Tiziana Centofanti

• PhD
• Environmental consultant at RTDS Group

This paper describes work carried out within the EU-funded FOOTPRINT project to characterize the diversity of European agricultural and environmental conditions with respect to parameters which most influence the environmental fate of pesticides. Pan-European datasets for soils, climate, land cover and cropping were intersected, using GIS, to ident...

Performance of compost and biochar amendments for in situ risk mitigation of aged DDT, DDE and dieldrin residues in an old orchard soil was examined. The change in bioavailability of pesticide residues to Lumbricus terrestris L. relative to the unamended control soil was assessed using 4-L soil microcosms with and without plant cover in a 48-day ex...

This book contains 22 chapters covering topics on the ecophysiology, mechanisms of adaptation to climate change and practical uses of halophytes.

Duration: 48 months • Work package: WP7 • Work package leader: Bálint Balázs • Deliverable Title: Co-production of the policy assessment • Nature of deliverable: Report • Dissemination level: Public • Deliverable description: From the conceptual and methodological approach established in Task 7.1, we generated an analytical framework to determine h...

The potential of growing guayule (Parthenium argentatum A. Gray) as an alternative crop for saline, boron- and selenium-laden soils in the Westside of central California was evaluated in both greenhouse and drainage sediment field experiments. In the greenhouse experiment, salt and boron (B) tolerance and selenium (Se) accumulation were evaluated i...

We examine two aspects of decentralized governance by conducting lab-in-the-field experiments in five villages in Central and Eastern Europe. We experimentally test the effect of (1) democratically elected local leader’s endorsement and (2) citizen’s participation in the choice of environmental public goods (EPG) on their voluntary contributions. O...

In California, there is a shortage of good quality water available for irrigated agriculture due to severe drought. Consequently, saline groundwaters and drainage waters containing natural-occurring selenium (Se) and boron (B) salts are being considered as alternative sources of water for irrigation on salt and B tolerant crops like the edible halo...

The food- and feed-value systems in the European Union are not protein self-sufficient. Despite the potential of legume-supported production systems to reduce the externalities caused by current cultivation practices (excessive use of N fertilizer) and improve the sustainability of the arable cropping systems and the quality of human diets, suffici...

The food- and feed-value systems in the European Union are not protein self-sufficient. Despite their potential to improve the well-being of arable cropping systems, sufficient production of high-protein legume grains in Europe has not been achieved due to multiple barriers. The reasons are multiple and span economic, agronomic, research, and exten...

The 3th Continental Legume Innovation Network (C-LIN) workshop was held on the 16th - 17th of September 2019 in Ljubljana, Slovenia, hosted by the Jozef Stefan Institute and co-hosted by the University of Hohenheim. The meeting brought together actors and professionals involved in all parts of the regional legume agri-food chain (LAFC), to interact...

Intensive agriculture and meat-based westernized diets have brought a heavy environmental burden to the planet. Legumes, or pulses, are members of the large Fabaceae (Leguminosae) family, which comprise about 5% of all plant species. They are ancient crops whose popularity both for farmers and consumers has gone through several stages of acceptance...

This Deliverable presents the result from the application of a policy Delphi and highlights how experts assess the potential of governance contexts that may favour the realisation of legume-supported value chains.

Aims Excessive boron (B) can pose toxicity to many plant species, and consequently restricts land utilization in B-laden regions. The purpose of this study was to identify “agretti” (Salsola soda) as an alternative B-tolerant food crop. Methods Both pot and hydroponic experiments were conducted for measuring biomass, total phenolic content and B a...

In arid regions, saline soils naturally rich in trace elements require identifying new crops and implementing management strategies for sustaining crop production and protecting water quality. Poor quality water produced from such soils can be utilized to grow specialty crops that are specifically selected for tolerance to high salt and B, such as...

BACKGROUND Sustainable agricultural practices are needed to face current threats to agricultural production in areas where water scarcity, recurrent droughts, and decreased soil quality are endangering productivity and food security. Deficit irrigation (DI) practices consist of reducing irrigation applied at levels below full crop evapotranspiratio...

Abstract – Introduction. The cultivation of drought tolerant crops and the application of deficit irrigation (DI) strategies are necessary agronomic measures for sustainable agriculture in arid regions of the world and in areas that are experiencing recurrent water shortages (i.e., Central California). Pomegranate is a drought tolerant fruit tree a...

This study assessed potential bioaccumulation of various trace elements in grasses and earthworms as a consequence of soil incorporation of organic amendments for in situ remediation of an orchard field soil contaminated with organochlorine and Pb pesticide residues. In this experiment, four organic amendments of differing total organic carbon cont...

