% were achieved for BOD, TSS, total phosphorus, nitrates, nitrites, ammonium, and total nitrogen, respectively, demonstrating the CW’s strong performance in contaminant removal and meeting most standards for agricultural irrigation. Although the carbon source was not highly efficient, the overall system performance supports its viability for improving water quality and promoting sustainable agricultural practices in rural areas.

Municipal and industrial wastewater discharge is a longstanding environmental problem that pollutes water bodies, affecting both the landscape and human health. In the department of Sucre, Colombia, nearby urban sewage is discharged into the Arroyo Grande de la Sabana, and only Sincelejo city has a treatment system in place. Therefore, it is critical to identify effective treatment methods for removing contaminants from water. The objective of this study was to evaluate the efficiency of a constructed wetland (CW) with horizontal subsurface flow (HSSF) planted with Thalia geniculata for treating wastewater from the Arroyo Grande de la Sabana in Sucre, Colombia. The study investigated the effectiveness of a constructed wetland planted with Thalia geniculata for treating wastewater from the Arroyo Grande de la Sabana in Sucre, Colombia. Two different hydraulic retention times (HRTs) of 3 and 5 days were tested, and the plant population density was analyzed to determine the better adaptation of plants to the constructed wetlands. The results showed that on the fifth day of treatment, nitrate concentrations decreased by 33.22%, nitrite by 93.04%, and phosphate by 95.66%. Additionally, the biochemical oxygen demand (BOD₅) and chemical oxygen demand (COD) values decreased by 97.27% and 80.27%, respectively. On the third day of retention, turbidity, and total suspended solids (TSS) in the water decreased by 90.13% and 83.08%, respectively. The study concluded that the 5-day HRT was most effective in removing contaminants such as nitrites, nitrates, and phosphates, while the 3-day HRT was more efficient for TSS, turbidity, total coliforms (TCs), and fecal coliforms (FCs).

The Morroa aquifer, which is an essential source of water supply in Sucre, Colombia, with more than 500,000 users, may be at risk because of pesticide contamination that comes from different agricultural activities. The aim of this research was to evaluate the relationship between the presence of pesticides and the physicochemical properties of soils in the most vulnerable areas of the Morroa aquifer. Therefore, farmers were surveyed about pesticide usage and soil samples which were taken for analysis of pesticide and physicochemical properties. The results demonstrated that soils in these areas were relatively homogeneous in terms of texture, pH, cation exchange capacity and organic matter content. Pesticides detected in these soils were malathion, β-BCH, p-p’DDE, m-p’DDD, p-p’DDT, endosulfan, endrincetone, chlorpyrifos, dieldrin, endosulfan-sulfate, heptachlor-epoxide, and parathion. Physicochemical properties such as pH and texture of soils and intrinsic characteristics of the pesticide were found as the most influential variables according to statistical results. This study also presents a map of the spatial distribution of pesticide concentration according to the concentration of pesticides, which constitutes an important tool for the planning of agricultural activities that supports decision-making and the implementation of measures to mitigate potential impacts caused by pesticide pollution.

El pescado es la base de la alimentación en comunidades costeras y se desconoce el grado de infestación parasitaria de las especies consumidas en Coveñas y Berruga, golfo de Morrosquillo, norte de Colombia. Fueron colectados peces de gran demanda comercial Scomberomorus brasiliensis (sierra), Centropomus undecimalis (róbalo), Lutjanus synagris (pargo chino), Caranx crysos (cojinúa) y Mugil incilis (anchoa), para establecer el grado de infección parasitaria por nemátodos anisákidos y su relación con el estado de salud. Solo róbalo con un porcentaje de prevalencia parasitaria (%PP) de 68 % y anchoa con 29 % presentaron infección. El róbalo en la época lluviosa presentó 72 % y en época seca 64 %, mientras que la anchoa arrojó 23 y 34 %, respectivamente. En promedio, la intensidad parasitaria por nemátodos en los peces fue de 12,18 ± 4,01 para róbalo y 9,11 ± 3,31 para anchoa, lo que probablemente está relacionado con sus distintos hábitos alimenticios, por cuanto el factor de condición (FC) indicativo del estado nutricional y de robustez del pez es óptimo para anchoa (1,11) y bajo para róbalo (0,73). Igualmente se encontraron diferencias estadísticamente significativas respecto al FC en las cinco especies y las estaciones de muestreo (P = 0,0004 y P = 0,0000). Basados en la morfología observada en microscopio, se puede afirmar que los nemátodos aislados pertenecen a Contracaecum sp. correspondientes al tercer estadio larvar (L3).

En un predio ubicado en el municipio de Morroa, departamento de Sucre, en el Caribe colombiano, fueron construidas siete tipos de obras de bioingeniería, con el fin de rehabilitar los suelos y favorecer potencialmente la recarga del acuífero Morroa por aumento de la infiltración. El presente estudio describe las características de las obras construidas y la eficiencia de cada una en el cumplimiento de su fundamento técnico. Asimismo, fue evaluado el porcentaje de adaptación del material vegetal empleado en dichas obras. En términos generales los resultados técnicos obtenidos fueron satisfactorios, aunque es fundamental realizar educación ambiental y fortalecer el ejercicio de la autoridad con la comunidad de la zona, para garantizar la sostenibilidad de las obras de bioingeniería construidas.

En este estudio se realizó una evaluación de las compensaciones forestales realizadas en el marco del proyecto de implementación del Sistema Estratégico de Transporte de Pasajeros (SETP) del Municipio de Sincelejo – Colombia, con la finalidad de obtener un referente de eficiencia de estas. Inicialmente se recolectó la información secundaría representada en las resoluciones de permisos de aprovechamiento forestales y los informes de cumplimiento de las mencionadas resoluciones. Esa información permitió identificar el número de plantas y los lugares donde fueron sembradas. Posteriormente fueron inventariados los árboles existentes productos de las compensaciones forestales enmarcadas en el proyecto tomado como referencia del estudio y se estimó el volumen aprovechable total de los mismos, obteniéndose como resultado 8,07 m3. Este dato fue calculado de un total 1.141 especies a partir de medidas de altura aprovechable (Altura fuste) y Diámetro a Altura de Pecho (DAP). En función de la cantidad de árboles existentes se concluyó como positivo el impacto generado por las compensaciones forestales evaluadas, en cuanto a la producción de biomasa y captura de CO2.