Trace elements (TEs) occur at minor concentration (>1 g kg−1) in the organisms, and some are essential nutrients (Cr, Mn, Fe, Co, Ni, Cu, Zn, Mo, B, and Cl) for animals and plants. As a consequence of human activities such as industrial production, mining, transport, and agriculture, they are released in the environment at high concentrations. TEs...

Selenium containing soil amendments might be beneficial to growers as selenium may increase resistance to certain plant pathogens and pests. Therefore, grapevines growing in soil with different amounts of selenium-laden amendment were evaluated for selenium effects on plant metabolism and susceptibility to Pierce’s disease (caused by the bacterium...

One type of harsh environment for plants is metal- and metalloid-contaminated or mineralized soils: these exists in most countries due to geological formation or to a history of mining and/or smelting. Depending on soil pH and fertility, metal-rich soils may be barren and eroding into wider areas. Some elements present risk to humans, wildlife, liv...

Aims An improved understanding of the Ni root-to-shoot translocation mechanism in hyperaccumulators is necessary to increase Ni uptake efficiency for phytoextraction technologies. It has been presumed that an important aspect of Ni translocation and storage involves chelation with organic ligands. It has been reported that exposing several Ni hyper...

Recent studies have shown that application of phytohormones to shoots of Alyssum murale increased biomass production but did not increase Ni shoot concentration. Increased biomass and Ni phytoextraction efficiency is useful to achieve economically viable phytomining. The objective of this study was to evaluate the effect of two types of phytohormon...

Aims Past studies have demonstrated that hyperaccumulators absorb Ni from the same labile pools in soil as normal plant species. This study investigated whether the Ni hyperaccumulator plant Alyssum corsicum possesses distinct extraction mechanisms for different Ni species present in soils. Different Ni species have different solubilities and poten...

Hyperaccumulator species of the genera Alyssum can accumulate 100 times more Ni than normal crops and are therefore used for phytomining and phytoextraction of nickel contaminated soils. Basic studies on the physiology and metal uptake mechanisms of these plants are needed to increase efficiency and uptake capacity of Nickel (Ni) by hyperaccumulato...

IntroductionThe Nature of Soil Contamination where Phytoextraction may be AppliedNeed for Metal-Tolerant Hyperaccumulators for Practical PhytoextractionPhytoremediation Strategies: Applications and LimitationsPhytostabilization of Zinc-Lead, Copper, or Nickel Mine Waste or Smelter-Contaminated SoilsRecovery of Elements from Phytoextraction BiomassR...

Nickel (Ni) is essential for all plants due to its role in urease activation. Demonstration of Ni essentiality has required exceptional effort to purify nutrient solutions to remove Ni; thus, an improved technique would make study of Ni deficiency more available to diverse researchers. As part of our research on Ni hyperaccumulation by plants, we d...

To determine if the Ni-hyperaccumulator Alyssum corsicum can absorb Ni from the kinetically inert crystalline mineral NiO(s) (bunsenite). A. corsicum and A. montanum plants were grown for 30days in a serpentine Hoagland solution. NiO was provided at 0 or 0.1g L−1 (1.34mmol L−1) as reagent grade NiO particles <1 μm diameter, continuously mixed by ae...

The spatial and temporal heterogeneity of field soils influences the fate and behavior of strongly sorbing pollutants and their entry into the food chain. We studied the redistribution of surface-applied 54Mn, 65Zn, 57Co, and 134Cs in the soil profile and their recovery in the aerial parts of maize grown on an untilled agricultural soil during the...

Structure-induced non-uniform water flow induces a heterogeneous distribution of surface-applied radionuclides in the soil profile. This study was conducted to assess the amount of 134Cs which can be taken up by a single root growing in an area enriched in 134Cs relative to the total amount of 134Cs that can be taken up by the whole root system gro...

The radiological impact of radionuclides released to the terrestrial environment is usually predicted with mathematical models in which the transfer of radionuclides from soil to the plant is described with the transfer factor (TF). This paper questions the validity of the protocols proposed by the International Atomic Energy Agency to measure TF i...

To investigate the persistence and transport efficiency of flow paths in structured soils, two radiotracer experiments have been performed in unsaturated, untilled agricultural loams (eutric cambisol above glacial moraine). In both experiments, four radioactive tracers (54Mn, 57Co, 65Zn, and 134Cs) and a Brilliant Blue dye solution were applied pri...

New programs for the development of forestry and fruit crop production needs to be focused to the increase of biological and genetic resources. Therefore, a priority aspect is the identification of the origin and characteristics of the propagation material. Particularly in protected areas, the sanitary and genetic controls of the propagation materi...